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Showing posts sorted by date for query hiuchi. Sort by relevance Show all posts

Caveman Climbs the Black Princess. Mt. Kurohime in Nagano.

 




. . . about Mt. Kurohime

This is a stratovolcano in northern Nagano, very close to Niigata.  It is one of the 200 Famous Mountains of Japan and one of the 100 Famous Mountains of Shinshu (Nagano).  Kurohime (黒姫) means "Black Princess."  There is some legend about where that name comes from but I can't really puzzle it out too well.  Check out wikipedia if you're interested.

I do like the name.

Kurohime is a pretty mountain and there are several places you can see it well from.  Good viewing spots are Lake Nojiri, the highway and the Shinano Michinoeki.   

Area:

Kurohime is surrounded by some other beautiful and famous natural features.  Nearby is Lake Nojiri, where you can visit an archaeological museum which catalogues the prehistory of the history and includes fossils of ancient elephants.  There are 4 of Japan's 100 Famous Mountains nearby, (Myoko, Hiuchi, Amakazari and Takatsuma). 

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: Kurohimeyama Oohashi Forest Road Parking Lot

Peaks bagged: Kurohimeyama (黒姫山)

(First-time) peaks # 1,029


Getting there/getting around:  

I drove.  Parking is free.

There is Alpico Bus Service from Nagano Station to the Togakushi Campground.  That would add a bit of distance to your hike, but it would be possible.  That takes about an hour and costs ¥2,000.

You could also hike directly from Kurohime Station.  That is on the eastern side of the mountain.  Going up and back from there is about an 18 km hike, with the first (and last) several kilometers being on pavement through a town.


Helpful Info

Weather Information: 

Time and distance

YAMAP's estimate: 7:50 to hike 14.8 km
Actual Time: 6:57  Break time: 1:07  Distance:  16.8 km
Elevation:  Lowest: 1,138 m Highest: 2,053 m Total Ascent: 1,067 m  Total Descent: 1,067 m

Technical considerations/difficulty:  

This is a fairly straightforward hike.  My clockwise loop, which took me past the Taneike (Seed Pond) and the Furuike (Old Pond), was quite pleasant and easy.  There were no ropes, chains or ladders.  The trail was line by sasa (bamboo grass) on both sides but it had been cut back so the trail was quite wide.

My descent was more tedious.  That trail is called the 西ー??? (Nishi-something-or-other).  Nishi means west.  Anyway, that side was slower going and categorized by really large boulders crammed into a narrow trail.  You need to scramble over the boulders quite and bit and watch your step lest you fall into a crevace.

That said, it still wasn't dangerous or really difficult.  Just tedious and slow.

It was only on that western side that I saw any snow.  There were two or three piles in deep holes that never get any sun.

What to bring:  (This list is not exhaustive.  This is just what I recommend really not forgetting on top of all the regular stuff like maps, headlamps, raingear, etc.)

  • Water.  I brought more than 4 liters this day and drank it all as it was a hot July day.  There are a few streams on these trails--and I usually don't hesitate to drink directly from streams and rivers here--but I am glad I had brought water.  I just felt that I wouldn't want to drink from the stream on this mountain.


Facilities:  

Nothing


Thoughts/observations/recommendations:  

By all means, do this mountain.   It's beautiful from below and I'm sure the view from the top is great on a clear day.

There are also several other attractions and mountains in the area.  The Togakushi Campground is great to stay at and is a great base for hiking here, on Mt. Takatsuma or Togakushi.  Not far from there is the Togakushi Shrine and a Ninja House!  Lake Nojiri is beautiful.  A cruise around the lake costs ¥1,400 for adults and is really nice.  The lake is dotted with restaurants and cafes.  Thanks to the shrinking Japanese population (😩), they aren't too crowded.

If you forego the highway in favor of backroads, you'll be amazed at the number of chokubaijo as well as orchards and vineyards where you can enjoy fruit-picking in season.

If you can, go on a clear day.  The mountains are always better than an office or factory, but I do wish I hadn't been robbed of a view, yet again!

This is the map




This is the animation




Let's get to some pictures:

I'm sorry to say, but there aren't a lot of pictures with this hike.  Unfortunately, the weather didn't cooperate and I wasn't able to see much.

To be honest, I'm not batting 1,000 when it comes to getting nice views in this area.  I have climbed 4 or 5 mountains in this park and have had clear weather on only one or 2 days!  The picture I used for the title of this post is old.  I took that a year or two ago.  I didn't see Mt. Kurohime that well on the day of this hike and saw almost nothing from the top.  That's just how it is.  You can't control the weather.  It does make the picture-perfect days all that more special when they come, though.

These first two pictures were taken from Mt. Myoko last year.  There should be a great view of Myoko from this area, but it was obscured by clouds on the day I hiked Kurohime.
In that picture, you can see Mt. Hiuchi on the right.  I recall the day I climbed that mountain.  That was another day of seeing nothing!  


Back to the day of this hike, now.

Before heading off to hike, I deposited Mrs. Caveman and her bicycle by Lake Nojiri.  She wanted to pedal while I wanted to hike.

