In 1928, Prince Chichibu (son of Japan Emperor Taisho) skied the hallowed slopes of Utopia Piste (ユートピアゲレンデ) in the hills just west of Sapporo City. Two yeas later the Okuteine Yama-no-Ie Hut (奥手稲山の家) was built at the foot of that ski run, and still stands today. We visited the hut on an overnight ski trip to the Utopia Piste via the Okuteine River (奥手稲山の沢川) route - the most direct route to the hut - for some untracked skiing. Along for the trip was Jasper, a keen mix-breed Hokkaido-dog.