Oana Ski Area Closed

Oana was a ski area beside Route 291 north of central Minakami, near Yubiso station on the way to Mt Tanigawa. Opened around 1931, it was one of Gunma's oldest slopes and, until the mid-1960s, the only one in the prefecture right by a railway line, busy enough to get a winter-only stop for skiers. It had expert pitches up to 42 degrees and a town ski jump next door, and hosted the national high school championships and local races. After its operator went bankrupt in 1999, local residents kept it running, but ageing lifts and falling visitor numbers ended it after the 2018-19 season, with the final day on 10 March 2019.