How about the size of those carp?  Mrs. Caveman was afraid one of them could swallow her whole!





If you're ever in the area, be sure to check out the Naumann Elephant Museum.  It's right next to the lake.



It is about a 20-minute drive from Lake Nojiri to the trailhead.


Japan has so many flowers.  It is one of the most wonderful features of Japan.  
I may not have seen many vistas on this day but I certainly saw flowers.



I parked a few minutes' walk from this trailhead.  My car is parked at the little red dot on the bottom left corner of the sign.  That's where I finished the hike but my trail initially started at the red dot where it says 現在地 ("You are here.") on the map.


種池 Taneike--"Seed-Pond"


古池 Furuike "Old Pond"


It took me three tries to conquer Mt. Takatsuma.  Twice, Mrs. Caveman and I stayed at a campground below it with a plan to summit.  Once I got rained out, and the second time I got ill overnight and didn't hike.  
I eventually went back and did it on a day trip.




This is an extreme close-up.  These flowers are much smaller than they appear.



These are really small, too.  The blossoms are maybe 1~2 cm across.



I wish it was clearer.  Those mountains are really beautiful.




The top is 2,053 meters

For a reference to mountains near my hometown, 
Mt. Washington in NH is 1,917 meters.





Turning around and heading down.


This place is called 七つ池 Nanatsuike--"7 Ponds"
On the map, there is water here but I didn't see any on the ground.
This is actually the caldera.




These little white flowers started appearing.  


This pond is called 大ダルミ (Odarumi). 



Coming down this trail was a bit more demanding than the wide, sasa-lined trail I'd hiked up.  There were quite a few deep crevices on the steep hike down.  And, even some snow!


I think this one wins for flower of the day.



The nearest onsen was just a little too far away.  

Besides, this was more refreshing.


That's all for today.

Make sure you check out the youtube channel and tell your friends about the Caveman.

I won't bite if you leave a comment.  Promise.

If you want to see some more of the area, check out 
or

Caveman out














Caveman conquers the highest peak in Hokkaido. 💯 Famous Mountain, Mt. Asahidake.

 

Asahidake

Yo!

What is up, cavedwellers?  Mrs. Caveman is the best.  The very best.  She took me to Hokkaido for my birthday and let me climb two of the 100 Famous Mountains.  This report is about the first of the two, Mt. Asahidake in the Taisetsuzan National Park.

Area:  

Location:  Daisetsuzan National Park, Center of Hokkaido

Map:  Online, printable topo map in Japanese

***The Caveman is giving up on posting links to Yamatokogen maps.  They go out of date and the links die.  If you want a map, comment and I'll get you a current link.

Starting and stopping point: Asahidake Ropeway Station

Peaks bagged: Tomadake  Antaromadake  Hippudake  Nokogiridake  Hokuchindake  Nakadake  Mamiyadake  Araidake  Asahidake

(First-time) peaks # 908~916

(First-time) 💯 Famous Mountain peak # 35, Asahidake

Getting there/getting around:  

There is a bus from Asahikawa Station.  It is run by Asahikawa Denkikidou and takes about 1 hour and 40 minutes.  Contact them for clearer information.  The schedule seems to change frequently.  

Asahikawa Station 1F Bus Information Center, Tsuruha Bldg., 9-2-17 Miyashita-dori, Asahikawa City, 070-0030 TEL 0166-23-3355 

I got there by car.  There is parking at the ropeway and just below the ropeway, there are several hotels and onsens.  

Helpful Info

Weather Information: 

Mountain-forecast.com Asahi 

Tenki to Kurasa for Asahi (Japanese)

Time and distance*

Total Time:   7:55 Break time:  :21 Distance:  18.58km
Elevation:  Lowest: 1,597 m Highest: 2,291 m Total Ascent:  1,499 m Total Descent: 1,499 m

*I'm a glutton for punishment.  Most people take one of the shorter routes of about 6 km or 11 kmand finish in about half a day.

Technical considerations/difficulty:  

For the most part, the trail is very well marked.  In clear weather, it would be very difficult to get lost.  If the weather turns though, visibility gets very bad and thankfully there are guide ropes along the sides of the trail where it is most needed.  

Most hikers do a straight shot up to the top of Asahidake and back to the ropeway with a short excursion on the loop around Lake Sagatami.  Lake Sagatami and its environs are a walk in the park.  Non-hiking daytrippers go that far.  The trail beyond Sagatami to the summit is steep and has a lot of boulders.  Mostly it is loose volcanic sand and gravel.  The traction reminded me of the Sunabashiri Trail on Mt. Fuji.  It can make for a slog going up and for the danger of slipping going down.

I took a much longer route around Tomakkoshi, Hippu, etc.  That trail was not hard to follow.  It wasn't quite as well marked or trodden as the other ones but there were only two areas worthy of a safety note.  First, the ridge between Antaromadake and Hippudake is vertigo inducing.  The "trail" is just off the ridge on the right side.  You are walking on gravel and the ground slopes down to the right.  If you were to slip on that gravel, nothing would stop you.   Nothing at all.  Indeed, to the left of the ridge is another ridge leading to peak.  There is a sign there noting that that ridge is not considered a trail anymore since there was a fatality in 2019.

