Each winter, countless tourists flock to Japan's famous snow-covered mountains, but a lack of top-down regulation on the country's outdoor sports industry can make certain activities unnecessarily risky. | CANYONS

Japan is widely seen as one of the world’s safest countries. But that image doesn’t always hold up in the outdoors.

In March, while on a trip to enjoy Japan’s famed powder snow, Canadian freeskier Kai Smart died in an avalanche in Hokkaido. The 23-year-old from Whistler, British Columbia, was no stranger to the mountains, but even he was not spared the risks of Japan’s backcountry — unpatrolled terrain outside ski resort boundaries.

“We understand there are always risks involved in skiing (Japan’s) beautiful snowy mountains and are just deeply sad and shocked that we had to lose our beautiful son so early,” his mother, Julia Smart, tells The Japan Times in an email.…