The charming hamlet of Myoko on Japan’s main island is home to some of the oldest ski areas on earth, and is based below the volcanic mass of Mount Myoko. The current summit of the active volcano is its lava dome, but the caldera is 2 miles wide and is a dazzling landscape of ridges, summits and steam vents.

While ski touring above the top of the Myoko Akakura ski resort on a beautiful afternoon, I couldn’t resist the knowledge that the summit of Mt. Myoko was just a short 1-2 hour climb above my location. While time was running short for such a foray, I was confident that there was just enough daylight to complete the round trip.

This ambition was greatly rewarded as the evening light turned gold, then pink, then purple and finally dark blue, and the surrounding landscape was painted in the most delicate shades of pastel. A twilight ski back to the village was the icing on an amazing evening in the mountains.