The Lonely Mountain, Mt. Hanare, Karuizawa, Japan

Hello, cave crawlers.  This post is of the second hike I made yesterday.  The first hike is here. Blustery Koasama https://mymancaveisthemountains.blogspot.com/2024/01/blustery-clear-morning-on-mt-koasama.html
 

Location:  

Mt. Hanare, Karuizawa

Starting and stopping point:  

School Parking Lot  DON'T PLAN ON PARKING HERE.  I'll explain below

Peaks bagged: 

Mt. Hanare (離山)

(First-time) peak 

# 851

Getting there/getting around:  

I drove.  I think public transportation is a better bet, though.

Map: 

Yama to Kogen Chizu 19 浅間山軽井沢・長野原の山々ASAMA-YAMA KARUIZAWA-NAGANOHARA-MOUNTAINS If that link goes dead, try search for "浅間山軽井沢" on the Mapple website

Weather Information:  

Asama Weather

Time

Total Time:  2:07  Break time: :17  Distance:  7.3km

Elevation

Lowest: 946m Highest: 1,252m Total Ascent:  339m Total Descent: 340m

Technical considerations/difficulty:  

None.  This would be an ideal hike for a couple on a date.  Most of the way up is a wide, fairly flat stone road.  It is a steady climb, but there is nothing particularly difficult about it.  I don't think you really need any "gear" to climb this mountain.  

Facilities:  

Several rest spots to catch the sights or have a meal.

Thoughts/observations/recommendations:  

I called this post the Lonely Mountain because this mountain sticks up out of a fairly flat area all by itself.  The word hanare means something like "separate" or "leave".  It fits.  It's not high, but it does have prominence because it is so alone.  

About parking . . . on the map, and on my hiking app, there is a parking space by a bus stop on the Old Nakasendo.  The maps are wrong.  There is no parking there--or anywhere.  There's no parking at the trailhead or in the neighborhood below the mountain.  In desperation, I asked one of the locals where to park and she directed me to a spot by a school underneath a sign with exotic red characters written on it.  I thought she might be pulling my leg because I'm not your average bumpkin foreigner.  No siree.  I could read those exotic characters.  The sign clearly said "No Parking".  When I protested, she told me not to worry, and that since it wasn't a school day, I was ok.  

Thankfully, I was.  

That said, I wouldn't plan on parking there again.  And . . . if you happened to be coming to the area from out of town, you're probably coming by train.  This area is just a short bus ride from Karuizawa Station.  This mountain would really be a nice stroll for tourists visiting Karuizawa.

Today's listening:  

Just the birds in the trees

Here are some pictures:

There hasn't been much snow around here yet this year but the ski area at the Karuizawa Prince Hotel is running.

That's Mt. Asama in the clouds.  The little bump to the right is Koasama where I'd climbed earlier that morning.

That's all for today.

Caveman out.

Caveman hikes on a blustery clear morning on Mt. Koasama, Nagano/Gunma

 

Good morning (afternoon, evening) cave crawlers.  Welcome to my world for a few minutes.  

Yesterday I went on two hikes in Karuizawa.  I had planned to drive far and go on an ambitious trek yesterday but the road conditions on the way were not great and the afternoon weather forecast was for snow.  I decided to change plans and do some shorter, more local hikes instead.  I'm glad I did.  I caught some spectacular weather in the morning and was home by noon--which is about the time the snow started flying.  I'm glad I wasn't driving home through the mountains in that weather.  Yay, me.

The firs mountain I hit was Koasama.  The second wasn't Mt. Hanare.  I'll write a separate post about that　here:　The Lonely Mountain　

Here are the details on Koasama:

Location:  

Mt. Koasama Nagakura, Karuizawa

Starting and stopping point: 

Parking lot across from the Toge Teahouse 峰の茶屋

Peaks bagged: 

Koasama east and west

(First-time) peaks # --

Getting there/getting around: 

Car.  There is a bus stop, though. 

