Mostly Japanese Mountains: Mt. Tsunoochi, the Dropped Antler Mountain in Takasaki City, Gunma, Japan 角落山　群馬県高崎市

Mt. Tsunoochi (the pointy one on the right)

Hello everyone.

I woke up this morning and planned to add one or two pictures to this post that I had finished last night. When I opened the blog, I saw that 90% of it was gone! Somehow I had published this without the majority of the pictures and text. Yikes. Bummer.

I'll try to recreate the magic, but that'll be like trying to capture lightning in your hand.

The other day, I climbed this Mountain called Tsunoochi in nearby Gunma. It's a cool-looking mountain, but a bit aruduous. TBH, I only did it because I'm running out of nearby mountains that I haven't been on. I also have this crazy desire to leave an un-broken trace of my footprints on the ground. Last fall, I climbed Mt. Kennomine to the west and this hike enabled me to extend the thread of that hike a bit to the east.

(The day after I did this his, I went back and climbed a mountain to the west of Mt. Kennomine to tie up that side. It was kind of like putting a bow on the whole area and I slept well that night😌.)

. . . about Mt. Tsunoochi

Tsuno (角) = "antlers" Ochi(落) = "fall" or "drop"

Area:

Takasaki City, Gunma Japan. Roughly midway between Mt. Asama and Mt. Haruna--but closer to Asama.

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

Starting and stopping point: Route 56, next to the Karasu River

Peaks bagged: Tsunoochi (角落山)

(First-time) peaks # 1,080

Getting there/getting around:

I drove.

The Hamayu onsen/campground/ryokan about 30 minutes away on foot. Their website has information on public transportation. Sorry, it's in Japanese.

Helpful Info

Weather Information: Tsunoochi forecast in Japanese

Time and distance

YAMAP's Estimate Time: 3:42 Distance: 6.9 km

The Caveman did it in Total Time: 3:54 Break time: :19 Distance: 7.6

Elevation: Lowest: 842 m Highest: 1,393 m Total Ascent: 691 m Total Descent: 691 m

Technical considerations/difficulty:

This is a fairly challenging, sometimes tedious hike. I say tedious because you really need to pay attention. The mountain is dotted with pink tape denoting the "trail" here and there but there really is no trail to speak of. Much of the ground is loose gravel or rocks covered with leaves so you don't know what you're stepping on.

Much of this is steep-going up boulders with very narrow spots to put your feet on--and nothing below you if you slip. There are only a few spots with chains, but I wish there were many more!

Facilities:

There is an onsen/ryokan called Hama Yu about 30 minutes from the trailhead.

The trail follows a stream for the first bit. It's not marked as a waterhole but it seemed potable and I drank it.

Thoughts/observations/recommendations:

Unless you live in this area, I'd give this one a pass. It's a cool-looking mountain and I'm glad I can look at it and say, "I did that." There are other cool mountains that are easier to get to and less fraught with stress, though!

If you do do this, I would encourage not going there unless it is a clear, dry day.

I also would discourage descending on the Otoko Saka. Let me explain. There is a path to the top called the Otoko Saka ("Male"-"Slope") and another one called the Onna Saka ("Female"-"Slope"). Don't get mad at me and accuse me of being a sexist. I'm just relaying the facts as they are. It wasn't me who decided to name the jagged, rugged, strong side the Otoko and the slope with gentle, alluring curves the Onna.

Anyway, the Otoko Saka only gets a dotted line on the map. Dotted line trails are generally less-trafficked because they are more dangerous and/or harder to follow. That is the case here. I climbed up the Otoko Saka and came down the Onna Saka. You can skip the Otoko Saka altogether if you like and just go up and down the same way. Anyway, I would not want to go down the Otoko Saka because it's easier to slip going down than going up. Last year, I go very frustrated coming down off of Kennomine because I slipped about 4 times. The difference between that mountain and this one is that there is nothing to break your fall on Tsunoochi!😳

My backpack isn't that big, but I did keep getting snagged when trying to maneuver through pucker brush and the like. I'd take the smallest pack possible next time.

If you want to hike in this area, but don't relish the spiciness, perhaps Asama Kakushi would fit your bill? I've been there twice and both times saw a serow (カモシカ). Asama Kakushi

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

. . . gloves. You need your hands on this one a lot.

. . . like I said, a smaller pack.

Let's look at some pictures and stuff.

I got this picture from the road on the way.

The Otoko Saka goes up the steep left sid of Tsunoochi.

And from the same spot, I got a picture of the mountain I would climb the next day, Mt. Hanamagari.

The stream the trail follows at the beginning.

At one point, the trail makes a hard left, and any semblance of a path disappears where it diverges from the stream.

From that hard left, you must climb up about 50 ~ 100 meters uphill to this ridge. This picture doesn't do the climb justice because it doesn't show just how steep it is or how far apart the trees are spaced. The ground is loose gravel or sand covered with leaves. There is nothing to hold onto and nothing to stop you if you slip.

I thought I was getting a break after getting up to the ridge, but I was mistaken. Seeing

what the assault to the summit would be like gave me pause. I was like, "How the heck am I going to get up that!"

There were chains. To be honest, I wish there were more.

The scary parts were the places without chains. I didn't take any pictures in those places, though. My hands were too occupied hanging on for dear life. 😂

The top. I didn't realize until I looked at this picture that I'd been scratched. That's my kind of souvenir. Enough to leave a mark but not enough to cause any pain.