This is a report on Mt. Takakura, in Takasaki, Gunma, Japan
. . . about
Mt. Takakura...this is a small, out-of-the-way mountain. It allowed for a peaceful hike in solitude with many great views. The name, Takakura (高倉), translates as "high"-"storehouse." Looking for any special information about this mountain, I discovered that it's not special at all. There are 50 mountains by the same name in the country and this one apparently doesn't warrant any special note because I didn't find anything! Which is great. I had the whole mountain to myself.
Area:
Shimonita, Gunma.
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.
There are buses to the Warabidaira Campground. (Going that far by fossil fuel cuts the amount of walking you can do, though!) Since the campground is seasonal, I assume the buses are, too.
The Caveman did it in Total Time: 2:57 Break time: :19 Distance: 10 km
Elevation:Lowest: 804 m Highest: 1,319 m Total Ascent: 628 m Total Descent: 628 m
Technical considerations/difficulty:
Piece of cake. Most of the walk is on pavement. You don't enter a trail until you get to the campground. From there, it is 700 meters to the top. You need to watch your step a bit, and there are a few ropes, but nothing too crazy.
Facilities:
The campground is closed in winter and the access road is blocked. When the campground is in business, there are restrooms, a campstore and even tsuribori. Tsuribori is fishing from a small, stocked trout pond. When you catch a fish, you give it to the staff and they grill it for you on a skewer. Warabidaira Forest Park Campground
At the bottom of the hike, is the Hamayusanso, a hotel with an onsen. They advertise that they are open for lunch. I peeked in but didn't enter because I would have had to change into slippers. There is a gift shop. Hamayusanso
Thoughts/observations/recommendations:
This was nice. If you're in the neighborhood, go ahead and do it.
(Along with all the regular stuff such as maps, headlamps, boots, feet, and brains, . . .) don't forget:
There was something important I was going to write here, but I can't remember what it was!
Let's look at some pictures.
Mt. Asama seen from the road on the way.
I think I probably took this at the Nido Pass.
That's a scenic spot.
I parked by the river the same place I parked when I climbed Tsunoochi last week. This
allowed me to connect the dots on my hikes. I'm such a weirdo about that.
The river I parked by.
Did they catch an invisible bear?
The trap is baited, but closed.
What gives?
Most of the hike was like this.
There were no cars and no people, so I was happy walking on the pavement.
It's been cold at night lately, but beautiful during the day.
The campground hq
Looking east over the rest of Gunma toward Tochigi.
Well, this is informative.
This is the tsuribori pond
Does anyone know what ワタどり means? I have no idea. It's not in the dictionary and none of my Japanese colleagues have any idea.
I never realized how opposable those thumbs could look.
I hiked on Mr. Hanamagari in Karuizawa the other day. It was great. Even though it was the last day of November and there were signs of frost and rime ice, it was warm enough that I could hike in a t-shirt.
The day before, I had hiked on Mt. Tsunoochi and was pumped that I could get a good view of that mountain from Mt. Hanamagari on this hike.
. . . about Hanamagari
This is a mountain on the prefectural line between Nagano and Gunma.
It's on the list of Shinshu's 100 Famous Mountains. The name means "nose" and "bend." Hmmmmm.
The word on the street is that it got its name because it looks like the nose of a tengu.
I've seen it from every angle and don't get that impression.
But I am not going to let my nose get bent out of shape about this.
Area:
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
The Caveman did it in Total Time: 4:44 Break time: :35 Distance: 13.3 km
Elevation:Lowest: 1,151 m Highest: 1,655 m Total Ascent: 1,120 m Total Descent: 1,120 m
Technical considerations/difficulty:
Not too difficult. The first half of the approach to Hanamagari is on a gently sloping forest road. Then it's a bit steep.
On the other side of the peak, it is steep in spots but not too out of control.
Facilities:
Nothing
Thoughts/observations/recommendations:
I think the plan I went with probably wouldn't appeal to most people. I went over the top of Hanamagari and then down to the Jurokumagari Pass. My purpose in doing that was to connect the dots with a hike I had made before. This meant that the farthest point of my hike was actually a low point. I think most people would be more inclined either to go only as far as Mt. Hanamagari or to opt for climbing another of the adjacent peaks instead of descending to the pass like I did.
Hanamagari is a nice mountain that gives nice views of Asama, Asama Kakushi and Tsunoochi. I was particularly pleased to have good weather which enabled me to get a nice view of Mt. Tsunoochi which I had climbed the day before.
Let's look at some pictures.
Asama
Yatsugatake
The pointy one is Tsunoochi.
I climbed that the day before.
Mt. Myogi near the center
Mt. Asama Kakushi is another great mountain.
It has a 360-degree view.
If you are interested in this area, why not check out one of these hikes?
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
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.
The view from the top
Mt. Asama
Who did this?
I love running water.
The Onna Saka
Mt. Asama Kakushi
Last look
Stay tuned. I'll make a report on
the next day's hike on Mt. Hanamagari soon.
If you're interested in this area, why don't you check out one of these posts?
