Bike, Hike & Fuji

One afternoon, we headed to the mountains on motorbike, and found a place to set up the tent after midnight. It was an ill-maintained, decrepit-looking campsite, but whether it was still in business or not, we never got to find out, as we took down camp at the crack of dawn the next morning.

Thirty minutes down the mountain road, we arrived at the trailhead, downed some canned coffee and riceballs, before setting off up the trail to Mt. Mizukagaki (2230m). We couldn't have asked for better weather, clear blue skies and mild temperatures made for a great day of hiking, and offered up some fantastic views of Mt. Fuji.

After getting down, we stopped to grab some ice-cream and freshly-made mochi (rice cakes) before taking a lovely autumny scenic route back to Tokyo.

Mt.Kitadake (Take 2)

再度挑戦でやっと北岳の登頂を成功した！
Success at the second attempt to the summit of Kitadake (3193m)!

 [Akaishi Onsen, a mixed hotspring we hit after the climb.]

Chains, Ladders & Snow.

Chains, ill-maintained ladders, and steep snow fields. There's great hiking to be had on our three-day trek at Mt. Kaikoma in the Yamanashi Prefecture. 私たちは尾白渓谷駐車場から甲斐駒ケ岳までの往復トレッキングしました。 二日間で七丈小屋に泊まりました。

Jimba-Takao Hike

There were some delays on the JR that morning, a train had apparently hit an animal, but the train company had considerately shifted the schedules of the rest of the trains to suit.

Conditions were perfect for hiking, with lovely sunny weather, warm, mild temperatures and a refreshing breeze. The route wasn’t crowded at all. And with a relaxed lunch break, as well as regular rest stops, we still managed to complete the 21-km route faster than the suggested 7.5-hours map time by one hour.

Fujino Station > Jimba-san (854.8m) > Takao-san > Takaosanguchi Station

[Sansai Tempura aka. Fried Wild Plants]

 [Some sort of long-nosed beetle.]

Akadake

Had a fab but exhausting time hiking up Aka-dake (2,899m) yesterday. It's my first time on the Yatsugadake mountains, and I'll definitely be back to climb the rest of the range. Had a few minor mishaps though, ripped a hole the length of a hand span in my trousers with my crampons; and I was a complete ditz by forgetting my glasses at the mountain hut we stayed at. But all's well that ends well with the help of duct tape and chakubarai (the Payment on Delivery postal service used in Japan).

Horse & Hotpot

I love hiking. And I love hotpot. So I did both at Mt. Jimba (857m).

Mt. Kentoku (2031m), a Top 100 Mt.

November time is crazy hiking time, and for every weekend this month, I have hiking plans to go, hike and enjoy the crisp mountain air whilst appreciating the autumnal colours that this season is displaying.

[Houtou, a Yamanashi speciality of udon in broth. This one has wild mushrooms.]

Mt. Jimba, Yamanashi

[Horse statue on top of Mt. Jimba (854.8m)]

The weather was fantastic. A majority of the route was shaded, so with the sun and the trees, we got to truely appreciate komorebi 木漏れ日, the dappled lighting effect of sunlight streaming through the tree leaves. And since we'd recently had that spell of heavy rain, we saw loads of wild strawberries 山苺!

I was subjected to the backside of a stink beetle. Fortunately, the pong wore off after a couple of hours.

Ishiwariyama

Just a bit of post catch-up. This was a November hike in the Yamanashi Prefecture. The trail started and ended at Lake Yamanaka, and passes through Mt. Ishiwariyama (1413m) where we got this amazing view of Mt. Fuji.

Our route also passed Ishiwari Jinja (shrine) which has this large "spiritualised" rock. Legend has it, that if you go around this rock three times, you will lead a life of happiness. I went around once, just to see what the path was like.

Afterwards, we went to an onsen http://www.benifuji.co.jp/ to get cleaned up before going home.

Mt.Takatsuka in Yamanashi

 [Sake-manjuu, steamed buns make with sake and filled with red bean paste, is the food to try in this part of Yamanashi. They were so good, I was tempted to get more, but didn't. The granny who makes them is really sweet! She has a twinkly smile and twinkly eyes!]

