| Report Type | Full |
| Peak(s) |
Mount Fuji - 12388 |
| Date Posted | 08/06/2016 |
| Date Climbed | 07/07/2016 |
| Author | nyker |
| Mount Fuji Trip Report |
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 Above, The Imperial Palace, Tokyo Mount Fuji Trip Report, Yoshida Route There is a Japanese proverb about climbing Mount Fuji: "He who climbs Mt. Fuji is a wise man; he who climbs twice is a fool." After climbing it, I actually disagree, and think it was a cool hike and I'd climb it again. Mount Fuji (or Fuji-san as it's affectionately known) is the highest point in Japan and one of the most sacred areas and certainly the most sacred mountain in Japan, in a country and culture where mountains are revered. As the veritable symbol of Japan it is a worthwhile climb if not for the hike and climb itself, but for the unique cultural experience which you'll likely not encounter anywhere else. Mount Fuji is named after the Buddhist goddess of fire "Fuchi" and is considered sacred to the Shinto goddess Sengen-Sama, for which a shrine is found on the summit.  While not reaching 14er status, "Fuji san" stands tall at 3,776m (12,389ft) and you will earn its summit with roughly +5,000ft gain or more from most routes up the mountain as this is one of those mountains with ultra prominence from the surrounding landscape. Given the fact that it is likely you'll be coming from Tokyo or another sea level location where you won't be acclimatizing to the altitude, assuming you don't live at higher elevations, the altitude could be an issue. Similar to Mount Taranaki in New Zealand, Fuji san is a near perfect cone volcano. Mount Fuji is one of, if not THE most heavily climbed peak on earth with an estimated 300,000+ people attempting the peak each year.  This is particularly astonishing given that the climbing season is really only July to August, maybe through early September, when probably 90+% of people climb. I was told 2010 had 321,000 climbers registered; that's an average of 32,000 people per week and over 4,500 per DAY climbing with some days having over 10,000 people on the mountain. Therefore, you're not climbing Mt Fuji for solitude, nor for any adrenaline pumping precipitous exposure, but maybe in the words of George Mallory, "because it's there".Logistics Getting to Mount Fuji was half the effort in climbing the mountain. First off, at the risk of stating the obvious, it's in Japan, not around the corner for most of us. From the city of Tokyo, assuming you're not driving, you must use some combination of taxi's, busses, subways and trains to get there. In a pinch or to avoid dealing with trying to navigate signs and directions, you can always take a taxi from the city to the mountain, but taxi's are very expensive in Japan and it probably would run $400 USD equivalent each way. There are no direct trains or busses that will take you to the mountain in one shot, so you'll need to transfer at least once. The busses are relatively cheap (~$25 equivalent, then another ~$17 from the bus station to the mountain via the "Climbers Bus". Don't assume most people speak English, they don't. In major hotels and information centers at hotspots you can find someone to speak English, but most taxi drivers, bus drivers, subway workers and police officers do not. You'll find some signs in English though in the main touristy areas, so with a little diligence, you should be fine most of the time. After staying in Tokyo the first night I planned to take a bus from Shinjuku to Kawaguchiko (which is only about 70 miles but takes 2.5-3+hrs to get there depending on traffic). Traffic moves slowly (relative to US highways) even when the roads are clear. So if you're in a rush, plan on leaving earlier than you think. Below is the Bus Station in Shinjuku - this is where most people will start out.  Make sure you're at the correct station, the right number pickup bay and take the right bus. When in doubt, ask around, people in Japan are generally very nice and will help you out if they can. The huts on the mountain were crowded and/or sold out and since I figured I wouldn't sleep well there and wanted to minimize crowds, I planned to stay in the town the night before the climb. I got to the bus station, found the right "Highway Bus" and was on my way. After the ~2.5hr bus ride from Shinjuku, I arrived at the Kawaguchiko bus station, a little town in the shadow of Mount Fuji. From the Kawaguchiko bus station it was easy to grab a taxi to the motel. Incidentally, if you need any last minute gear (like poles you cannot carry on a flight, there is a good outdoor gear store near the bus station in Shinjuku). A view of Fuji san from the streets of Kawaguchiko  The climb up Fuji is not all that tough and there are some good resources