Mt. Fuji

Hello, it’s Ian. I thought I would add a post about my climb to the top of Mt. Fuji. I left on the night of September 15 with Rodelyn, Ritchie (Rod’s brother), Paul (Rod and Ritchie’s friend), Tark (a member of our US office here on a business trip) and Monma-san (one of Rod’s colleagues) from Tokyo at 10:30 at night. We were hoping to be able to climb through the night in order to see the sunrise from the top of the mountain. From Tokyo, it takes about 3 hours to get to Fuji, so by the time we arrived and started the climb, it was 1:30 AM. The sun was scheduled to rise at 5:30, so we had less than 4 hours to make it to the top. I figured since Fuji is such a tourist attraction that the trail would be well groomed and a fairly easy hike. Boy, I was wrong. It was far from it. The mountain is volcanic, so the trail was all volcanic rock, most of it loose pack and slippery. Definitely not the type of trails I was used to back in the States. No hard pack dirt here. There are 10 stations along the trail from the bottom of the mountain to the top. We were able to drive up to station 5 and start our hike from there. I was able to stop at a few of the stations to rest and grab a snack and some water on the way up. But, the closer I got to the top, the less I wanted to stop. So I pretty much just skipped the last couple of stations and took mini breaks as I climbed. It was definitely harder to catch my breath the further up I went. All in all, it took me 4 hours to get to the top. Unfortunately, I still missed the sunrise by about 5 minutes. It had already come over the horizon by the time I got there. Oh well, it was worth a shot anyway. It was still a pretty awesome view from the top. And cold. The temperature was right around freezing and I did see a few icicles. Needless to say, I didn’t stay long, not as long as I had hoped. My hands were starting to get too cold. The trip down the mountain was harder than the trip up. I think I slid most of the way. I was very difficult to keep my balance. Funny, nobody ever thinks about coming down from a mountain after they climb it, it’s all about getting to the top. Anyway, took 3 ½ hours to get off the mountain. All in all, it was a good experience. If I do it again, I’ll definitely take my time and take in the sites a little more.
The Conservatory at the top of Fuji.

A marker in kanji - not sure what it says.

The altitude swelled these snack wrappers.

A shrine on the mountain.

(right) This sign reads "Goal! You've come a long way!"
(below) Another sign along the way.