«Perhaps ‹because it is there› is not sufficient reason for climbing a mountain.»
Spock to Captain Kirk, after saving him from certain death, in «Star Trek V – The Final Frontier»
During a vacation in Japan, I intended to climb Mt. Fuji, Japan’s highest mountain. It actually is a mountain (3776 m), or rather, a volcano.
However, it’s also very touristy with fixed routes, huts where you can buy water, snacks or other food, and where you can stay for the night. Well, if you pre-book it.
Given that the huts were already fully booked, I made a day trip, starting at Fuji-Yoshida’s Fuji Sengen-jinja shrine. And yup, I did ask for a safe and speedy ascent and descent.
The way from the shrine to Mt. Fuji is somewhat long (requiring an early start, did start at around 5:40 am), but leads through a forest. It’s quite nice and you walk in shadow, which is a plus in July’s 35°C temperatures. Long trousers might not have been the best decision here, but given the plants and insects, also not the worst.
There are signs that keep you on the right track (with one exception, which becomes clear after a few hundred meters). They also show distance and average time to the target.
There are also a couple of warnings signs — regarding a climb without preparation …
or some other risks …
BTW, the bear sign has no english translation, but Google Translate is useful here …
Once you get a bit higher, the view is quite nice:
The way from the shrine leads over the old Five Station, bypassing the new one.
As I had registered to climb Mt. Fuji and needed to refill my water bottle (and buy additional bottles of water), I made a detour to the new Fuji Subaru Line Fifth station (where most people start their ascent).
From this point on the way is less beautiful. The view is nice, but IIRC there are no longer trees and the like.
The view is usually nice, unless a cloud rolls over you and visibility drops. Quite cool when a cloud speeds over the ground and over you.
What really did help with the climb — and esp. the descent — was a walking stick. There are wooden sticks you can buy at the New Fifth Station, and brandings you can get for it at almost every station up the Mountain. Each has its own brand (between 500 and 1000 Yen).
You end up with a nicely decorated walking stick.
About 2/3s up the mountain, it became very windy and cold. A new dry cotton T-Shirt and a windproof jacket were indispensable here (besides the long trousers).
On the day of the climb, the top was very cloudy and windy.
And yeah, while each year some people die, both the way up and down are very well prepared. There are even vending machines on top.
More importantly, there is a shrine as well, which has it’s own Goshuin stamp:
and Emas:
Still, made it to the top, if not to the highest point. That is the weather station on the other side of the crater, but given the poor visibility and advanced time, I decided to start the descent.
The only thing the descent has for it is the view. The ground is volcanic material, which is soft and not that easy to walk on.
And again, the way is well prepared.
I did not go back to the Fuji Sengen-jinja shrine, but took the bus at the New Fifth station. Was too tired and wanted to return to the bed and breakfast in time. Plus there was an onsen in Fuji-Yoshida that was calling quite loudly 😉
Overall assessment, yeah, was interesting. Starting at the shrine was a good decision. The walk began in a nicer environment. Also it’s a bit more honest than taking a bus part of the way up.
On the negative side, I underestimated both distance and increase in hight. Altitude sickness can become a thing on Mt. Fuji and I found it hard to breath closer to the top. And given that I was concerned about the overall duration and really did not want to be on the mountain when it gets dark (no flashlight), I walked too fast in the beginning. The end result was that I was already tired when I arrived at the New Fifth Station. I had to force myself to walk, and take frequent breaks. As usual, Organic Maps (or Maps.me) was really helpful. Offline GPS-based tracking on a downloaded map. Great to find out where you are and how far it is to the destination.
And yeah, the top was a bust given how cloudy it was. But then, I did ask for a safe and speedy ascent and descent, not for a clear view, so I can’t complain.
So, yeah, could have gone better, but could have gone much worse. But testing one’s limits was cool in any case. 🙂