out there for information, but you need to do some research and pay attention to details. For planning this trip and climb, some of the terminology here was a bit confusing; for example the "Subaru Line" is a road (I thought it was a rail line, and it has nothing to do with (at least directly) a Subaru car or car shuttle as some thought. For the four main routes, the starting place (the effective trailhead) of each of the four routes is each called the 5th Station (I thought this was a train station, but it's not and just the name for the trailhead). To make things a bit more confusing, all four routes use the same name for their respective "trailheads" so there are four "5th Stations". Pay attention and make sure you tell a driver the route you're taking and don't just say "take me to 5th station" - depending on what town you're in, you might wind up on a different side of the mountain that you want to be on. To make things more confusing, many of the route maps look like the Tokyo Subway line map with no scale drawn on them.  Snapshot of the town where I stayed - Note the blue skies, they wouldn't last but was nice to see the landscape under the sun.  Don't expect to find a McDonalds or Subway here or any name brand hotels, but this was what I was looking for, a nice quiet little town with limited commercialism. I stayed in a small, secluded Ryokan (traditional Japanese motel/inn) set up against the mountains with a koi pond out front. The town was also located at roughly 3,000ft elevation, so while not ideal for acclimatizing and may not have made any difference, figured it was better than staying at sea level the night before and was a nice quiet town. This below shot was pretty cool and brought back many mountaineering memories; On the morning of my climb at about 2:00AM, from a distance, I saw the silhouette of Fuji with a line of climber's headlamps up the mountain from people trying to position to see sunrise on or near the summit and some hut lights. Reminded me of seeing a similar line of headlamps on Longs Peak from the vantage point at the Keyhole.  Which Route and when to climb As most popular peaks, there are ways to climb it so you don't have to climb with thousands of others (as is the case in August or most weekends). I chose a weekday, soon after the mountain "opened" for climbing and before the August holiday season. I also opted to climb in "reverse" ie: while most others slept in a hut the previous night and left at 2-3:00AM to see the sunrise, then all came down early/late morning, I started in the morning and had most of the mountain to myself on the ascent, and actually much of the descent as it turned out. For those starting out as I was coming down in the afternoon, they climbed with hundreds of others. There are four main routes on Mt Fuji, each has its pros and cons and each starts from an elevation of roughly 4,800ft to 7,800ft. I opted for the Yoshida Route partially because that is the classic, albeit most heavily travelled route. The Yoshida Route climbs the North side of the mountain and is located in the Yamanashi Prefecture (this is also why I chose to stay in Kawaguchiko, if you're climbing another route, staying in this town might not make the best sense). There are also routes that start from the base of the peak below the "standard" official climbing starting spots that will give you a good 10,000ft of elevation gain and are considered the "pilgrim routes". I'd like to do this longer route next time, however, for this trip I didn't have the time to work out the logistics and transportation for that option. The Climb From the Ryokan, it took 50 minutes to get from to the actual trailhead, known as the "Fuji-Subaru 5th Station" on the Yoshida Route. Mt Fuji is located in a beautiful national park which is now a World Heritage Site and the drive in is pretty similar to the feel of entering Rainier National Park with the winding road lined with tall conifers. The Trailhead lot at 5:00AM - uncharacteristically empty (this would change later in the day). The route starts towards the southern end of the parking lot, after you pay your 1000 Yen "voluntary fee" and you're on your way. When you pay, you get a nice little carved piece of engraved wood with Fuji on it as your "receipt" and souvenir.  The first half a mile or so is flat and actually descends for a quarter mile before the formal trailhead sign, then climbs in earnest with no drops, just UP.  As you climb up, you start to see the surrounding mountains high above the town of Kawaguchiko and neighboring areas, which are beautiful. There are a ton of mountains in Japan and hiking is popular here.  