I had another first this weekend - I have now climbed my first mountain. On Friday I went with a group of six other guys (all Americans) to climb Mt Fuji - the highest peak in Japan. We have had this trip planned for many months now because it is a fun thing to do and also because one of our good friends is moving back to the US this week. The climb was kind of a send off for him.
We left Kobe Friday afternoon at about 4 PM. I had worked in the morning and took the afternoon off. We took two minivans for the planned drive to the base of the mountain which was about 5 hours. Before we left we had someone call to check the weather conditions. It was supposed to be very windy and rainy. The person at the mountain recommended that we not come - she was worried about our safety (people are ultra conservative here). We decided to go anyway - we had plenty of gear and were prepared for the rain.
For most of the drive it rained buckets. It was until we started to drive up the mountain that it left up a little. Once we got above the cloud line the rain eventually let up a little. All we really had to deal with was the wind and cold.
We got hungry on the drive and stopped at a truck stop for dinner. It was another part of our cultural experience - the food was actually pretty good and we knew it would be our last real meal for a while.
With about 30 Km left in the drive, after we had left the main highways and were on the mountain roads, we started to question our directions. We had to pull over to do some map reading, and eventually we settled on a router. I was personally only about 75% sure we were going the right way. It was about 10 at night, we were in the middle of nowhere, the weather was bad, and none of us speak Japanese. Luckily it all worked out and we stumbled upon the trail head at about 11:30 or so at night.
We fortunately found two parking spots next to each other so we got our and started to gear up. There were a few guys working there - some type of security guards or something. They both came over to us at separate times and advised us not to climb due to the wind and rain. No, we didn't listen. Finally the last guy checked our gear to make sure we had the right supplies and just said "hold onto the ropes" when they are available. After taking a couple photos we started our ascent around midnight.
Why did we start at night? Well, the fun thing to do is to climb overnight and then watch the sunrise from the summit. That was our plan. Many people climb halfway during the day then sleep on the mountain. They get up early and finish the climb to watch the sunrise. We decided to do it in all one shot. If you want to stay on the mountain there are a series of huts where you can rent a bunk to sleep in. They are pretty popular so you have to reserve them in advance. Sunrise was schedule for 4:30 so our goal was to reach the top by then.
We started at station 5 (there are a total of 10 stations). It was pitch dark, but relatively dry. The wind was very bad but manageable. Because of the bad weather and the off hour the crowds weren't bad at all. We had expected it to be much busier. The first couple station (up to the 7th station) wasn't to bad. You are still at a lower altitude and the trail conditions aren't too bad. From station #8 up I found it to be very difficult - probably one of the hardest physical things I have every done. Of course I am not in the best of shape now, but it was hard. The high altitude did not help.
Most of the stations weren't actually open for business until around 3 AM so we could really stop to warm up until the 8th station. Before that we would stop and sit on a bench outside the station to rest a bit. Unfortunately you were still out in the elements so you couldn't really warm up. It was tricky to dress correctly because while you were actually climbing you would get very warm. The trick was not to sweat because then you would get cold when you stopped. As soon as you stop you would begin to get cold. We did a lot of putting layers on, and then taking them off on the way up. Luckily I also had some vents in one of my jackets so I could open and close them to regulate temperature.
The last 200 meters of the climb may have been the longest of my life. I was dead tired and having trouble catching my breath because of the altitude. I think I was taking about ten steps, the resting for a few seconds to catch my breath.
The terrain was a lot rougher than I expected. You are climbing a volcano, so it was very steep and rocky. Climbing at night made it even more challenging, and the wind didn't help. There were a couple of times that I thought the wind would knock me off the trail. Luckily they had ropes is some of the more dangerous spots.
We reached the summit at about 5 AM. The sun was already coming up (we got to see it while we were climbing). It VERY cold and windy at the top. Unfortunately the station at the top didn't open until 6 AM so we couldn't go inside to warm up. We kid of huddled outside of one of the building tying to warm up (didn't work well!). It was interesting that there was a post office at the top. I guess it's a popular thing to post a letter form the summit of Mt Fuji. Because we were cold we didn't stay on the summit long - maybe 30-45 minutes after snapping some photos and enjoying the view.
We started down around 6 AM and reached the base again about 10:30 AM. By then none of us has slept for over 24 hours and were tired from the climb. We didn't have a lot of energy left. We changed clothes, grabbed a quick lunch in a mountain town, and headed back to Kobe. We got back into town around 6:30 - dog tired to say the least.
It was an amazing experience. I am so glad that I did it, but hope I never do it again!
This picture is the group on Saturday moring after we had completed the climb. It was around 11 AM. We could still muster a few smiles.
This is a great picture of the sun coming up. It was taken just below the summit.
This is at the summit looking down into the crater (its still an active volcano).
This picture was taken at the base from where we parked. It is looking up at the mountain. We joked that it was a good thing we went at night. If we had seen this during the day we may have turned around.
This is the group before we left. It was just a little before midnight on Friday.
This is another photo of the sun starting to rise near the summit.
A group photo taken beneath a Torii gate at the summit.
This is outside of a building at the summit. Since we arrived so early nothing was open yet. We were freezing our butts off so we huddled inside some doorways.
A rainbow on the drive up. A good sign!
A great pictire near the summit. You can see how far about the cloud line that we are, and the sun also starting to rise.
This is me and a fried about 50 meters from the summit. Almost there!
These two photos give you an idea of what the terrain was like - very rocky. It was much more difficuly then I thought.
We stopped for a rest on our way down and had a photo taken.
