Here, the landscape turns into a black-and-white photograph. The Satoyama landscapes—traditional village settlements nestled in mountains—are buried under meters of snow. It is here that you find the "Snow Monsters" of Zao Onsen: ancient fir trees coated in layers of heavy rime ice, standing like silent sentinels against a grey sky. A cable car ride to the summit of Mount Zao offers a view into a surreal, frozen kingdom that feels miles removed from the neon buzz of Tokyo.