Japan Archives - asthejoeflies

(Throwback Thursdays are a new feature here at asthejoeflies. They are stories from my travel experiences with zero regard to miles and points. Hopefully they inspire you, either to these destinations or beyond! Check out our long journey just to get to the foot of Mount Fuji in Part 1. I’ve forgotten a lot of the particulars and am relying on the internet to fill in the blanks, so please forgive me if I get some stuff wrong.)

There are a variety of ways to climb Mount Fuji. Most people, like us, don’t have the time to climb the 12,389 foot mountain from the base – though you can if you have the time and desire. Instead, like we did, most people will take a bus up to one of the 5th stations on the mountain. Each trail up the mountain is broken up into ten different “stations”, which are essentially landmarks. The Fuji Subaru Line 5th station (the one we got to from Kawaguchiko) is more than halfway up the mountain (7500 feet) and the base of the most popular trail up the mountain, the Yoshida trail. Many people just take a bus up there, hike for an hour or so, and then take a bus back down.

For those who want to reach the summit, the goal is usually to reach the top by sunrise. There are two widely used methods to do this. The first involves getting to 5th station sometime during the day and subsequently hiking up to one of the many sleeping huts on the trail. With a reservation, you can get a mat to sleep on in these huts. I think that the sleeping areas are communal and everyone is kind of crammed in together. Then you wake up around 4 AM and make the rest of the hike, hitting the summit in time for sunrise.

The second method, and the one we chose, is to take a night bus to 5th station and hike through the night, hoping to reach the summit by sunrise. The drawbacks to this method is it’s a bit of a race against the clock depending on your fitness level and your body has less time to adjust to the altitude. We were the last group to leave 5th station that night – it was absolutely deserted when we started our climb.

Hiking at night is something else. We hit the mountain equipped with multiple layers and winter jackets due to the cold and potential rain/snow, headlamps, walking sticks, food, water, and the oxygen canister my friend bought. We didn’t really need the headlamp for the beginning part of the hike. This first part runs through a tree lined area and then opens up to a beautiful view of some distant town. That was definitely the most enjoyable part of the hike, it was a very gentle slope and the view was spectacular.

At some point the tree line thinned out and suddenly we were just walking on volcanic rock. After that it was just switchback after switchback in the dark. The hike wasn’t difficult, I think we only had to scramble once or twice and that was only as a shortcut. But the air was thin and we were exhausted from all our travel – remember we had started in Taiwan that morning.

12:30 AM: 7th station so far so good

Thank goodness for the different stations and huts along the way. Every time we came upon a hut or a station, we’d sit and rest for a little while. As night wore into early morning our rest times increased – we even took 5-10 minute naps sitting up from time to time. I’m not sure whether taking a drag from the oxygen canister actually helped, but as a placebo it definitely made us feel better.

I remember one particular hut where the bench we were on was facing the wind in a way that it was just whipping into our face. The light drizzle accelerated through the wind and felt like hail for a bit there, but I was so tired I just closed my eyes and didn’t care.

At around 6 AM it was clear we weren’t going to make it up to the summit on time. We made it to about 3400 meters before rays of sun started breaking on the horizon (I think it’s near the old 8th station which is no longer operational). It seemed like we were going to have a nice view so we decided to just enjoy the sunrise from there.

Our slow ascent turned out to be a blessing in disguise, apparently the summit was all fogged in for that morning’s sunrise. After 8 or so hours of hunger, boredom, cold, and exhaustion on the hike, the sunrise truly made the entire thing worth it. We just soaked it in for 15 minutes, laughing, doing stupid pictures with our shadows, and enjoying the rewards of our labor. I don’t think pictures or words do the payoff justice, but that’s all I have for you.

An hour or so later we were at the summit and the three of us split the most expensive bowl of ramen I think I have ever paid for. It was incredibly satisfying.

The less said about the descent the better, but reader be warned: walking down a mountain and this one in particular is brutal. I’ve never enjoyed the descents of hikes, mainly because I feel like there is nothing really waiting for me at the bottom – no amazing view, no sense of accomplishment. It’s just drudgery and the way down Mount Fuji features some of the most boring switchbacks I have ever experienced in my life. It was just switchback after switchback on loose volcanic rock and ash, which got pretty nasty. The sun didn’t help either. Eventually we hit the tree line and things got pretty again but yikes did I hate that descent.

When we got back to 5th station it was nothing like the place we had left the night before. It was jam packed with people, many of whom would just do a short hike and call it a day. We passed through the crowd, indistinguishable from the masses. But we had accomplished something we would never forget.

Some useful Mount Fuji climbing sites:

Mount Fuji Climbing (old site, but I still remember using this one back in 2010!)

Japan Guide (basic info)

Mount Fuji Explorer (useful pictures)

My wife and I hiked Mount Fuji with our friend in July 2010. It was an amazing experience and one I’d recommend to anyone and everyone who is willing and able. Due to logistics, it was a very long trip just to get to Mount Fuji: we went straight from Taiwan to the top of Mount Fuji in about 24 hours. I wish I had kept a travel journal of our adventures, but alas, I did not. If I had though, it might have sounded something like this.

