Yesterday I headed out to Lake Motosuko, the western-most of the Fuji Five Lakes. Enroute, I passed by Lake Yamanaka. That's where I met the swans.
When I got to Lake Motosu, the first mountain I climbed is called 龍ヶ岳 "Ryugatake"--"Dragon Peak". That mountain is as cool as its name. I'll put more pictures of the swans at the end of this post.
Peaks bagged: Ryugatake Nakanokura Panoramadai Eboshidake Shiroyama
Getting there/getting around: I drove. There are buses from Kawaguchiko Station in the east and from Fujinomiya Station in the south. It's not convenient for a day trip from Tokyo by public transportation.
Map: Yama to Kogen Chizu 32 FUJI-SAN MISAKA・ASHITAKA-YAMA 富士山 御坂・愛鷹山
Elevation:Lowest: 901m Highest: 1,481m Total Ascent: 1,420m Total Descent: 1,422m
Technical considerations/difficulty: Most of it is straightforward. The last bit between Eboshidake and Shiroyama has some bouldering on a narrow ridge. There are ropes in a few spots there. If you're bringing little kids or are easily scared of heights, I'd skip that area.
Facilities: Nothing on the trail except for picnic benches on Ryugatake and at the Panoramadai. There is a great scenic lookout on the northside of the lake. You can get there from a parking lot below at the Koan Campground (northside) in just a half hour or so of hiking. Much of the road that goes around the lake is closed off in winter--including the portion passing by the Tent Mura part of the Koan Campground. On the south side of the lake is the Motosuko Campground. That campground opens in March.
Thoughts/observations/recommendations: Wow! What a great time of year to do this. This is my 3rd time up Ryugatake but the views yesterday were far and away the best. The first time I climbed it last August was so cloudy that I cut my route short and came home early. Also, since it is so much the off-season, I had the mountains basically to myself.
Here is what the hike looked like. I'll put pictures further down. Fair warning; it is really hard to pare down the pictures from yesterday to a reasonable number!
In the morning at Lake Motosu.
It was difficult to make time. Fuji was behind me as I climbed in the morning and each step higher, it got better. It was hard not to keep stopping.
The Minami Alps, home of the 2nd-highest peak in the country, got a fresh coat of white last night.
The grass in the foreground is 笹 "sasa"--bamboo grass. Mt. Ryugatake has a lot of it. I'm grateful to the volunteers who come up here and maintain the trails by cutting it back. It makes for very slow-going when sasa is allowed to cover the trail.
Kitadake is the 2nd highest. I climbed that and Ainodake last year. That was a great trip.
After I climbed Ryugatake, I descended all the way back down to the lake before going up again. The trail up to Mt. Nakanokura passes through the Koan Tent Mura Campground Their English website has good information on access to the area.
Bus stop at the camp ground. Not many buses go there.
The picture used for the image on the ¥1,000 note was taken near here.
The next few pictures are from the Panoramadai. I was there just 4 days previously. Both days were blessed with great views. I had this spot to myself yesterday. :-)
Last week's trek, and yesterday's were links in the chain of hiking all along the Fuji Five Lakes. With yesterday's hike, I completed the western four. I still need to link up with Lake Ashinoko in the east. That will take a while to complete that leg.
After passing the ruins of the Motosu Castle, I got down to the lake.
That's all from the cave for today. I'll leave you with some more swans. Subscribe. Comment. Have a nice day. Come again.
Technical considerations/difficulty: This portion of the trail is very suited to trail running. No ropes, chains or ladders. Your grandmother could do it.
Facilities: Lots of viewpoints. One public toilet on the way.
Thoughts/observations/recommendations: I'm sure there are nice views to be had on a clear day. If you hike in Tokyo, you've surely passed through Ome Station. If you've never exited the station, you should. It's a nice area to walk around. It's famous for having old movie posters around. And for cats. There is cat-themed artwork all over the place. Hence, it's the purrfect place to visit.
I was happy that the cave boy (my son) was available to come to the mountains today. Being a Japanese high school kid, his time is at a premium. We were able to squeeze a few hours out of his studies for a walk on the trail from Ome Station to Futamatao Station. It wasn't very clear so it was not the best day for pictures of the mountains. The best pictures of the day were of the cave boy.
For the emperor's birthday holiday this week, I went to Lake Shoji, the smallest of the Fuji Five Lakes. This is one more leg in a long project of hiking the mountains on the shores of all five lakes in an unbroken line. I've completed most of the western four lakes. I have more work to do on Lake Ashi to the east.