After fueling up with takoyaki (octopus dumplings) at a friend's takoyaki dinner on the previous night - I seriously ate too much, we were doing a lot of experimentation, so the subjects had to be eaten - I went hiking.

It was another hike that I organised for my hiking group. We started from Uenohara Station, went up to Mt.Takatsuka, and ended at Akiyama Onsen. Views were obscured by cloud, but there was some interesting-looking vegetation.

Yamanashi Week

14-17.8 Houousanzan of the Minami Alps

14^th  Relaxing day just getting to Nirasaki. We went to an onsen, and stayed at this funky handcrafted guesthouse called Kuboshuku. The owner has this Rastafarian-style beard and wears Japanese pullovers that say「男」meaning “man”.

15^th  It was a 04:40 morning start with loads of up. We gained over 1300m in elevation. This upward trail was mostly in the forest. We were a little worried about the rumblings of thunder in the distance, but we arrived at Yakushi Mountain Hut early afternoon just before the rain set in. Everyone else in my group had ordered dinner at the hut, so while they had oden – fish dumplings, eggs, white radish and konjac cooked in a broth – I enjoyed my avocado and tinned mackerel English muffin sandwiches with a nashi pear for dessert. Heavy food I know to bring on a hike, but as it was just for a few days, and we weren’t hiking for speed, I didn’t mind carrying it. My companions reassured me that I hadn’t missed much, not that I particularly like oden anyway.

16^th  We got up at 04:00 in order to catch the sunrise and headed to the summit of Yakushi-dake. It wasn’t a very clear day, the 雲海 aka. “a sea of cloud” was marvelous to see though, and we could make out Mt. Fuji in the distance. From here, we hiked the rest of the peaks of Houousanzan, including Jizo-dake and Takane. The views were absolutely gorgeous, and after the rain of the previous day, we were fortunate to have such great clear weather for the second day of the hike.

We arrived back in civilization around midday, and after a dip in an onsen – which is the best feeling in the world after a hike – we went and had houtou, a Yamanashi speciality. Afterwards, we headed to the local park to watch Nirasaki’s firework display which happened to coincide with the end of our hike (or maybe the organizer had planned it that way). It was my first time watching fireworks in such a dark, open space, where the fireworks were not obstructed by buildings or lights. After crunching my way through a mango-flavoured snow cone, I just laid back and watched ;)

For the night, we set up camp at a free camping ground, and even though I was sharing with a couple of people (including a snorer), I was out like a light, and slept like a log until morning.

17^th  After a quick brekky of me own mix of oatmeal (with choccy bits) mixed with powdered milk and water. I caught the train back to Tokyo.

18.8 JP EXP

I can’t seem to get away from Yamanashi. This time I went by car with a friend, her son and her friend’s family and friends. This must of have been the most Japanese trip that I’ve been on, it was what I envisioned a typical Japanese trip to be like, it was just so Japanese! All I need to do after this, is to have a Japanese ryokan experience complete with onsen, yukatas and ping-pong, and I’d be beyond happy.

We went pear-picking. It was 1000yen for all you could eat, but I could only manage two! They taught me how to properly peel a pear with a knife, since they don’t have any peelers.

After gorging on pears, we had a BBQ with grilled riceballs, veggies, prawns and scallops, sausages, and these seriously beautiful cuts of beef. I wish I could have eaten more, but the belly just wouldn’t allow it!

With uncomfortably full tummies, we went for a drive around Yamanashi, and checked out Shosen Gorge and Takeda Shrine. Then, we watched the sunset whilst soaking in Hottarakashi Onsen. I went to Acchi-no-Yu, the newer bath of the two available. I grabbed a grape-flavoured snow cone afterwards.

The last activity of the day before heading back to Tokyo, was fireworks by the river. We played around with mini fireworks and sparklers, I haven’t played with sparklers since I was a kid! They introduced me to the senko hanabi, a tiny cute version of the standard sparkler that requires patience and a steady hand. If lucky, your efforts are paid off with a little globe of molten on the end of your stick that fizzes and splutters as the sparks fly! The aim is to try and keep the lightning ball at the end of your stick for as long as possible.

I’m so thrilled that I managed to experience something like this. To me, this was the total Japanese experience! Now then… yukatas and ping-pong…