#goraiko

About half way through this ride, I realized I lied in my earlier Fuji post. We were not going to take the Yoshida trail in Yamanashi. Instead, we would take the Fujinomiya trail on the other side of the mountain. Great. But whatever. On our way to the Fujinomiya 5th station, we stopped and picked up 4 more climbers—a family from Norway—and then finally, after 2 and a half hours, we arrived at the station.

Once there, we unloaded our gear and split up, with instructions to do whatever we wanted for the next hour and a half. I spent the time eating lunch, buying some last minute supplies and a souvenir hiking stick at the shop, and researching about the unexpected trail.

(I had never heard of canned air before coming to Japan. Apparently, it’s a staple for Fuji climbing.)

The Fujinomiya trail is the second most popular trail. It is the shortest route to the top both in time (about 5-7 hours up) and distance (starting at 2380 meters), but it is also the steepest and therefore (in my inexpert opinion, at least) probably the most difficult trail (I’d choose length over constant stair climbing any day, but maybe that’s just me). These facts are the main reasons why, way back when I was researching paths up the mountain, I immediately claimed “nope, not that one” for Fujinomiya. It turns out in the long run I didn’t get much choice in the matter. Oh well.

After lunch, I sat around outside for a bit, just getting used to the air pressure at 2380 meters and admiring the view...

As you can see, it was very cloudy. There’s a mountain there, I promise. And finally, we all gathered back together for some stretching, a happy group photo, and determining our order for the climb. I would up partnered with another solo traveler from Portugal, and we got to hike right behind the guide.

To start, we climbed a set of stairs at the base of the trail and started the long trek to the top. The route to the 6th station was ridiculously easy. It only took about 15 minutes, had very few stairs and rocks, and we only gained about 100 meters in elevation. Still, our guide walked extremely slowly, setting the pace for the rest of the climb and explaining to my partner and I how he kept pace, by taking a step and then bringing his other foot up to touch his heel before taking another step. At this point, the pace seemed a bit silly, but we were all glad for it later. At the 6th station we stopped for a water break, and I got my first stamp on my mini hiking stick, proudly proclaiming that I’d made it through the warm-up without breaking a sweat, unlike the three Hawaiian group members, who were already a bit winded. It was at the 6th station that we were supposed to meet our final group member, who had stayed the night there the night before. But it turns out she started hiking without us at a very slow but efficient pace. We didn’t run into her until much, much later.

Then, after our brief rest, we took off toward the next leg of the climb. It took another hour of climbing to reach the 7th station, and the climb became a bit more intense. The path itself was much, much steeper, and we started having to climb up larger steps and rocks to make progress. But although I was a bit winded by the time we arrived, I was still okay and slightly more optimistic about my odds of completing the hike. The 7th station was at 2780 meters, meaning we climbed almost 300 meters in elevation from the 6th. Although it was the segment of the trail with the steepest elevation gain, the back and forth between steep path and steps made it seem like less. I rested at the station, got my stick stamped, ate a bit, and got ready for the next leg of the climb.

(One of the employees at the 7th station branding my mini hiking stick)

One would think that, after the 7th station would be the 8th station. But it doesn’t work like that on Fuji. Instead, the next segment led to the “old” 7th station, aka station 7.5. From here, the journey became much more difficult and steep. It took another 50 minutes to reach 7.5, and we climbed another 250-or-so meters. The trail became much more jagged, with plenty of large rocks to climb on and volcanic stones to lose traction on. I started to get out of breath toward the end of the trail, but I was still alright for a bit. We also passed this sign, which made me very happy, just before arriving at the next station.

I got my stamp and had a lengthy water break, resting quite a bit longer than at other stations to get used to the altitude again. We were past the 3000 meter mark, and so our guides were on the lookout for altitude sickness. At this point also, the clouds had returned full force, and we once again couldn’t see much of anything, up or down the mountain. It was also at this point that it started to rain a bit, so we all scrambled into our waterproof gear and hiking gloves. The next leg of the climb would be difficult, according to our guide, with plenty of large rocks to climb and a lot more altitude to climb in a short distance.

(The view from 7.5 looking down the mountain. Such a lovely view)

The actual length of the trail between the 7.5 and 8th stations wasn’t very long at all, but it still took our group over an hour to get there, having to slow down and/or rest every few steps. I had been right in my earlier assessment that the high leg lifts were much more difficult than the steep path had been, and the high altitude didn’t help. But we eventually reached the 8th station at 3250 meters, and I got the opportunity to catch my breath a bit more and eat something. It was also at this station that I realized I still had cell service, and started posting pictures on Facebook, pretty amazed that I had almost accomplished the day’s goal, while very nearly matching my guide’s pace.

We only had one more station to go before we could rest for the night, and we were doing pretty good on time, too. We rested for quite a while, until the chilly air finally caught up to us and we all started pulling on jackets and warmer hats. Then, we continued onto the last leg of the day’s journey, and climbed for another hour plus another 200 meters. We were all exhausted upon arrival, but amused to see the employees of the mountain hut at the 9th station cheering us on. Then they gave us all high fives as we practically crawled into the station level, and plenty of **お疲れ様でした’s were heard all around. 

We all collapsed onto the benches and waited for the poor exhausted Hawaiians and our second guide to catch up with us. At 3460 meters, we were only a little over 200 meters from the summit, and although we all wanted to hurry up and make it, we were exhausted enough to be glad that the day’s climb was over. We found our beds (and our final group member), changed, threw on our warmer clothes, and ate a lovely hot dinner of curry and rice. 

