2nd anniversary
What a second year in Japan it has been with earthquakes, tsunamis and nuclear issues. Even with all of that the Japanese people continue to be amazing, the countryside is spectacular and the whole experience is still special.  It’s time to assemble a list of “must do’s” for the next year to make sure nothing is missed. I’m sure that it will be a great year…

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A night at the footy
On a recent trip back to Australia I visited Melbourne and managed to get along to the footy for the first time in a number of years. After sitting in the crowd for the game I’ve decided that it will be a little while before I take my son along to experience the colourful use of English employed by some in the crowd. I watched the Swans versus the Dons at docklands.


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Canberra sunset
On a trip back to Canberra the winter rain stopped on dusk and the sunset was something to behold.


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Best love hotel name ever
On the way to Narita airport in Tokyo the bus passed a love hotel with the best, and most direct, name ever.


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Sendai onsen
There will be no photos. On a recent trip to Sendai the hotel I stayed in had a public onsen. The hotel was located in the cooler cedar clad hills outside of Sendi. On entering the onsen area you take a shower stall, complete with its small stool and rack of shampoos and body washes, wash yourself thoroughly. Taking your small towel you then head to the baths. This hotel had a bath located outside. It was amazing to lay back in hot water as the breeze swirled the steam from the surface of the pool allowing glimpses of the mist moving through the cedars on the hillside above the onsen. It was very easy to spend an hour in the pool, or on the side as the water was exceedingly hot, watching the ever changing scene. Having an onsen in the snow has been added to my list of “must do’s”.

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Climbing Mount Fuji – Part 1
Wow. I said that so many times as I watched the sun rise over Mount Fuji I lost count.

One of the things I had on my “must do” list when I came to Japan was to climb Mount Fuji and visiting Lake Kawaguchi a couple of weeks earlier only re-enforced this thought. Most people I spoke to prior to climbing the mountain suggested that the only time to climb was overnight because this allowed you to watch the sunrise from the summit of Mount Fuji. While some people elect to spend the night in climbing lodges up on the mountain and get up early to make the last little climb to the summit I decided to spend the night climbing.

Mount Fuji is officially open to tourists from the beginning of July to the end of August. Advice is that climbing Mount Fuji at any other time is dangerous because no lodges will be open (and the entire mountain is likely to be covered in snow and ice). “Open” means that the mountain lodges located on the ascent routes are open offering food, drinks and rest to those climbing the mountain along with a ¥200 charge to visit the toilets. The other thing you can buy if you really want are cans of oxygen. People who used the oxygen started early with people inhaling from the 6th station. One guy at the 8th station seemed to miss the point and was sucking down canned oxygen while holding a cigarette in the other hand.

The Yoshida, Subashiri, Gotemba and Fujinomiya trails are the 4 main trails to the summit of Mount Fuji. The research I did suggested that the Yoshida Trail is the most developed on Mount Fuji and best suited to what I had in mind. According to a website I visited the Yoshida trail has “modernised” facilities including lodges and some first-aid centres which ensure that climbing the mountain by this trail is “comfortable”. One of the warnings about the Yoshida trail was that because it is so popular there was a chance that it would be crowded and, if crowded, there is a risk that some people wouldn’t make it to the summit in time to witness the sunrise. An English map of the Yoshida trail can be found at http://www.mtfuji.jpn.org/fujimap_eng.pdf. The trail has 10 stations located at various heights with the 1st station being at the base of Mount Fuji and the 10th being at the top. With car access to the 5th station on most of the trails most people choose to start their climb at the 5th station on their chosen trail.

While the temperatures in Tokyo have been hot the temperatures at the top of Mount Fuji are winter like even in the midst of summer. I ended up wearing thermals, a down jacket (while sitting around waiting for the sun to come up), and windproof pants and jacket. Some people were wearing shorts, T-shirts and thin jumpers – there was a lot of shaking going on. Even more amazing were the number of people who didn’t have torches – yep that’s right – no torches. I can see the thought the process “…lets climb Mount Fuji at night time, do we need a torch? Nah, she’ll be right.”

I tried to time my visit to Mount Fuji to be towards the beginning of the climbing season to avoid the worst of the crowds that apparently start later in July and go through most of August. I watched Mount Fuji weather forecasts online for a couple of weeks prior to my trip (http://www.snow-forecast.com/resorts/Mount-Fuji/6day/top) trying to get a night where no overnight rain or clouds in the morning were forecast. With the weather site changing their forecast between the overnight and morning updates I decided at around 11 am that I should take the opportunity and head to the mountain after work. While the temperature in Tokyo was forecast to be around the mid 30’s the temperature at the top of Mount Fuji was forecast to be around 0 without considering the wind chill factor.

Leaving Tokyo the peaks to the west of the city were covered in cloud making for a spectacular sight as the sun went down.



After driving through the mountains I got my first sight of Mount Fuji from the road leading to the national park and it looked like the weather forecasts were going to be right.


The cost of entry to the Fuji national park is ¥2000 per car (cash only). After entering the park you begin the 18 kilometre drive up the side of the mountain to the Subaru line 5th station (the beginning of the Yoshida trail). The drive up the mountain is through forests and it was very pleasant to be able to drive with the windows down allowing fresh forest smells to fill the car. One distraction was, while wondering why a musical note had been painted on the road, crossing lines cut into the road and the tyres rolling up the road making music. Following the road as it wound up the side of Mount Fuji through the forests, watching deer at the side of the road, I soon emerged above the clouds. Above the clouds there was the first of many amazing sights of the trip.





