Yugama
Kusatsu Shirane in Gunma
S'up?
I made a trip to Mt. Kusatsu Shirane the other day. It was great.
The last time I went to the area, I broke all sorts of rules, and probably the law. More on that later in the post so keep reading.
. . . about Mt. Kusatsu Shirane
Kusatsu Shirane is a really cool collection of peaks which make up a stratovolcano. It's one of the 100 Famous Mountains, but the highest peak, Motoshirane (本白根) is off-limits due to danger from the volcano. (I've climbed it. Shhhh. Don't tell anyone.)**
The road is only open from April to mid-November and most of the trails are closed because of the alert levels. Just today (October 13, 2026), and for the next few weeks only, the shortest trail is going to be opened on a trial basis. That trail leads to a platform overlooking the Yugama Lake (湯釜).
Those restrictions are already back in place as of October 20, 2026.*
This is an automatically translated story about the opening of the trail to that viewpoint. I think I'm happy enough to see it from where I did--and also that there were only 3 other people at the viewpoint I saw it from!
*About the return of restrictions. I think you probably can still go the spot I went to. The restricted place is a different viewpoint accessed from a different parking lot.
**OK, I'll tell you now. I came across some Japanese person's hiking report of Mt. Motoshirane, which is one of the peaks on Kusatsu Shirane. I think that is the peak Yuya Fukada was thinking of when he included Kusatsu Shirane on his list of 100 Famous Mountains. I thought it looked cool and decided to copy his plan. It was one of the most spectacular hikes of my life. I hiked it in the snow on a gorgeous, clear day and had the mountains all to myself. When I posted my report on YAMAP, the YAMAP people went crazy and even Tsumagoi's village people got really big mad at me. (I can call them village people because the municipality of Tsumagoi is indeed a village. Hee hee.) I had no idea that all the places I went were off-limits or that the locals take that very seriously. I just thought I was alone because it was a weekday. Anyway, you can see that report here. It is another in a long list of things I have done in the mountains that I wouldn't do again--but boy, I am really glad I did!
Area:
This is above Kusatsuonsen in Gunma. Kusatsu's onsens are famous throughout the country. It's also not far from Shiga Kogen and it's snow monkeys.
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:
Shibu Pass Parking Lot by Mt. Yokote
Beward of Bears (The last report near the mountain was two years ago.)
Peaks bagged: Yokote (横手山) ~ Ikenoto (池ノ塔) ~ Kusatsu Shirane (草津白根山)
(First-time) peaks # 1,163~1,165
Getting there/getting around:
I drove.
There is bus service from Shiga Kogen or Yudanaka.
Helpful Info
Weather Information:
Time and distance
YAMAP's Estimate Time: 2:33 Distance: 8.4
The Caveman did it in: Total Time: 4:20 Break time: :28 Distance: 12 km*
Elevation: Lowest: 2,043 m Highest: 2,307 m Total Ascent: 616 m Total Descent: 616 m
*The YAMAP app wouldn't allow for my side excursion to Mt. Ikenoto or for the portion of the hike from the Shiranesan to the point overlooking Yugama.
Technical considerations/difficulty:
Facilities:
There is nothing near Kusatsu Shirane. I parked near Yokote, a few km away. There is a restaurant and that kind of stuff there.
There's nothing technical or difficult about this hike.
Thoughts/observations/recommendations:
This is a great place to go for a drive. There are many small parking lots on the side of the road with great views. It would be nice to take a picnic lunch. You don't have to be into hiking to enjoy this area.
Let's look at some pictures
This is the top of Mt. Yokote. Yokote is at the top of a ski hill and can be accessed by the Shibutoge First Romance (ski) Lift. Or, you could walk up it. It only takes about 10~15 minutes.
After Yokote, I walked along Route 292 for quite a while to get to the trailhead for Kusatsu Shirane. Despite the cars driving by, it was a nice walk because the views are out of this world. It's going to be really hard not to post too many pictures.
At this point, I left Route 292 and headed toward a peak called Ikenoto. This peak has no trail to it on the map, but I could see from my hiking app that some others had hiked to it because their footprints were on the map.
It started out ok, but the bamboo grass got thicker and thicker.
There was also a lot of pine mixed in with the bamboo grass.
It was miserable.
When I finally got to the top, there was no sign and no view. The only way I could get pictures was to hold the smartphone over my head because the bamboo grass was higher than eye leve.
The blue line that starts by the restroom and the "Arrival 9:38" bubble is my path. The big blue dot is my location at the top of Mt. Ikenoto.
Looking back up the hill.
When I escaped the sea of bamboo grass, I was back on Route 292 for a while.
On the trail to Kusatsu Shirane
After the top, there is another 5-10 walk to the point overlooking Yugama.
Looking back to the first peak of the day.
That's Kusatsu Shirane across the street.
Wetland
Yokote from the bottom
On the way home, I dropped into the Sainokawahara Rotenburo (outdoor bath).
It was most excellent.
(Along with all the regular stuff such as maps, headlamps, boots, feet, and brains, . . .) don't forget:
To check the roof before you drive off. I realized when I got to the onsen that I had left my binoculars on the roof when I started out. I drove off the mountain and they didn't fall off! I was lucky.
Before I say goodbye . . .
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Caveman out
