I arrived on a Tuesday and woke up early Wednesday with a wide awake alertness that ironically comes from jet lag despite little sleep. Feeling energetic I checked the weather for the top of Japan, Mt Fuji. My original plan was to spend a few days in Tokyo then hike/climb Fuji before proceeding on to the Japanese Alps but long range forecasts were not looking good. Wednesday and Thursday looked fine with Friday being questionable. A tropical storm was predicted to arrive sometime during the weekend. I figured my best bet for nice weather would be to ascend Fuji right away.
I threw together a very light day pack with warm weather gear and basic essentials. The plan was to take a bus to the 5th station Yoshida trail and rely on huts for food and accommodation. Mt Fuji is a huge draw for not only Japanese but for people from all over the world. There are several ways to do it but all require an honest hike with a minimum elevation gain of 4,500 feet to reach the summit. It’s not technical but you definitely have to earn the summit. The Yoshida trail reaches the summit crater rim in 4 miles which pretty much has you hiking straight up with some short switchbacks.
Ok, Fuji is a beautiful mountain and the pride of Japan as it should be but to say it’s a huge draw for hiker/climbers is a bit of an understatement. Thousands upon thousands of Japanese ascend it each year along with a large portion of foreign climbers. Logistically it’s a breeze. You can catch a direct bus from Tokyo to the trailhead that takes between 2 to 3 hours depending on traffic. The 5th station base/trailhead has several shops surrounding a village square reminiscent of something you might see in Europe. When I got there around noon the square was full of hundreds of people preparing to go up. I had heard about the crowds ascending Fuji so it was kind of novel to be experiencing it firsthand.
A healthy hiker can definitely leave early in the morning, hike to the top and return in a day no problem, however, if you’re going to climb Fuji the main objective, other than reaching the summit, is to watch the sunrise. Most people hike partway up, check into a hut for dinner and a little sleep, then get up early to the make the top in time for sunrise. There are fifteen huts along the route so you really don’t need much more than warm weather gear for the summit.
After a bowl of noodles I hit the trail. At first it was lots of people but the way was wide. As it narrowed hikers become bunched up. At some places it was single file and things moved along at a snail’s pace but everyone was nice and patient. At each hut things became a little congested as people stopped for green tea and things like that. A lot of Japanese were hiking in groups. Most of the groups seemed pretty young. All were very organized and had an air of camaraderie. Sometimes the leaders would be giving what sounded like an information/pep talk at breaks along the way. As I ascended I could see a snake line of hikers above and below. I began to wonder if I should have made a reservation at one of the huts.
As I got a good ways up the mountain I decided it was time to start inquiring about a space in a hut. The one I stopped at had one person who spoke minimal broken English. Space was available and I handed over $75 for dinner, breakfast, and a futon with sleeping bag sandwiched between, of all people, a group of U.S. Navy guys stationed in Japan on leave.
Everyone working at the hut was very nice. The accommodation although very basic was good and adequate if not a bit expensive. Management was organized and efficient. Things were well maintained. There was very little garbage anywhere as people appeared to be very good about packing it out. Most impressive is the management of human waste. All of the huts have proper toilets that work with composting technology or some king of magic. The ones I used were very clean and really didn’t smell much at all.
By time I settled into the hut I was feeling tired but wired. I went in and out to observe the chain of people ascending and took pictures of passing clouds. I had an early dinner at 4:30 and lay down for sleep shortly thereafter.
People started getting up at about 1 am. By 1:30 everyone was getting up. I went out to use the toilet and couldn’t believe the crowds of people. Everyone was wearing a headlamp so the chain now looked like a serpentine cluster of bobbing lights. I went back in and opened my boxed breakfast which had been given to me the night before. It contained vegetarian sushi, fresh thin sliced ginger, some kind of sweet rice something or other that looked like an egg roll (3) and a small can of green tea. I ate the sushi and a rice thing which was surprisingly good then got my things together for the hike up.
I left the hut feeling pretty good and was enjoying the experience. I’ve hiked a lot of mountains but the Fuji experience is very different with all of the people. I made it to the top of the rim rather quickly with plenty of time to spare before sunrise. The wind was blowing and it was cold.
Mt Fuji is an inactive Volcano. The Yoshida trail tops out on a of section of the Fuji crater rim that isn’t really the summit but it is the best place to watch the sunrise. There are a few buildings selling this and that and a shrine. People were lining up to get into one structure which I sensed was some kind of warming hut. It was still very dark, cold, and kind of windy. A half-moon partially lit up the sky and I didn’t feel like sitting around so I decided to circumnavigate the rim over the actual summit which is about a mile around. I adjusted my headlamp and searched out the trail.
After being amidst so many people it felt kind of strange starting out around the rim in the dark by myself. I was careful to stay on the correct path but wasn’t seeing anyone. I caught up to an older British gentleman turning back. He said he was too cold and appeared a little disoriented. I continued on. To me the trail was pretty obvious and an occasional signpost confirmed my status from time to time. It became a dreamy stroll with the lights of cities and towns in the distance ten to twelve thousand feet below. Lightly scattered clouds slept at about seven to eight thousand feet and a glowing half-moon above allowed me to turn off my headlamp. At about the mid-point I reached the actual summit at 12,355 ft. with a junky set of small towers, a little weather station, and a nice stone monument. From there I pressed on thus completing my way around to the top of the Yoshida trail to meet up with hundreds if not a thousand others to watch the sunrise.
A light glow started to appear above the horizon. Slowly the sun rose as I moved about taking photos. Just at the point where the sun made its full appearance a Japanese man raised his arm as he shouted something and followed it with a Banzai! By American standards I’d say it was pretty Awesome….
I spent a fair amount of time on the summit as the sun fully rose and took a few photos. The wind was picking up and I had been kind of cold for a while so decided it was time to head down.
Aside of the view the hike down is far less dramatic. It’s a different trail which is a steep set of switchbacks upon loose pumice gravel and dirt with dubious footing. The actual descent path is relatively wide and appears like it was carved out by some kind machinery or something. It’s good that they made a different way to go descend because if everyone went up and down the same trail it would be an absolute mess.
When I reached the bottom I purchased a bus ticket back to Tokyo and returned to the place I had previously booked into. I had prepaid for 6 nights so I didn’t move my stuff or anything. Needless to say I was tired. I showered, napped, went out for dinner, and went to sleep.
So far I am off to a busy start in Japan. Mt Fuji was at the top of my list so I am very happy I got to climb it. I would like to do some more hiking but It doesn’t really matter so much if I do or don’t. It’s more or less weather dependent at this point. For now it’s Tokyo until Monday then I will move on to somewhere else in Japan.
