Day 6: Mt. Fuji to Kyoto
A common maneuver for many people hiking Mt. Fuji is leaving the new 7th Station hut around 12:30am-1am in order to see the sunrise from the summit. However, as noted yesterday, we don’t really care about seeing the sunrise FROM the summit, and much prefer to avoid the crowds of people who do! So, instead of fighting the crowds, we enjoyed a couple extra hours of sleep and woke up a bit more well-rested at ~2:30am (with some assistance from other noise and light in the hut) ready to go!
Hakone region at 3am
There’s the traffic jam of people who left at 1am
We started hiking just after 3am, with basically no one else on the trail near us. Perfect! We could see the line of headlamps closer to the top. We stopped at each hut along the way for quick rest breaks and to continue Mel’s mission to get stamps from each hut on her kongō-zue. The first few were still closed. We took mental note of which were missing so she could get them on the way down.
Too early for stick-branding services at Original Station 7 (3200m)
By 4:30am, dawn was breaking and we starting glancing behind us to catch the sunrise. Officially, sunrise was listed at 4:45am, but with a couple layers of clouds on the horizon it took a few extra minutes before the sun itself was visible. We didn’t have lines of people behind us, so we just stopped whenever we wanted to admire the view. And what a view.
Shortly after sunrise at 5:06am
The cloud cover really kicked it up a notch
The climbing Cordinas
The sunrise occurred roughly at the halfway point of today’s ~700m push to the top. We continued up, getting stamps at the remaining (and now open!) huts. As we got closer to the top, there were some more crowded sections, but there was always ppenty of room to pass if needed.
New 8th station? Old 8th Station? Station 8.5? Who knows!?!
Jo confirms… Original 8th Station (3400m)
Torii gate somewhere near 9th Station (3600m)
To the top!
Finally, we made it to the summit!!! Well… not really. Even though all the signage calls this point the “Summit” of Mt. Fuji, this point of the Subashiri trail is really just the crater rim – which features the Kusushi Shrine and some various shops. It is only 3715m, which is not the highest point of the mountain. The REAL summit is across the caldera at Kengamine Peak (near the weather station). So, we have a bit further to go. In the meantime, we took a minute to relax, Melanie collected her stamp from the Shrine, and we bought a couple souvenirs. One shop offered to stamp their metal keychains/magnets with the date as part of the purchase, so of course we took them up on that!
Collecting the Kusushi Shrine brand at crater rim (3715m)
After rejuvenating, we started toward the highest point on the other side of the crater. There were a few ups and downs, but compared to what we just did, it was essentially flat. Along the trail, there is a crater rim post office. But none of us had any snail mail to send.
Clockwise route along Mt. Fugi crater rim
Mt. Fuji caldera
When we got to Kengamine Peak 30 minutes later, we did have to wait in line about 20-30 minutes to take our picture at the summit sign. Thank goodness we didn’t have to wait in this line hours earlier. I’m pretty sure if we put Lily in charge of coordinating the photo line at the summit monument, Japan would be introduced to a new level of efficiency they have never fathomed.
Official marker atop Mt. Fuji (3776m)
Highest point in Japan!
After we ascended to the real summit for a couple photos, we continued clockwise on the crater rim loop — heading back to the Subashiri trail entrace. Having accomplished the summit, there was obviously only one thing left to do – get back down safely!
Completing the crater rim trail
Mt. Fuji crater map
600 yen well spent on a cold brew to keep Jo running
Meanwhile, checking in with team Hakone (What? No pizza!?)
The trail down Subashiri is somewhat different than the trail up Subashiri, which is unique among the four Mt. Fuji summit routes. The path down Subashiri offers the famed “Subashiri sand run” which is a steep, wide swath of “soft” volcanic gravel that you can “run” or bound down quickly with big, sweeping steps. The keys are to keep your balance, maintain some decent momentum, and USE YOUR KICKS! (Thanks Nico)
Ready for the Subashiri sand run
Fast descent thru deep volcanic gravel
Fortunately, we were also able to stop by the two huts (closed earlier) Melanie needed for a complete set of stamps. And when we arrived back at Taiyokan — the hut we slept at — we we took the opportunity to use the restrooms for free (since we were guests and they “remember our faces”) and take a snack break.
We covered a lot of ground in about an hour, but after the sand run ended, we still had a bit more to go. We stopped at one last pit stop to dump all the debris out of our shoes (for the gaiter-less) and mentally prepare for the last 30 minutes of hiking along the “normal” stony and rocky path we used yesterday.
Finally we arrived back at the 5th Station around noon, where the Mt. Fuji park staff members cheered for us, guided us to the shuttle bus waiting area, and offered some minor first aid to Lily. Mountain Cowberry and Chocolate ice creams were purchased immediately from the nearby snack shop. As a bonus, the shop also sold the perfect Hello Kitty Mt. Fuji magnet for the fridge.
Did Lily make it?!?!
…Yes!!!
Record of our excellent Mt. Fuji weather conditions
We caught the 1pm shuttle back down to Gotemba station to start our journey to Kyoto. There were plenty of trains and busses, but Jo figured out the best route was (1) JR Rail from Gotemba to Numazu, (2) Another JR Rail to Mishima (and not the bus!), (3) Then Shinkansen (bullet train) to Kyoto, and (4) whatever local trails are needed after that!
Unlike regular commuter trains in Japan where you are not supposed to eat or drink, they somewhat encourage you to eat on the shinkansen! The pro move is to purchase a bento box or other pre-packaged snacks at the mini-marts or vending machines in the Shinkansen stations before you board your train. We picked up a couple bento boxes and drinks for this trip. One box was a traditional meal and the other was a horse mackerel sushi roll.
For educational purposes, we snapped a photo of the items and asked Google AI to further describe what we just purchased. Turns out our boxes were from a “historic” and “popular” restaurant. We also figured out — too late — how to grate a fresh wasabi root on the rough bottom of the provided soy sauce dish. Now we know for next time!
“Historic” bento box selections according to Google
We made it to Kyoto and after a couple local trains, we arrived at the Rinn Gion Shirakawa just after 6pm. From the moment Belinda sent us a picture of her and Charles eating pizza yesterday, it was all we could think about. So, for dinner, Belinda found a pizza place near the Rinn and put in an order for us as we showered and settled in to our rooms.
We have a regular room (405), but the Cordinas have the master suite down the hall (401) thanks to Belinda’s sage decision (and MoJo’s excellent advice) to upgrade to the unit with EVERYTHING — including a kitchen, tables, couches, a view of the Kamo riverwalk, free bread, free beer, you name it!!!!! And most importantly, plenty of space to hang out and eat pizza. A great way to end the day.
Kyoto! Suite!
Team Fuji was all pretty tired and went to bed shortly after. Oh, our bags arrived safely from Tokyo as well. Tomorrow, our plans involve a day trip to Nagoya to see the Nagoya Castle and Day 11 of the current Grand Sumo Tournament.
