Mt. Kabuto Iwa--Helmet Rock

 



Location: Mt. Rockhead  (That's not really the name, but it's close.😂)

Starting and stopping point:  Taguchi Pass 田口峠

Peaks bagged: 兜岩山 (Kabutoiwa)

(First-time) peaks # XX

Getting there/getting around:  I drove.  There's no public transportation.

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: 2:00  Break time: 0:00  Distance:  5.8km

Elevation:  Lowest: 1,107m Highest: 1,368m Total Ascent:  464m Total Descent: 464m

Technical considerations/difficulty:  It's not a terribly demanding hike.  There are no chains, ropes or ladders.  Much of it is along a very steep ridge.  I would not want to fall off the ridge!  The trail is not marked or traveled very much.  I would encourage not coming on this hike without some sort of GPS because you could get disoriented and start following the wrong ridge.

Facilities:  Nothing.

Thoughts/observations/recommendations:  

This was a hike to 兜岩山 (Kabuto Iwa Yama).  Kabuto means helmet and Iwa means boulder.  That's why I think of it as Mt. Rockhead.

It's almost a scenic hike.  There are gorgeous scenes hinted at all along the way but the trees are just a bit too thick to ever give an unobstructed view.  It was fun, nevertheless.  I did see some wildlife on the way.  As I pulled up to where I parked, there was a smallish critter on the trail I was about to hop on.  I think it was a marten, but I did not get a good look.  On the trail, I caught a glimpse of a bevy of about 5 does about 100~200 yards away.  They gave themselves away by barking at me.

There wasn't enough snow to necessitate wearing crampons but it was frozen crisply enough that it gave a satisfying crunch when stepping on it. 

Mrs. Caveman bought me a nice pair of winter boots for Christmas.  Wow.  I like them.  When I think of all the years of my life having cold feet in the snow and cold, I feel spoiled now.

This trail is not used much so it was pleasant to see no (two-legged) footprints other than my own.  I did see plenty of pawprints on the trail.

I chose this route for the distance and time available.  I frequently go for short hikes before work but was getting bored with the same areas.  I wanted to do one that was a bit more substantial--yet still get to work on time.  So I decided to pick just one of the peaks near Arafune for a piston (out and back on the same trail) hike.  The trailhead is a half-hour drive from home and the route I chose was about 6km (about 3.5 mi.).  I figured that if I started before sunrise, I could make it there and back and get to work by about 9:30.  It worked out fairly well.  I was able to do the hike and get home with about 10 minutes to spare to get ready for work.  Perfect.  Score one for the caveman.

The trailhead is just before the prefectural boundary between Nagano and Gunma at the Taguchi Pass** on Route 93.  (**One of the reasons I like hiking is that I get to use the word, pass.  I always feel like I'm in a western and my posse is going to head some black-hatted bandits off at the pass.  But I digress.)  Route 93 is a very narrow mountain road and is a great place to go spotting deer at dusk.  I had reason to get worried on the road this morning, though.  There were signs saying that the road was "closed end to end between the hours of 8-12 and 1-5 for maintenance for this week."  I decided to push my luck and try to drive on to the trailhead.  I didn't see any construction equipment on the road and hoped that all of the maintenance was going to be on the other side of the pass and wouldn't actually affect my side.  I knew I wouldn't finish my hike before 8 so I was taking a risk.  I was imagining how to beg in Japanese for passage back out of the mountains in case they closed the road behind me.  ("Road closed sign?  Is that what that sign meant?  I'm sorry.  I don't read Japanese."  No.  I can't lie so well.   [That's a lie, in case you're wondering.]  Maybe I would go with "Please, let me out.  I'll never do it again.")  Then I was imagining not being allowed passage back to civilization.  What would I tell my employer on the phone--assuming there was a signal out there by which to make the call?)  Thankfully, I had no problems getting home.  I didn't see any road crews on my way home and no gate or anything was blocking the road.

OK.  It's official.  I'm doing the thing bloggers do that I hate--telling me about themselves.  You don't need to know all this--the same way I don't need to know about how every time Sally the baker makes cornbread she remembers how her grandpa used to talk about his boyhood days back in Nebraska when he used to sit on his grandaddy's lap on the tractor and really loved the smell of the cornfields of the back 40 in July . . .  I just want her stupid recipe for cornbread!  

I swear.  Sometimes you have to wade through about 20,000 words before you get to a recipe on a food blog.  I shouldn't subject you to that same kind of treatment.

So, without further ado, I will shut up.

Today's listening:  Just the birds in the air and deer barking on the ground.

These are the details:








Sunrise was at 7:00.  I started at about 6:45.





That road through the valley below is Rt. 254, the Cosmos Road.  The bridge in the foreground is by the Uchiyama Pass Tunnel.  Trailheads for Mt. Arafune and Mt. Monomi are near there.

I live in that cluster of civilization not far from where Route 254 comes out of the mountains.



-9.7 Celsius about 15 degrees Fahrenheit.
I still managed to work up a sweat.









That flat thing with the cliff to the left is Mt. Arafune.


Rosoku Iwa (Candle Rock)



It had warmed up before I got to the car but my water still froze.




The Northern Alps are hidden in clouds.












That's all for today.
Caveman out.

























The Lonely Mountain, Mt. Hanare, Karuizawa, Japan

Snow on Hanareyama


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:
snowy road up to Hanareyama

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.

Mt. Asama from Hanare


snowy stairs up to Hanareyama

Asama and Koasama from Hanareyama

That's all for today.
Caveman out.

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

 

windswept snow on Koasama

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.


sun and snow on Koasama

This sign got blown over.

top of Koasama

windswept snow on Koasama2



That's Mt. Asama.

Asama from Koasama, snow


sun from Koasama on a white day

snow on Koasama








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

Mt. Koasama straight ahead

Looking back at Koasama



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

The two peaks of Koasama

This was after it had warmed up a bit.



snowy trail to Koasama

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