Map: 

Yama to Kogen Chizu 19 浅間山軽井沢・長野原の山々ASAMA-YAMA KARUIZAWA-NAGANOHARA-MOUNTAINS If that link becomes obsolete, try searching for ”浅間山軽井沢” on the Mapple Website

Weather Information:  

Asama Weather

Time

Total Time: 1:25  Break time: :00  Distance:  4.25km

Elevation  

Lowest: 1,403m  Highest: 1,655m Total Ascent:  354m Total Descent: 355m

Technical considerations/difficulty:  

Parts of this are steep but there are no ropes or chains.  In the snow, crampons or some kind of spikes are a must.  If you are into hiking poles, they would be a good idea, too.  In the bare seasons, the trails have many spots of loose sand that make getting a purchase a little difficult.  There are also lots of small rocks on the trail that pose a danger of twisting an ankle.  Even so, this is a nice mountain for running on.

Facilities:  

Parking for a few cars at the bottom.  Vending machines, public restroom and an udon restaurant at the bottom.

Thoughts/observations/recommendations:  

This is about a 45-minute drive from my home so I've been here three or four times and I grow fonder of it each time.  The scenery changes with the seasons.  Since the trees aren't that thick and the hills are well-defined, it's easy to hop off the trail and still find your way to the top easily.

Today's listening: 

For You The War Is Over

You may have noticed the "No Entry" on the Google Earth screen shot.  Shh.  Mt. Koasama ("Little" "Asama") is next to Mt. Asama, an active volcano. 　🌋 　There is a zone of several kilometers around the volcano that you are prohibited from entering ⛔ because of the air quality.  I'm like a cat, though.  And you know cats and their curiosity . . . I wanted to go up the trail toward the big mountain just far enough to look back and get a picture of Koasama.

This picture is looking up at Koasama from the parking lot.  That white building is the volcano research building for Tokyo University.

This sign got blown over.

That's Mt. Asama.

These next pictures are looking back from the trail you're not supposed to enter.

Mt. Koasama straight ahead

The western peak of Koasama is in the immediate foreground.  The other one is to the right.

This was after it had warmed up a bit.

Well, that's all for today.  Come again.  Subscribe.  Tell all your friends to buy me ko fi.  ☕

Hungry for more?  Check out the other side of Asama here: Kurofu and here: Diamond Asama and here: Kengamine.

Caveman out

The Year of the Dragon is upon us. Monomi and Hirao Fuji.

 

Happy New Year!  Welcome to the Year of the Dragon.  🐉  

Let's all hope we don't encounter Smaug 🐉　on the Lonely Mountain.  ⛰️

I went for walks a few mornings before work this week and I'm going to put up a few pictures.  If you're interested in either of these areas in detail, take a look at the previous posts I made.  The first batch is from the Mt. Monomi area.  The second batch is from Hirao Fuji. The third is Monomi at sunrise.

Mt. Monomi Post

https://mymancaveisthemountains.blogspot.com/2024/05/sunrise-from-mt-monomi.html

Hirao Fuji

Around Mt. Monomi, I encountered three or four bevies of does.  The grey hours after sunrise and before sunset are good times to spot deer in the mountains here.

The view from Monomi Iwa 

(Iwa means boulder.)

If you're from America, you're probably wondering why I bothered taking a picture of a squirrel.  They are so rare here that they are kept in zoos.  I think I've only seen one or two in nature in as many decades.

This second batch is from Mt. Hirao Fuji.

Hirao Fuji

This is the ski area at Parada.  The slope faces south.  I assume they have a short ski season.

The top

The artificial snow on the ski slope gave me a chance (an excuse) to put my crampons on.  I have a new pair of boots and I've been wondering it the crampons would fit them.

It's like a winter 🀩 wonderland--where the snowgun was pointing.  😄  Everywhere else is green.

Well, spelunkers, that's all for today.

Caveman out.