Japan's 14th-highest mountain. Japan's second-highest volcano. 10,000-footer, 100 Famous Mountain, gorgeous Mt. Ontake in Japan

御嶽山

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Earlier this week, I went for a road trip to the Hokuriku and Chubu Regions to bang out two mountains. The first one was Mt. Haku in Ishikawa. This report is about the second mountain, Mt. Ontake, which straddles Gifu and Nagano Prefectures.

. . . about Mt. Ontake

Maybe I wrote enough in the title. This is a lovely mountain that last erupted in 2014. The name Ontake (御嶽山) means something like "honorable" "high peak." It is not only one of the 100 Famous Mountains, but it's listed as one of Gifu's 100 Famous Mountains, one of the 100 Famous Flower Mountains and one of Shinshu's 100 Famous Mountains. It really is kind of a big deal.

Location:

Map: ***If you want a link to the latest Yama to Kogen map, comment and I'll get you a link. This link is to a printable topo map of this area.

Starting and stopping point:

Tanohara Base Parking Lot

Beward of Bears

Bear Information kumamap

Probably not a concern here. The last sighting on the mountain was a month prior.

Peaks bagged: Mikasa (三笠山) ~ Otaki (王滝頂上) ~ Ontake Kengamine (御嶽山・剣ヶ峰)

(First-time) peaks # 1,142~1,144

100 Famous Mountain #67

Getting there/getting around:

I drove. It's a long drive.

Helpful Info

Weather Information:

Mountainforecast.com

Tenkura (Japanese)

Time and distance

YAMAP's Estimate Time: 5:35 Distance: 7.2 km

The Caveman did it in: Total Time: 4:53 Break time: :38 Distance: 7.6 km

Elevation: Lowest: 2,185 m Highest: 3,067 m Total Ascent: 963 m Total Descent: 963 m

Technical considerations/difficulty:

Steep. Chains. Ropes. Several places you need both hands and feet. That said, there were grandparents with grandchildren on the trail.

Facilities:

Make sure you pee before you start out. You won't see a restroom (or an unobservable tree) until you get to the top.

No water on the trail.

There are emergency huts at the 8th, 9th and 10th stations.

Thoughts/observations/recommendations:

As with almost every other mountain I've done, I am glad I did this one. The scenery was great. I enjoyed looking back at Hakusan, which I had climbed the day before. I also enjoyed seeing Mt. Fuji and many other mountains I've climbed.

I was particularly surprised to see Yatsugatake and Mt. Asama, which I live near.

(Along with all the regular stuff such as maps, headlamps, boots, feet, and brains, . . .) don't forget:

A helmet. I'm not sure if it's mandatory, but they really want people to have helmets in case of eruption.

Picture time

The stars from the Tanohara Parking Lot were beautiful all night. There were several photographers with serious cameras recording the sights.

I slept late and didnt leave until about 4. First, I walked up the small hill next to the parking lot to bag the peak called Mikasa (三笠山).

There is the mountain. The highest peak is hiding behind the visible peak, though.

This is considered a sacred mountain, so there are shrines everywhere.

As a Christian, I see mountains as sacred also--but in a very different way. I worship the Creator that created these creations. To me, they are sacred because of Who made them. Shinto worships the mountains for themselves.

I think of it like this--the Japanese love the gift. I love the gift giver.

I honor the fact that the Shintoists see something spiritual in the beauty and majesty of the mountains, but I think they're mistaken in their perception.

I am definitely acclimated to hotter weather these days. I needed to wear a long sleeve shirt and a fleece in the morning. Usually, I would hike in shorts and a t-shirt at these temperatures.

(The first screenshot is Fahrenheit. The second is Celsius.)

That pointy thing in front of the clouds below is Mt. Mikasa, the peak I went to first thing in the morning.

Fuji made it's first appearance sometime after I passed the 8th Station.

The 9th Station

Note the bullhorn.

They are prepared to prompt people to evacuate as quickly as possible in case of another eruption.

63 souls perished in the eruption in 2014.

Otakichojo

This is the peak that is visible from the Tanohara Parking Lot.

It's kind of funny that the sign for the restroom is directly below the sign denoting the peak.

Just past the sign for the top of Otakichojo is a shrine.

You feel like you are at the top of the mountain...

....until you pass through the shrine and see the top off in the distance.

😂

Emergency shelters in case rocks and lava are rain down from the sky.

Oila. The top

The day before this, I climbed Mt. Haku.

This is what Mt. Ontake looked like from there.

