Caveman does a peep show in Yamanashi. Peeking the leaves at their peak from the peak of Mt. Mizugaki.

  


Greetings cavedwellers



Yesterday I made my third trip out to Hokuto-shi (Hokuto City) in Yamanashi, to the area around Mt. Mizugaki.  Here are the details.  I'll blather on later.






Location:  Mt. Mizugaki, Hokuto, Yamanashi

Starting and stopping point:  Daimeniwashita Boulder Parking Lot 大面岩下ボルダー駐車場

Mountains climbed: Takamiiwa~~Iimori~~Mizugaki 

Getting there/getting around:  The Mizugaki Sanso is accessible by bus from Nirasaki train Station

Map:  Yama to Kogen Chizu #27 KINPU-SAN・KOBUSHI OKUCHICHIBU 金峰山・甲武信 奥秩父

Weather Information:  Mt. Mizugaki Weather

Distance:  13.5km

Elevation:  Lowest:  1,456m Highest:  2,230m Total Ascent:  1,456m Total Descent: 1,456m

Technical considerations/difficulty:  This is a hike with a lot of scrambling and climbing.  ⛰ The top 200 meters of ascent necessitate climbing with both hands and feet.  Despite the necessity of using hands as well as legs, there are few chains or ladders because there is a plethora of tree roots and rocks to use as handholds.  Also, it's not very exposed except at the top.  Snow has already started to fall on nearby Mt. Kinpu (2,499m)🏔 but none had fallen yet on Mizugaki.  I saw climbers of all ages yesterday.  Some people looked less happy than others, though.  😆

Facilities:  There is food, lodging and a restroom at the nearby Mizugaki Sanso and there are the same amenities as well at Fujimidaira Hut.  There are also tent sites at the hut.  There are other campgrounds in the local area as well.  A free waterhole is about 5 minutes down the trail from the Fujimidaira Hut.  There are no more restrooms above that hut.  Be prepared for a long wait between bathroom breaks.

Thoughts/observations/recommendations: This is really a wonderful area.  I hiked around here for the first time two summers ago.  That was awesome.  This time, visiting in autumn, was great, too!

Now, for my blather.  The reason I put the blather last is because I assume my some of my cavedwellers might be bothered by blogger blather the way I am.  Oh, brother.  What a bother to be bothered by a brother blogger's blather.  

For example, I like to cook.  Sometimes I get the idea to make something new and fire up the google machine (btw, don't believe them, google is evil) and search for a recipe for that dish.  Invariably, I find myself at a blog and usually the post starts, not with the recipe or a list of ingredients, but with a sentence like this, "My Pa-paw--who had high cheekbones--really liked his cold crab omelets . . . "

Then I have to scroll down through the family history and organ recitals, "That's when Aunt Betty had gout.  Poor thing. . .", and hunt for the recipe.  If I was interested in someone's heritage, I would be checking out ancestry dot com instead of recipes 'r us.  While some of these blogposts are interesting, there is only about a 1/1,024 chance that I care about the life story of the cook who is writing it.  (She is probably lying about Grandpa Ambrose Finnigan, anyway.  Come on, man.)

OK, that's done.  

I haven't blogged in a bit.  My past couple of hikes were local and I've blogged those spots to death.  Yesterday was different.   I got to one of my favorite areas and caught the fall colors at their peak. 

Like I was saying, this area around Mizugaki is great.  Mizugaki is one of the 100 Famous Mountains as well as is nearby Mt. Kinpu. 


I left home at 5 am.   I thought I'd get to the area about 9 but some of the areas I passed through were too pretty and I found myself stopping to take a lot of pictures.






Starting out.  
As you can see, the weather was gorgeous.  It was very comfortable for hiking.  It was right around 50 degrees all day.



This is just before the top of Takamiiwa ("Hawk View Boulder").


From Takamiiwa




After Takamiiwa, I went hunting for the peak of Mt. Imori.  There was no trail.


There was nothing to see when I got there, either.  This is the marker for the top of that mountain.


Mt. Mizugaki from below.

That cool view of Mizugaki


very cool trees on Mizugaki

On the top.  
Had lunch here around 2 pm.  It was a national holiday yesterday, so I wasn't alone.
Can you spot the photoshopping I did to "fix" this shot?

top of Mt. Mizugaki

Mt. Imori, Takamiiwa and Fuji from Mt. Mizugaki

Gorgeous Fuji from Mizugaki



One of the bouldering boulders below Mizugaki



Inside the Fujimidaira Hut

antlers at the Mizugaki Sanso

I got my antlers for free - - That was a really cool experience.




komorebi near Mizugaki


Heading home

I was driving straight toward Fuji for a while on the way home.  
Cool.


That's all for now.  Mrs. Caveman has given me permission (and more importantly train fare) to go somewhere far tomorrow so I need to get to bed.

Don't forget to subscribe for updates.  Comment away.  It costs you nothing and makes me feel like I'm an "influencer."  
On second thought, I don't want to be one of those.  🤣


Want to see another of the 100 Famous Mountains?  Check out Kobushigatake.

Caveman out







Autumn Sunset on Takao




Location:  Mt. Takao

Starting and stopping point:  Takaosanguchi Parking Lot

Mountains climbed: Takao

Getting there/getting around:  The nearest station is Takaosanguchi on the Keio Line.  Free parking is available for bicycles and motorcycles smaller than 125cc.

Map:  Yama to Kogen Chizu #28 高尾・陣馬 TAKAO・JINBA 

Weather Information:  Takao Weather

Distance:  8km

Elevation:  Lowest:  188m Highest: 599m Total Ascent:  499m Total Descent: 499m

Technical considerations/difficulty:  This isn't a long hike but it is steep.  I wouldn't suggest running here at peak tourist time.  Takao is a very popular mountain.  The route I ran is paved.  Many trails on Takao aren't.

Facilities:  Lots. Public restrooms.  Free water.  Monkey park.  Beer garden.  Cable car

Thoughts/observations/recommendations: I wanted to see the sunset so I ran up after work. If you do this, bring a flashlight. There is no light on much of the trail.  Also, after dark, some of the paved walkways through the shrines and temples are closed and you have to run through the woods.

It was a nice run.  We've had so much rain and clouds these days.  I was so happy to have some nice weather.

On the way up, I ran into my friend, Caleb who happened to be gazing out at Tokyo down below.  Readers of this blog know Caleb.  He is the guy with the famous boots from our trip to Kamikochi in August. https://mymancaveisthemountains.blogspot.com/2022/08/broken-boots-in-kamikochi-mt-hotaka-one.html  He took a picture of us.  If he sends it to me, I'll post it.

He did.  Here it is.



That's all.    Here are some pictures.










Looking east toward downtown Tokyo.  I'm really tempted to come here for a sunrise someday.



Come again, soon.  Don't be afraid to subscribe or to comment.














Wow!

It's not me, but this is really close to my usual stomping grounds.


Thank you, Mrs Caveman, for the bear spray!


Not a mountain . . . Cats!

 Mrs. Caveman is a cat lady so we went here today.


Bake Neko (Ghost Cat) Festival


No comment other than to say that Kagurazaka is a happening place.  Don't even think of asking me for an explanation.


Videos




































Holy Cat!