Getting there/getting around: This is accessible by bus on the blue line from Kawaguchiko Station or Fujisan Station. There are very few buses and it's a long ride. There is a free parking spot right next to the trailhead where I parked my scooter.
Map: Yama to Kogen Chizu 32 FUJI-SAN MISAKA・ASHITAKA-YAMA 富士山 御坂・愛鷹山
Total Time: 6 hours 44 minutes Break time: 36 minutes
Distance: 15.4km
Elevation:Lowest: 900m Highest: 1,465m Total Ascent: 1,345m Total Descent: 1,345m
Technical considerations/difficulty: Not a terribly technical hike. Not much exposure. It's all well below the treeline. There is little in the way of chains or ropes. There are steep parts and there are some parts of the trail that have been washed away in landslides. There hasn't been much snow this season and I didn't even bother to put on my crampons.
Facilities: Nothing on the trail to speak of except for a sheltered picnic bench at the panoramadai.
Thoughts/observations/recommendations:
I've said it before. There is a certain world-famous brand name that I don't patronize because--well I won't go into their myriad of offenses here. I won't buy their products but I do begrudgingly agree that their slogan is great. Just Do It. Yesterday was another day when Just Doing It paid off for me. I had the day off and wanted to get a day of hiking in but the weather didn't look great and the futon was mighty warm and cozy at 5:00 am. And . . . the plan for the day entailed riding my scooter 3 bone-chilling hours before even starting a long day. The prospect of a long, cold grey day with no worthwhile views made me wonder if the risks didn't outweigh the possible rewards.
The sky matched my grey mindset for the entire 3 hours I spent on the road out to the foothills of Mt. Fuji. I usually make the ride non-stop. On this trip, I stopped 3 times to warm up.
Then, just as I reached my destination, the sky cleared up and the temperature rose a few degrees. Once again I was glad that I was Just Doing It.
I never regret Just Doing It. Sometimes I stop doing it when something is stupid or dangerous--but that is something different.
The place: As Lake Shoji is the smallest and least developed of the Fuji Five Lakes it is a sweet spot to visit. It's not really easy to get to for a day trip so there are fewer tourists than on the other lakes. There are only a few hotels and restaurants. One hotel has campsites on the lakeside. The panoramadai and the lakeshore have the best views. I did see on one of the billboards for a hotel that they have a rotenburo (露天風呂--outside bath) with a view of Mt. Fuji. That would be cool! If I weren't such a cheapskate, I would try it. For my purpose of tying up the loose threads between this lake and Lake Sai to the east, I hiked far to the east to Mt. Yokosawanoto. If your purpose is a pleasure hike with nice views, I think you should skip about half of my plan. I would recommend going to the Paroramadai before heading northeast to Mt. Sanpobun and finally descending down to the lake from there. That portion of my hike was where all the best views were. The last several hours of my hike were not the most photogenic.
This is what the map looks like:
Let me show you some pictures.
Remember what I said about access to this place being difficult? Check out the bus schedule. It's a long wait if you miss a bus!
The trailhead to the Panoramadai
Fuji sometimes forms lenticular (lense-shaped) clouds. When they are directly over the mountain, they are called kasagumo--"bamboo umbrella-cloud". When they form to the leeward side of the mountain, they are called tsurushigumo--"roll clouds". I think these must be tsurushigumo.
Looking west from the Panoramadai. That is Lake Motosu--the western-most of the five lakes--down below. My last trek on this side of the lake region will be to circumambulate that lake. Lake Motosu has a massive tranquil campground.
Mt. Omuro is directly in front of Fuji in the next picture. I climbed that from the south side of this lake in August. That is in the Aokigahara Forest. That has a sad reputation for being a suicide destination.
This is where I exited the woods at the end of my trek. The trail I used from Mt. Goko down to the lake is a secondary trail and doesn't appear on all maps. You can get an idea of the condition of the trail by the condition of its entrance. That rickety wooden thing in the middle of the picture is a stair/ladder.
What a sight to be presented with when walking out of the woods.
I got a kick out of being able to spot the buildings of the 5th Station from 10 miles away.
I couldn't get enough of this view.
On the way home . . .
From the Narusawa area
3 lakes later . . .
That's all for now. Have a great day. Don't forget to subscribe if you haven't already. The button for that is in the pop-out menu on the right.