...and Haku from Ontake

The area closest to the caldera is restricted. This is the closest I could get to the crater. I did get to see puffs of smoke a few times.

That's all.

Now, I have to get ready for a hike on Shirouma!

Interested in that hike on Mt. Haku?

Click here.

Before I say goodbye . . .

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Making snowballs in August on gorgeous Mt. Haku in Ishikawa

S'up?

Hello people.

This will be a quick report. I'm off this month and made two hikes this week I want to report . . . and tomorrow night I am heading to the Northern Alps!

This was my second swipe at this mountain. The first time, I had to settle for two smaller mountains nearby.

On both trips, I slept in my car at the Ichinose Visitor Center. The first time, I was the only car. This time, even though I arrived at 8:30 on a Sunday night, the parking lot was nearly full. That parking lot holds 750 cars! I could not believe how many people were there.

The tickets for the bus go on sale at 4:00 and the first bus leaves at 5:00. I woke up before 3:00 and realized that a lot of people were moving around the parking lot. I imagined that they probably were going to line up for tickets.

This thought was very frustrating. I couldn't contemplate waiting in line for a ticket--then lining up for the bus, only to get on a bus with a lot of people. Knowing that the parking lot held so many cars, I imagined giant hordes of people starting on the trail at the same time. I pictured a scene like in that Tom Cruise movie Far and Away where they portrayed the Oklahoma Land Rush. No, thank you.

That's when I decided to just get dressed and go. I started at 3:00 am on the button. There were a few other hikers with the same idea.

I'm glad I did that. I had the trail mostly to myself on the way up and when I was coming back down and encountered those crowds I'd anticipated on their way up, I could enjoy the suffering looks on the faces of the huddled masses as they struggled up the trail with the knowledge that my drudgery was mostly finished.

. . . about Mt. Haku (白山)

Great mountain in Ishikawa Prefecture! Visible from Arashimadake in Fukui and Ontake in Gifu/Nagano.

Location:

Map: ***If you want a link to the latest Yama to Kogen map, comment and I'll get you a link. This link is to a printable topo map of this area.

Starting and stopping point:

Ichinose Visitor's Center Parking Lot

Beward of Bears

Bear Information kumamap

Peaks bagged: Hakusan's Gozenmine 白山(午前峰)

(First-time) peaks # 1,141

(First-time) 100 Famous Mountain peak # 66

Getting there/getting around:

I drove. There are considerable restrictions on the road to the Betto Deai Trailhead. There is parking there, but the road is closed to private vehicles pretty much anytime that people want to go there. When the road is closed, you must park at the Ichinose Visitor's Center and take a shuttle bus from there to Betto Deai. In 2026, that shuttle cost ¥1,000. Tickets go on sale at 4:00 am and the buses start running at 5.

There are buses from Kanazawa Station or Matto Station during hiking season. I believe the one from Kanazawa is about 90 minutes.

Because of the difficulty in reaching this place by public transportation, I think a daytrip is not a good idea unless you're driving. Even if you are driving, a one-day trip to Hakusan is a bit taxing.

Helpful Info

Weather Information:

Tenkura (Japanese)

Mountain Forecast dot com for nearby ski area

Time and distance

YAMAP's Estimate Time: 13:34 Distance: 24.1 km

The Caveman did it in: Total Time: 10:14 Break time: :41 Distance: 27.5 km

Elevation: Lowest: 825 m Highest: 2,702 m Total Ascent: 2,152 m Total Descent: 2,152 m

Technical considerations/difficulty:

It's a long, steep climb. Much of it is above the treeline. There are ropes, chains, ladders, and spots you need both hands and feet to negotiate.

Facilities:

The Ichinose Visitor's Center has restrooms, a resting spot and campsites--in season. There is a ryokan/onsen directly across the street.

The trailhead proper, Betto Deai, is the shuttle bus stop and has restrooms. It's only open seasonally.

On the trail, there were two public restrooms and some water. The Murodo Visitor's Center is huge. Most people taking this route stay there overnight.

Thoughts/observations/recommendations:

Great mountain. If you go, pay very close attention to the bus/road schedules. The first time I went to this area, I thought I would be able to drive right to Betto Deai because it was the off-season and the buses weren't running. The road was closed to ALL traffic though, because it was winter. (There was no snow on the road but the gate was still closed for the season.)

If you do do this, consider whether or not you have the time and stamina to do it in a day or if you need to overnight. Even if you shorten the route by taking the bus, it's at least a 17 km (over 10-mile) hike.