The Subaru line 5th station is at an altitude of around 2300 metres above sea level and when I arrived the sun was just disappearing and lighting was playing in the clouds. I didn’t get a chance to look around in the dark (I took this photo the next day).




After quickly changing into some warm clothes and eating a cold pasta dinner I started the 6 hour trek up the mountain. The lower parts of the trail zigzag up the side of the mountain and are covered with loose, broken, volcanic rocks which was a bit like walking on sand. The second half of the trail was clambering up rocky “steps” through volcanic features.


There was an almost full moon and, until it disappeared behind the mountain and the terrain became more complex, it was pleasant to climb just in the moon light. About 1 am, at the 8th station, it started to get really cold with gloves and a beanie (tuque) needed. A thermometer on the side of one of the huts showed that the temperature was around 3 degrees with the wind whistling around the buildings making the temperature even lower.


Arriving at the top of Mount Fuji (3776 metres) around 3:00 am I was in for an hour and a half wait for the sun to begin rising. After putting on all of the clothes I had bought with me I settled in to wait watching the snaking line of ascending headlights rising up the trail below me. Around 4:15 am the sky began to lighten and then the sunrise began.




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Climbing Mount Fuji – Part 2
After spending most of the night climbing Mount Fuji I admit I was wondering just how good the sunrise would be – I needn’t have worried. Around 4:40 am the sun started to rise above the horizon. It was amazing, watching a full red orb appear over the horizon and rise up through the clouds. It quickly became apparent that I wasn’t the only one who was blown away by the sight with one guy in the crowd leading a 5 minute chant.







Following the sunrise I took about one hour to walk around the craters of Mount Fuji enjoying the warmth of the sun and views over the mountains and lakes surrounding Mount Fuji.






After walking around the craters I started the dusty two hour descent of the mountain via the descent track. Having missed the view the night before it was great to be able to take in the views on the way down.

  
  
   


Apparently there is a Japanese saying that goes something like “only a fool doesn’t climb Mount Fuji and only a fool climbs Mount Fuji more than once”. After having climbed the mountain I can agree with this sentiment – if people are able they should climb Fuji san, while I was very lucky with the weather the sunrise and view from the top of the mountain in the early morning sun was spectacular.

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Climbing Mount Fuji – Other Pictures
Some additional photo’s from my trip to Mount Fuji.

After the sun had come up the crowds dispersed around the rim of the crater and there was this silhouette of people preparing to descend.



There were approximately 500 people on the summit to witness the sunrise all finding the best vantage point and looking east at the same moment.


Walking around the crater in the burnt red and orange colours I noticed this huge ladybug laying in the dirt.


On the descent there were a couple of these sheltered walk ways that, I’m assuming, were built to protect people from falling rocks. The people walking on the outside of the shelter are mountain guides. I tried to walk down inside the shelters but on each step hit my head on the roof – I thought it would be safer for me to walk on outside as well.


Just before the 5th station you begin to walk through trees again including this little bit of forest.




There were people on the mountain dressed in T-shirts and shorts, people without torches and the Japanese prepared like they were going to the arctic. Then there was this guy, leather pants, blue leather shoes and on the way down a full gimp facemask to protect him from the dust.



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Lake Kawaguchi
Located 100 kilometres west of Tokyo, and at the base of Mount Fuji in the Fuji national park, Lake Kawaguchi is said to be the most popular of the 5 Fuji lakes. While only 100 kilometres away it still took 2 hours to drive there and a mind blowing 6 hours to drive home.

Apart from a small section of the lake foreshore where busloads of tourists were dropped for the obligatory picture of Mount Fuji I was surprised by how few people were walking the remainder of the foreshore. I did, more through good luck than anything else, mange to park the car on opposite side of the lake from Kawaguchi town which is also the side of the lake with the best views of Mount Fuji.



I managed to choose a clear day to visit the lake with the top of the mountain only obscured by windblown cloud occasionally. Shortly after arriving I was sitting in the car when it started to rock, my first instinct was to look around to see who was rocking the car – then it occurred to me – it was and earthquake, fun.


In amongst the trees on the lake shore there were a number of Café serving good food and cool cool drinks.


The lake is 800 meters above sea level and full of fish (and fishermen). I did spot a few fish in the margins of the lake but didn’t witness any fish actually being caught.




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Lake Kawaguchi extra’s
While travelling back from Lake Kawaguchi I spent a lot of time stuck in traffic (100 kilometres in 6 hours) so I got to see some things that I would have otherwise just driven past.


Like this stone carvers shop with come traditional and other more eye catching designs on display on the roadside.





Or this guy walking down the line of traffic drinking from half a bottle of red wine while in the other hand he carried a flower.



And of course a fishing poster beside Lake Kawaguchi – bass and pan fish all with their regulations.


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Winter visit to the beach in Australia
I returned to Australia for a short visit at the end of June and was convinced to take a drive to the beach for a day. I’m very glad that we made the effort – it was a wonderful winters day to spend at the beach.





The only concern was this weird guy doing his “exercises” (even though he wore Speedos he didn’t go for a swim) and his motivation appeared to be singing Rick Astley songs to himself (most notably “Together forever”). I didn’t turn my back on him once.


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El diablo
Sitting in a take away waiting for your number to be called then to hear “666” and realize that’s your number, what does it mean?


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