Mostly Japanese Mountains

Little Crow Hat and Crow Hat. 小烏帽子岳, 烏帽子岳

What's up, spelunkers?

This is a snowshoeing hike I took around Mt. Yunomaru and Mt. Eboshi on the border between Gunma and Nagano. It was a great day and I hope you enjoy the pictures as much as I enjoyed taking them.

You probably won't. I take way too many pictures and find it difficult to discard any.

On this hike, I climbed Mt. Yunomaru (again) and Mts. Koeboshigatake and Mt. Eboshigatake. E-boshi-take means "crow" "hat" "mountain". The "Ko" of Koeboshigatake means "little."

Location: Yunomaru Kogen Heights Tomi, Nagano

Starting and stopping point: Yunomaru-kogen Heights Visitor Center 湯の丸高原ビジターセンター

Peaks bagged: Yunomaru (湯の丸山) Yunomaru Kitamine (湯の丸北峰) Koeboshi (小烏帽子) Eboshigatake (烏帽子が岳)

(First-time) peaks # 864 and 865

Getting there/getting around: I drove.

Map: Yama to Kogen Chizu 19 浅間山軽井沢・長野原の山々ASAMA-YAMA KARUIZAWA-NAGANOHARA-MOUNTAINS

Weather Information: Asama Weather

Total Time: 4:52 Break time: 1:03 Distance: 9.1km

Elevation: Lowest: 1,730 m Highest: 2,099 m Total Ascent: 692 m Total Descent: 692 m

Technical considerations/difficulty: Not tremendously technical.

Facilities: Nothing

Thoughts/observations/recommendations: What a great area. This was my second time back in the last few weeks. I wanted to connect the dots of my footprints and I wanted to climb the two Eboshi peaks. I was blessed with another day of great weather. It wasn't as clear as last time, though, and I couldn't see Mt. Fuji. That's ok, though.

This is todays destination.

Eboshi Yunomaru Takamine Kurofu Maekake 烏帽子岳　湯ノ丸山　高峰山　黒斑山　前掛け

I absolutely love looking up and around and being able to say "I've been there."

And away I go!

Lots of critters out there.

Starting out climbing the trail at the Yunomaru Ski Area. I started up the slope even before the chairlift started running.

That bump on the left is Mt. Kakuma. I climbed that last time, but not today.

You can register a hiking plan by using the QR code on the sign.

Yatsugatake

Mt. Fuji hid today

Mt. Sajiki on the left. Mt. Kosajiki on the right.

The top of Yunomaru

The pointy one below is Eboshi. That's my ultimate goal for the day.

Most of the day, I didn't really need the snowshoes because there were many traces of previous hikers. I did still sink in a few times, though.

Mt. Eboshigatake

And with that, dear spelunker, I leave you until next time.

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Caveman out.

Pat B

I'm the caveman. My mancave is the mountains. Google dislikes me so nobody can find my blog. I keep doing it though, because I want to remember all the great places I've been able to see and I have a bad memory.

Mt. Akiya, Shimonita, Gunma 秋葉山

Location: Shimonita, Gunma

Starting and stopping point: Side of the road

Peaks bagged: Mt. Akiya (秋葉山)

(First-time) peaks　#863

Getting there/getting around: Car

Map: Yama to Kogen Chizu #21 西上州　妙義山・荒船山

Weather Information: Mt. Arafune's weather (not too far away)

Total Time: 3:05 Break time: :13 Distance: 6.59km

Elevation: Lowest: 456m Highest: 861m Total Ascent: 633m Total Descent: 639m

Technical considerations/difficulty: Very steep. I mean, very steep. There is only one place with a rope; I wish there were more. You don't want to make a misstep here. I have no idea what the trail looks like in non-snow seasons, but there is very little signage and not so many pink ribbons to follow. A working GPS is a must.

Facilities: Nothing

Thoughts/observations/recommendations:

We got some snow last night and I got out of work early today so I picked one of my shorter hiking plans and headed to the hills in hopes of possibly using my snowshoes and also of catching some nice snowscapes. I didn't use the snowshoes; crampons were more suitable today. Unfortunately, it warmed up too much during the day and there was a lot of melting going on. Thankfully, there wasn't an avalanche.

I had planned on this trip to tackle Mt. Akiya and nearby Goshuyama but prudence dictated putting the second mountain off for a day when I have more time available. This area, like much of Gunma and a lot of Saitama demands a lot of respect. There are a lot of hills here that, although they are low in elevation, are very rugged. It's not the type of place you can rush.

Still, I was glad to put a few more miles on my hiking boots today and to get some nice views of snowy mountains. The caves here are cool, too!

Without further ado, here are some pictures.

There are a lot of caves on the way up. Thankfully, they are home to shrines and statues and not bears.

The top

Still on the top

Mt. Asama is hiding in the clouds there.

I wish it were minus 3 and not plus 3.

I got this shot of Mt. Arafune's Tomoiwa from Route 254 on the way home.

That's all for today.

Caveman out.

Pat B

Mt. Arafune/Kyozuka

Location: Saku City, Nagano and Minaminomaki, Gunma

Starting and stopping point: （Near here)　Arafunedoshita Parking Lot

Peaks bagged: Mt. Kyozuka

(First-time) peaks　None

Getting there/getting around: Car

Map: Yama to Kogen Chizu #21 西上州　妙義山・荒船山

Weather Information: Mt. Arafune's weather (not too far away)

Total Time: 1:57 Break time: :04 Distance: 4.5km

Elevation: Lowest: 1,017m Highest: 1,422m Total Ascent: 430m Total Descent: 430m

Technical considerations/difficulty: There are some steep slopes off the side of the trail but there are no parts that are difficult to climb. The signage is old and hard to read but if you pay attention, you shouldn't get lost.

Facilities: Nothing.

Thoughts/observations/recommendations: This hike doesn't have much to recommend for views. Better views are to be had on the other end of Mt. Arafune at Tomonoiwa.

Speaking of "Mt. Arafune", the naming of this mountain is odd. The peak I went to today is called "Mt. Arafune (Mt. Kyozuka)" and down the trail a little bit, at a much lower point, is "Mt. Arafune." The mind boggles. Why not choose one distinct name for each place? I'm often puzzled by the names of mountains (and streets and towns and people . . . ) here.

Today's listening: The Great Detectives Jeff Regan Before Jack Webb was Joe Friday, he played a few private detectives in noir dramas. Jeff Regan was one radio show. He was also Pat Novak for hire. Those shows are a hoot. Some of the one-liners he delivers are so funny:

“It was hard to figure. It was like trying to throw a saddle on a porpoise.”
“I had about as much chance as a snowball in a Turkish bath.”
“When she said, ‘Hello,’ it melted all over you, like honey on a hot biscuit.”
“He was crumpled up against the desk and she was staring down at him as if she forgot to water the plants.”

(h/t to this site https://thrillingdetective.com/2020/09/22/jeff-regan-2/)