Then, we all headed outside to admire the view and all that we’d accomplished that day. We were even able to see the famous 影富士 (Shadow of Mt. Fuji) as the sun set and enjoy the feeling of being above the clouds.

Finally, around 7:00 we all collapsed into our futons, hoping to get at least a little rest before out bright and early wake up call.

Day 1 Summary:

Elevation Gain: 1100 meters

Trail Distance: roughly 3km

Start Time: 11:40 AM

9th Station Arrival Time: 4:30 PM

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The next morning, the lights came on at 2 AM. None of us had gotten much sleep, despite the early bed time, and we all grumbled a bit as we rolled out of bed and dressed for the day. We ate breakfast silently, wrapped up in our winter gear, and turned on our head lamps to begin the remaining trek to the summit.

Our exhaustion made the remaining 200 meter elevation climb much more difficult, and we all piddled along at a very slow pace, only made slightly better by the slow pace of all the other climbers ahead of us. We reached station 9.5 about 45 minutes later and rested for just a bit before continuing up to the summit. After a very steep climb, we finally arrived at around 4:15 AM, a good 30 minutes before the scheduled sunrise, though you could see the first bit of light rising up over the horizon.

Although we were technically at the summit, out guide recommended that we complete the hike by reaching the true highest point of the mountain, at 3776 meters. It turns out this is the main benefit to climbing the Fujinomiya trail, as it is the closest trail to the “true” summit.

After a short but treacherously steep climb up pure volcanic rock and dirt, we made it to the weather station and the monument dedicated to the highest point of the mountain. The lighting was a bit awkward for selfies, but I managed alright in the end. 

And finally, we climbed just a bit of the way down from the weather station to a lovely little plateau area at the edge of the crater, where we all plopped down on the edge to watch the mostly clear sky light up with the most famous sunrise in Japan, called 御来光 (Goraikou).

We all relaxed a bit after the sunrise, and sat down inside the hut at the summit to warm our frozen fingers and buy some overpriced souvenirs available only at the top of Fuji. I would have also liked to hike the crater and mail a post card from the top of the mountain, but neither happened. The crater hike would have taken an extra 2 hours—unfortunately, not part of our tour—and the summit post office wasn’t open yet to buy stamps (lame). But oh well. I was still very excited to have reached the top along with everyone else in my group (a rarity, according to our guides), even the Hawaiians who had difficulty the whole way up. I managed to get my stick stamped at the top—the last one—and around 5:30 we began out descent.

My phone died just after the sunrise, so I didn’t get to take pictures of other places on the summit, the group “we did it” picture, or on the trip down, but that was okay. We stopped for a lengthy food and water break back at the 9th station, before each of us split up to make it back down the mountain at our own pace. I took a steady pace, but barely stopped for rest at each station, eager to get to the bottom and knowing that I wouldn’t get up again if I rested for too long. I made it back to the 5th station by 10:15, and thanked the powers that be for the existence of hiking stocks the whole way down.

Back at the 5th station, I hobbled down the stairs to the cafeteria, popped my phone into an outlet, had a lovely bowl of sub-par ramen, and chatted with a couple other group members who beat me down. I waited on my phone to charge, took the obligatory “after” picture on my own, and dropped my stuff off at the bus while we all waited for the rest of the group to trickle down from the trail. 

It was after 12:30 by the time everyone was accounted for. We piled into the bus, dropped the Norwegian family, who opted out of the onsen due to their understandably exhausted 12-year-old, off at the train station, and drove to the onsen where I got the happy job of educating everyone on onsen etiquette. It wasn’t even close to the best I’ve been to, but there were showers, several hot baths (one even with jets!), and a clean atmosphere that was probably good for a group of foreigners. We all felt loads better after scraping all the sweat and volcanic dust off our skin, and then we ambled back to the bus and fell asleep on the way back to Tokyo.

Once there I managed to find my hotel with ease thanks to my guide’s helpful advice. I had planned to drop my things off and head over to Shibuya to try the new Taco Bell, but I could barely bring myself to walk out of the hotel. As a result, I wound up wolfing down some Burger King instead, and the crawling into bed where I actually got my first restful sleep since before work on Tuesday.

Day 2 Summary:

Elevation Gain: 316 meters Elevation Descent: 1396 meters

Trail Distance: roughly 4km

Start Time: 2:30 AM

5th Station Arrival Time: 10:15 AM

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Just over 2 years ago, I stood at the Subaru 5th Station at the start of the most touristy Fuji trail with Mom and laughed at the groups of people lined up to climb the tallest mountain in Japan. I never thought I’d actually want to attempt the climb myself, and I certainly never thought I’d try. Today, I am happy that I changed my mind, and very happy that I succeeded. And despite the fact that I can’t move my legs right now, I did it. Fuji may not even come close to being the tallest mountain in the world, or even in Asia, but it’s definitely one of the most famous. I was able to climb to the top and back at a decent pace without having to turn around and go home, and I also got to see the sunrise despite the cloudy weather of the first day. The photos don’t even come close to doing the experience justice, and I can't even begin to describe how amazing it felt to stand at the summit of that mountain and see what is surely one of the most beautiful and famous sunrises in the world in the Land of the Rising Sun.

I’m not sure I’ll ever climb another famous mountain again, but I guess the possibility exists now, which makes me very happy. I am glad I was able to climb Fuji, though, and I’m looking forward to many more (though much less famous) hikes and (baby) mountains in the future. For now, though, it’s time to look ahead to more traveling—next week is Korea already, I can’t believe it!

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**お疲れ様でした