The other point worth noting is a stretch just below Nokogiri that has a lot of Japanese scrub pine/Siberian dwarf pine  (ハイマツ).  It obscurs the trail and you have to trudge to get through it.  I wore shorts and didn't come out too badly but a note on my paper map advises hikers to wear tights or pants.    

Facilities:  

The ropeway runs every 15 minutes from 6:00~5:30.  There is a store there that closes at 5:00.  There is curry, too.  

On the mountain, there is a sturdy emergency hut just by Lake Sagatami.  It's only for emergencies.  There are rungs built into the side of the wall so you can climb up to the window on the second floor for access in winter.  The door works in the summer.  

There is a booth by the shelter for you to utilize your own portable toilet.

On the far side of the peak is a small camping area with another of those portable toilet booths.  That camping area seems to be free.  It is un-manned and doesn't look that comfortable.  It's very rocky.  It's called the Uraasahiyaeishiteichi. (野営指定地)

There is a website about several of these campsites in the area.  Some sites have prices listed.  Uraasahiyaeishiteichi doesn't, so I assume it's free.   

Thoughts/observations/recommendations:  

Do it.  If you can get here, do it.  This isn't as high as the big mountains on Honshu, but they are rugged and beautiful.  Be careful about timing.  Hokkaido gets a lot more snow than many areas and it lasts longer.  I was able to make a snowball on August 1.  ❄ 😼  Even in June and July, snow can be a major factor.

Do bring some extra clothes.  I usually hike in shorts and a t-shirt 3/4s of the year.  I actually had to put on a windbreaker when I was on a ridge and the wind started blowing the other day.

Let's get some visuals going.

(Google Earth obviously took this picture when there was still a bit of snow around.....It was mostly green when I was there.)


The animated feature is here!



This is a 19-minute long video I took on the hike.  I don't know how many people have the stamina to watch all of it.  I have watched it several times, but I was the director 👨🏻‍🎨, star☆, best boy👦, gaffer and cameraman🎥 so I am biased.  I doubt I could make myself interested in someone else's mountain video of this length!

Let's look at some pictures.


The ropeway ticket window.  It runs every 15 minutes from 6:30 am until 5:30 pm.


Upon alighting the gondola, I was so pumped for the hike, I skipped the gift shop.  Later I'd come to wish that I had dropped by then  because I found it closed when I descended.   I'd assumed it would be open until the last ropeway trip.  d'oh!  I wasn't able to buy the swag I'd hoped to.


A lot of daytrippers just walk around the several ponds just beyond the ropeway.  You could kill an hour or two there, I guess.




The smoke rising from below Mt. Asahidake is from Jigokudani--"Hell Valley."









This is where I definitively decided to head up to that ridge.⛰


That turn almost marked the point where I stopped seeing so many people.  I didn't see more than a handful of people for the rest of the day.



📸Photobombed!💣




The Piukenai River
My paper map has a warning to watch out for brown bears near here.





This spot is called Tomakkoshi.  It's on the way to Mt. Toma.





Japan has so many flowers.  Mountains have so many varieties.  If I posted all of the various kinds, this blog would be really long.




After Mt. Toma, I started to get near Mt. Antaroma.  It was in this area that I really started to be glad I answered the call of that ridge.  I was surprised at what I found.


Here I was getting close to Mt. Antaroma.  I was surprised at how beautiful it got--and a little scared by the sheer drop-offs.



The next bump is Mt. Pippu.  I would next go there along the right side of the ridge.  
Pippu is an Ainu word that means a place with a lot of marshes or stones.




Before heading toward Mt. Pippu, I took a few pictures because it was kind of breathtaking.  
I also half expected to see the coyote and the roadrunner.













The next stops after Mt. Hippu were Nokogiri and Hokuchin.



No sign



Mt. Hokuchin



This area below is 御鉢平 Ohachidaira.  That means something like "Honorable Bowl Flats".  Entering the area is prohibited because the fumes are poisonous.  I found the Ohachidaira really enchanting.  I couldn't look away.


Nakadake, Mt. Naka ("Middle/Center Peak")





Mt. Mamiya

Mt. Arai appears in my hiking app but not on my paper map.  It doesn't even get a sign.


About to make the last push.  Unfortunately, the sun was soon to go away for good.


The rope is useful in two ways.  First, the sand is slippery and it does help you ascend.  Second, it provides a good guide in poor visibility.


I almost forgot to take a picture on the top.  The pin is behind me.
There was nobody there by the time I got there.  I didn't see anyone for probably the last two hours of the hike.



Heading down.
Couldn't see much.  The guide rope was helpful.


The refuge hut has a window on the second floor that you can enter through during the snowy season.  There are even rungs built into the outside wall so you can climb up to it.




I traced my route in blue.



The very last push



That's it.  I hope you enjoyed it.  I know I did.  Wow.  What a trip.  
Thanks, Mrs. Caveman.  You are the best.

Check out the other hike from Hokkaido

Want to check out another of the 100 Famous Mountains?  Try this one.