Mount Fuji is an active volcano about 65 miles southwest of Tokyo and it is the tallest mountain in Japan. Considered a sacred mountain in Japanese culture, this world heritage site was used to train samurais and was the mecca for pilgrimages starting in Kyoto and ending at Mount Fuji’s summit. As soon as you see it with your own eyes, you can definitely feel that there is something very special about this mountain.
Due to volatile weather on the mountain, the climbing season is quite short, spanning only from early July to the end of August or early September, depending on how soon snow is predicted for that season.
In 2017, the final day for climbing was set at September 9th. Luckily, my husband was able to time his 3 days of vacation just before that and I found a last minute flight to Tokyo on the 6th. We were on our way!
We packed light, because we planned on traveling a lot over these 3 precious vacation days and only wanted to bring along the bare essentials. I did quite a bit of research in regards to what we would need to bring for the actual climb and what items would be better to buy there in person.
We brought sturdy hiking shoes with good tread, because I read that we would most likely be hiking and climbing on everything from grass to mud and slick wet rocks to dry, shifting volcanic dust (all which ended up being true). At sea level, the high was forecasted for 22 degrees celsius (about 72 degrees fahrenheit), but we knew the temperatures would be much colder at the peak, so we wore tear proof, water resistant hiking pants and brought several layers of shirts to add or remove as the weather changed. We also packed a pair of warm gloves, extra socks and winter hats, which ended up being life savers as the temps ended up dipping to just 1 degree celsius (about 34 degrees fahrenheit) with freezing rain as we approached the peak.
There are four different trail options to take you from the base of Mount Fuji to its peak and each trail is broken up into different stations. These stations serve as guidelines to gauge how far you have climbed, but also offer stopping points with various amenities, like restrooms, vending machines and stick stamping stations (more on that later).
The Kawaguchiko 5th station along the Subaru line is the largest station and the most popular starting point for many climbers. This is where we planned to start our climb and also where we would be purchasing our climbing sticks, cans of oxygen and bear bells. All three of these purchases are highly recommended. The oxygen really helped our bodies adjust as we climbed to higher altitudes and the bear bells were nice to have for the rare, but still realistic chance that we would encounter some curious wildlife along our climb.
The climbing sticks were my favorite purchase. These sticks were made from trees on the mountain and helped steady us many times during the climb. Something else that we absolutely love are the stamps. At each station, you can have your climbing stick stamped with a unique stamp that proves you made it to that part of the mountain and also leaves you with a lifelong memory of that moment in time.
During the day, every station had a stamper available to hot stamp your climbing stick with that stations symbol. Be sure to have cash (Japanese yen) with you, as the stamps cost between 300 and 1000 yen ($3-$10) each. I believe we paid about $40 each to get all of our stamps, which was well worth the memory of such an amazing journey.
Speaking of the journey, we flew into Tokyo International and took a train on the Fujikyuko Line to Kawaguchiko Station in Yamanashi. The trip took a little over two hours and was absolutely beautiful. It took us through some of the coziest little rural towns in the countryside of Japan. They felt very northern European with tudor style homes and lush green mountains. Just beautiful.
We arrived at Kawaguchiko Station in the late afternoon. The station has a food court, lots of tourist information, a gift shop and there were plenty of taxis available outside. We had a room booked at the Fuji Kawaguchiko Resort Hotel, which is only 1km from Kawaguchiko Station, so we decided to walk to the hotel. It took less than 15 minutes and we had a great view of Mount Fuji for most of the walk.
The hotel was perfect. Clean, organized and super comfy. There is a restaurant on the first floor and the front desk has maps of the area, along with on call taxis 24-7. I would highly recommend this hotel, but there were many options in this area for everything from fancy resorts to tiny hostiles, so it will not be difficult to find what you want.
We had curry for dinner and a good night sleep and were back at Kawaguchiko Station early the next morning to catch the first bus headed to Mount Fuji…
Although, it is not recommended, we decided to bullet climb the mountain… or at least attempt it! Bullet climbing is when you do the entire climb without stopping. Most Mount Fuji climbs begin on the morning of day one and take you 80% of the way to the summit and then you camp overnight, finish the climb to the summit and return to the base on day two.
We planned on taking the first bus out, which left at 6:10am and our goal was to return on the last bus leaving the mountain, which left at 5:45pm. We were all packed, had our bus tickets and were on our way to the mountain…
We arrived at 5th station before 7am, purchased our oxygen, climbing sticks and bear bells and we hit the trail!