The terrain on this route and mountain has a little bit of everything from smooth graded trail down below, to some minor class 3 scrambling, loose sand, dust, sharp volcanic rock, lava, rock staircases and some grassy sections. While the mountain is surrounded by a lush forest down below, not too long after the 5th station starting point, you hike out of the forest and above tree line for the remainder of the climb. There are a lot of barriers constructed to help protect against erosion given the lack of vegetation on the steep volcanic slopes.  The climb up Fuji is more of a long hike with some scrambling sections, and while the vertical gain is meaningful, there is no real exposure unless you venture to the edge of the summit crater.  The climb is pretty steep the whole way up.  It is relentlessly steep though from start to summit and travels over rough volcanic terrain so can be both pretty loose in spots and sharp and uneven in others.  Note: few or no people. This is how you climb Fuji with no crowds. Many people were carrying and using bottles of oxygen on the mountain. Given its popularity with everyone, and like other popular peaks, you will see many unfit people on the mountain which are struggling with the physical effort who don't have the right gear. You will also see extremely fit people running up and down the mountain in trail runners, like you see on Mt Whitney or Pikes Peak. Many of these people were training for The Fuji Mountain race which was held on July 22nd starting from the nearby city of Fujiyoshida. You will see small children and seasoned mountaineers with all the latest new gear. I did see a few foreigners though ~95% of people were local Japanese. Approaching a hut  Some steep stairs right before one of the huts/stations on the mountain  Regarding feats of endurance, While I was impressed at some of the number of ascents some climbers had on Rainier and Whitney, numbering 400-500, I was even more impressed by seeing a story about 71 yr old Yoshinobu Jitsukawa making his 1,673rd ascent up Mount Fuji in 2014! There are apparently a few other climbers in the 1,500 ascent club. There are toilets on the mountain, though they are all pay toilets, requiring 200 Yen (about $2) to use them. So, note, bring several 100 Yen coins with you. There are few if any places you'll be able to stop and relieve yourself, especially in daylight with all the other people around, so plan on using these toilets. This would also be very frowned upon and unless an emergency would be a pretty big cultural faux pas. Here is one particularly precariously built toilet midway up the mountain. Note the 200 Yen sign (about $2 at current exchange rates).  For water: you don't have to carry that much water with you as you can buy it along the way. Most of the mountain huts are well stocked with food and drinks, though the prices increase the higher you go. A 500ml bottle of water in the parking lot is 100Y, then 200Y, 400Y and to 600Y near the top. There is no running water that I saw on the mountain anywhere so you either need to carry it all or buy some along the way. Some of the huts seem precariously placed on the edge of slopes and outcroppings which in an earthquake may not fare too well...  There are several "Stations" and mountain huts constructed on the mountain, each with some combination of food, shelter, restrooms, lodging and first aid, two even have police and rescue personnel. It's amazing how much infrastructure is built on this mountain. A view inside of one of the huts on the mountain. Interestingly many of the huts won't let you take a photo, even with a smartphone. Some didn't care.  The "Seventh Station" on Fuji san; there are ten stations, the tenth is on the summit crater rim  There are several Shrines on the mountain and a few torii gates placed in certain spots you must pass under.  Throughout the day clouds came and went and then eventually socked in the mountain later in the morning. Like many mountains, weather here I was told was volatile.   Just beneath the final push before reaching the summit crater, you'll soon see the Shrine and Torii gate with two guardian statues on either side. This is a pretty cool scene you won't see on many or any other peaks. Shrine in the distance, indicates summit is close...  Moving higher  Getting closer...  The summit crater is finally seen as is the remaining route to the actual summit. Similar to other peaks, such as Mt Rainier, the top out point from a route isn't the true summit. On Mt Fuji, at least when taking the Yoshida Route, the true summit is another hour hike/climb to the opposite side of the summit crater once you top out on the crater rim. Walking around the rim to the summit is referred to as "Fujisan Ohachi Meguri". In circumnavigating the crater rim enroute to the summit, you can climb over eight sub peaks; The true summit is called Kengamine Peak which is where the 3,776M elevation is measured and where a stone monument is placed.  