Snow country (Japan)

The rather poetic snow country (雪国, yukiguni) can refer to any place with heavy or deep snows and is generally understood as a reference to the Sea of Japan side of Honshū (Japan's main island) and the area encompassed by the Japanese Alps, a series of mountain ranges that make up the island's backbone.

The heavy snowfalls of Japan's snow country are caused by moisture-laden clouds bumping up against the mountains along the backbone of Honshū and releasing their moisture under the influence of westerly winds blowing off the continent or down from Siberia.

As a result, the region includes some of the world's snowiest spots at the same latitudes, many localities are also frequently visited by avalanches.

Today in areas where temperatures are high enough to make it practical, many roads are equipped with sprinklers using warm ground water to keep them passable by melting the snow.

Strong winds over the nearby lake fling water droplets which freeze against the trees and their branches, until near-horizontal icicles begin to form.