6:30 AM. Outside Taoyuan, Taiwan.

I groggily wake up and start my morning routine. Long day ahead. When you plan to climb Mount Fuji, you usually expect the climb to be the grind, but for me, the journey to Fuji will prove to be just as grueling. My wife and I take breakfast with our friends and then prepare to get to the airport. Taiwan has been a great time seeing friends and family but it’s time for our real vacation to start.

There’s not much to say about the airport, because there isn’t much memorable. Like many things that day, it’s just a blur =whose memories are clouded by a lack of sleep. But I do remember this; three of us board that plane to Tokyo, not quite sure of what lies ahead. The fourth in our party stays behind – she’s expecting and thus won’t be ascending Fuji with us. She’ll take a later flight, have a nice night at the Sheraton in Tokyo, and meet us when its all over. The three of us have a much different journey ahead.

1:55 PM. Narita Airport, Tokyo.

Our plane lands without incident. My attempts at sleep on the plane were waylaid by the adrenaline that has been increasing with every waking hour that day. We navigate the terminal looking for a train to Shinjuku. This is before the days of cheap international data plans, so we are left with just a map. As we drag our luggage through the airport, the crowds seem to be getting larger and larger. Before finding our train, we fill our water bottles, figuring we’ll need them before the day is through.

3:00 PM. Train to Shinjuku.

I go through the plan in my head. Take 6:10 PM bus from Shinjuku to Kawaguchiko. Drop our luggage off at the hotel. Gear up and catch 9 PM bus up to 5th station on Mount Fuji. Hike Mount Fuji and summit by sunrise. I wonder whether we’ll be able to make all our transfers on time, worry about what we’ll do if we don’t. I catch a few minutes of sleep trying not to think about that nightmare scenario.

4:30 PM. Shinjuku.

It feels like I’ve never seen this many people in my life. We are jostled from place to place, feeling completely lost. Nobody we meet speaks English or Chinese. The Japanese speaker of our party is currently on her way to the Sheraton in Tokyo, we think. I follow pictures that I printed out from some online website and ultimately find the bus station. We get our bus tickets; we’ll be on that 6:10 PM bus as long as we don’t drown in this sea of people.

It’s time to find something to eat; we’ve had nothing but prepared Taiwanese foods all day.

We find a random ramen restaurant. You walk in a buffet style line and choose what you want on your noodles. We mostly just point. Udon. Inari. The regulars. Whether it’s our exhaustion, the novelty, or hunger – the food is some of the best Japanese food I’ve ever had.

We take turns cramming into the small bathroom to make sure we have our climbing outfits on. It’s 6:00 PM – T minus 4 hours.

6:30 PM. Bus to Kawaguchiko.

I should be sleeping. Two things are preventing this. First, the aforementioned adrenaline. Second, we’re sitting at the front of the bus driving due west towards Mount Fuji. More like Land of the Setting Sun, am I right?

My companions are asleep, so I just look at the passing scenery. Some of it is beautiful, some of it is industrial. Mostly I just think about how much planning went into this, how many times I’ve run through the plan in my head, and the last few steps. It’s been a long day, are we seriously going to hike through the night? I must be crazy…

8:30 PM. Kawaguchiko

We can’t find our hotel. We’ve walked around for half an hour and have to give up, we don’t want to miss our bus up to 5th Station. I’m frustrated; we’ve walked all the way down a big hill dragging our suitcases and now have to walk all the way back up. We make it back to the bus station with 15 minutes to spare, find some lockers, and cram our suitcases away as best we can. Hopefully they’ll be there in the morning. Hopefully we’ll be there in the morning.

We double check our gear.

Pack – check.

Headlamp – check.

Snacks – check.

Water – check.

Extra clothing – check.

Walking sticks – to be procured at 5th station.

There don’t seem to be many other people waiting for the bus. I thought this was peak season for hiking Mount Fuji? We sit. A crosswalk jingle plays over and over again as the three of us think our own thoughts. Not much to say at this point. The bus pulls up.

9:15 PM. Bus to 5th Station.

Some tourist video plays in the background, but we’re all exhausted. My wife and our friend fall asleep, but at this point my adrenaline is maxed out. This is really happening.

9:55 PM. 5th Station Supply Store

It’s time to buy our walking sticks. Sure, we could have brought some from home, but these get branded at every station on the way up to the summit. Nothing like a souvenir. My friend decides to buy a can of oxygen. Hopefully we won’t be needing that later.

5th Station is deserted. There are obviously many stores that are open during the day, but there is only this one open here at this late hour. In fact, we are the last ones in the store and they hurry us out so they can get home.

We take some pictures outside of the store. The few hikers that were on the bus with us have already begun their summit. We are quite literally the last people to start up the mountain that night. And so it begins.

TBT: Sunrise on Mount Fuji (Mount Fuji, Part 2)

TBT: Planes, Trains, and Automobiles (Mount Fuji, Part 1)