There are some experiences in life that are pivotal. They change your perspective and the way you want to live your life. For me, it was climbing Mt. Fuji. It was easily one of the best experiences of my life thus far...Perfect weather conditions, low traffic on the trail, breathtaking views, good company, and good conversation. Also, for me a HUGE personal ACCOMPLISHMENT! Check another one off my personal Bucket List... I embraced the challenge, I climbed the Mountain, and I saw the World.
This post is more of a photographic commentary, as mere words can't do the experience real justice.
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| My sister and I at the 5th Station. Ready to Take on the Fooj! We are too cute and we know it. |
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The four of us at the starting point, 5th Station on the Subashiri Trail. Start of the Best Double Date EVER!
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The trail starts out in the forest. The path is steep and very rocky and
most of the time. |
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| After about 30 minutes up the trail, this is the view of Lake Yamanaka. The weather could not have been more perfect. We could see all the way to the Sea of Japan. |
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| At cloud level . Looking down on the 6th station. I have to say it's amazing to be sitting up in the clouds as they blow through. |
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| Among the clouds... on the way to the 7th station. Look at that trail! |
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| At the Original 7th Station. This is where I was struggling to from the altitude and just wanted to sleep. So I laid down and sucked some O2...while he chilled on the edge. |
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| The steepness... |
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| One of the two 7th Station's. |
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| More rocks...Above the clouds... |
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| Looking up at the 8th station. |
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| Started getting cold; very steep and sandy near the 8th station. We get our first glimpse of the path down. |
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| It's like sediment rainbow! |
Are we there yet?
YES! At the summit. Passing under that Torii Gate was a glorious moment for all of us! Mostly because we knew there was food at the top ;) After all we still needed the energy to get back down,
and not miss our Bus.
My Love and I on top of the World.
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| This clown literally sat on the edge of the crater for this picture. That sucker was so big and deep I couldn't even see the bottom! ...and he almost fell. WARNNG: Do not do this, it is extremely dumb! It is very windy at the top of a Mountain. |
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| The Summit Hut |
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| Beginning the long and horrific descent. |
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| Sometimes you just need to squat it out. |
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| If you look closely, you'll see our creative attempt at trying to "sled" down this ankle deep loose sediment on our butt. Needless to say, it didn't work out so well...to many large rocks. |
Overall, climbing Mt. Fuji was absolutely monumental! The path down was fun for a little while. The descent trail was much different than the ascending trail. Basically flat and straight down, in ankle deep volcanic ash and rocks until the last foresty bit where it started getting dark (we didn't bring a headlamp :( ). So it got old after a while. It was also a little bit of a race against time for us, and I think mentally it just felt like forever. Our bus was departing at 7:30 p.m., but we made back to the 5th station in time to celebrate with ice cream cones and chocolate (for me) before hopping on the bus.
I recommend doing it if you ever get the opportunity. I plan on doing it again next year if possible. All in all it took us about 6 hours to reach the summit and 3 1/2 or 4 hours to get back down. Warning, you will be very sore for a few days after, especially if you are not in tip top shape! However, you will feel an incredible sense of accomplishment and have memories to last your lifetime!
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"It is not the mountain we conquer, but ourselves"
Sir Edmund Hillary |