Once on the rim of the summit crater, there is a nice trail, around the crater which will take you to the true summit on the other side.  The true summit is seen in the distance in the pic below  Some snow lingered on and around the crater. Approaching the summit below   While I was there, nobody on the summit spoke English, but we were all exchanging phones and cameras taking pics of one another. Not understanding one another had no negative impact on the enjoyment of the climb and summit experience. After walking around the summit crater track and spending some time on Kengamine Peak, I started down back towards the top out point on the Yoshida Trail. On the descent, the clouds rolled UP the mountain and basically became a near white out with visibility ranging between 50 feet and 150ft the way down. Later that afternoon it would start raining for two days straight, so I luckily just beat the storm. Panorama shot from the summit at Kangamine Peak; note buildings towards the right of the photo which is the top out spot for the Yoshida Route on the other side.  The descent is pretty straightforward, assuming you start your descent on the correct trail. Descending past the summit torii again, clouds are moving in.  Assuming you're on the Yoshida Route, below is the shot of the junction near the Eighth Station where you must make the correct turn (Left) rather than right (which takes you down the Subashiri Route, which is on the wrong side of the mountain). Apparently most mistakes on this route are here and most mistakes are made by foreigners. Note near whiteout conditions. I wasn't able to see this sign until pretty close to it. Turn LEFT here or you'll be in for a long night.  All but three routes use different descending trails than ascending trails and some intersect at some spots. For those that intersect, pay attention to which direction YOUR trail goes as if you take the wrong route, you'll wind up on the other side of the mountain and need to take a taxi or bus back (if either or available) or walk back up the mountain likely in the dark to get back on track. In speaking to some of the information guides there, apparently a lot of people have made this mistake and signs have been placed in key spots to help avoid this mistake. In nice weather in daylight, this might seem hard to do, but when the clouds come in (more often than not) or at night, it's easy to make a wrong turn at these junctures. Once you past this sign post above near the 8th station, the rest of the descent is fairly easy, but note that you will be on a different route from the one you climbed up, so if you want to get anything at the huts or souvenirs on the mountain (or get your "pilgrim hiking pole" stamped) you must do that on the ascent. Steep all the way down; visibility was nil  Socked in on the descent for the rest of the day.  In short, I'd recommend to anyone to climb Mt Fuji. While many people complain about the terrain, I thought it was a cool climb and would do it again, probably trying another route or the longer "pilgrim" route. Keys to success in Climbing Mt Fuji * Figure out transportation before getting to Japan to make your life easier (Bus reservations are needed in advance for the "Highway Bus") * Choose your Route and familiarize yourself with the map * Plan your sleep strategy before getting to the mountain; i.e. make reservations in huts or get a motel/inn the night before and after. Don't rely on chance to book them while there, you likely won't get a room, especially in August or a weekend; * Bring trekking poles. Saves the knees on the descent * Make the effort and hike the extra hour or so to the true summit. * Plan a backup day. You came too far to be turned around by bad weather, which happens frequently on this peak * Unless you want the full tourist experience with thousands of others, don't climb during weekends or the Obon August holiday * Bring several 100 Yen coins for toilets and extra cash for food and drinks on the peak. They don't take credit cards. * If you come off-season (i.e.: other than July-early Sept) you might be told you cannot climb or need written approval to climb in winter without a Guide. Plan this ahead if you want a snow climb. * While "only" 12,388ft, altitude and the effort can still impact you as you gain 5,000+ft, so some acclimatizing won't hurt if you live at sea level * Spend some time in Tokyo and explore the city. * Bring all your water since there are no water sources on the mountain; otherwise bring Yen cash to buy water at the Stations. Good Luck! Thumbnails for uploaded photos (click to open slideshow):
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