The beginning of the climb is super easy, like a nice walk through a beautiful park…
We started early in the morning, so it was a little chilly, but perfect for vigorous walking. After about a half hour of easy going, we arrived at a wooded area and the incline started to increase. The sun was out and it was beginning to warm up a bit by now, so we removed our jackets and pressed on. The dirt footing on the loose side, so this was the first time I really appreciated having shoes with good tread.
We brought some high protein snacks that we picked at throughout the first several hours of the climb. There are several different trails that go to the summit of Mount Fuji and as you climb, you can decide to follow the same trail the entire time or start on one and transfer to another. Throughout the climb, there are plenty of signs pointing you in the right direction, so it was pretty easy to stay on track.
Aside from the signs placed at turning points of the trails, the trails are not marked, unless there are dangerous areas that are marked with cones, chain lines or partition walls, so we kept to the areas that looked well traveled.
As the climb became more steep, I started to feel the need for an oxygen stop. I did a lot of research on why we need oxygen when climbing into high altitudes and how your body will let you know that you need more, so as soon as I started to feel a little dizzy, we stopped for a few deep breathes on the oxygen cans and a small bag of gummy bears for some fast acting carbs. It worked great and we were back on our way.
Whenever the clouds would clear, it was amazing to see just how far up we were, but then when I looked in the other direction, things started to look a bit more ominous…
There were some good things and some bad things about getting closer to the summit. There was a lot less loose dirt on the trail and more sturdy rocks to climb on, which was nice, but then it started to rain and as we climbed higher, the weather took a total 180. It got real cold and wet real quick, but luckily, we planned for this! We unpacked our waterproof jackets, put our hats and gloves on and continued the climb.
Along the climb, we stopped at every station to have our climbing sticks stamped and my researched told me that the 8th station was the last place to stop before the big final push would happen. The 8th station is were most people stop for the night, so there is a small hostile to sleep in with a small shower, vending machines and outdoor benches anchored into the side of the mountain. This is where we put our final layer of clothing on, drank some water here and climbed toward the summit.
As we hit the final sign that told us we were 400 meters from the summit, I will admit that I was starting to feel pretty exhausted. We were both really fit, which is the only reason we attempted the bullet climb, but walking uphill for over four hours was starting to get to me!
The final 400 meters was steep and slick. There were definitely places that were too steep for me to have climbed on my own. Thankfully, my tall, strong and generally impressive husband climbed up these areas and reached back down to tow me up. Thank you Nate!
Although that final 400 meters felt considerably longer than 400 meters, as soon as the torii gate of the peaks Okumiya Shrine came into view, we both got a second wind. I have no idea where that energy came from, but it was quite impressive how exhausted I felt and then how exhilarated I became hitting the summit of the mountain. It was total magic and something that cannot really be described.
One of the main draws of the summit of Mount Fuji are the gorgeous views, but we arrived to freezing rain and wind gusts over 50 miles per hour, so we had the top of our climbing sticks stamped with a special 10th station summit stamp, posed for a quick photo and then walked around the summit to find the beginning of the descent trail.
As we began our descent, the weather started to break a bit and we were treated to some beautiful views of Mount Kurodake, Mount Mishotai and Lake Kawaguchi. Once we were about 600 meters from the summit, the temperatures started to rise and we were covering lots of ground!
The trails descending Mount Fuji are completely different than the ones you climb. This portion of the mountain has had large sweeping trails dug out of the volcanic sand in a zig zagging pattern working its way down large parts of the mountain. This is also were good fitting shoes are very important. If you want to take a leisurely stroll down the mountain, then you will be just fine, but if you want to make it back to the 5th station in time to both make the last returning bus back into town AND have time to order a special Mount Fuji shaped pastry, then be sure to have some real good hiking shoes, because you’re going to be moving! We ran huge portions of the descent trail and made amazing time doing it too!
In total, we climbed to the summit in 4 hours and 5 minutes and we returned to the finishing point in 2 hours and 10 minutes. It was exhausting, but if we had the chance to do it again, we would most likely bullet climb again. If you are fit and enjoy pushing yourself, this can be a really amazing experience!
The descending trail was filled with so many beautiful views! There were lots of birds, these crazy trees that seemed to grow directly sideways straight out of the side of the mountain and beautiful shale rock trails. We took in the sights as we rapidly moved closer to the 5th station and ended up getting in with about an hour to spare. It was absolutely wonderful to sit down for a few minutes, shake the sand out of our shoes and of course, order a few Mount Fuji shaped pastries…
We sat on a bench and enjoyed our sweet treats while we waited for the bus. Yes, we were completely exhausted, but even more so, we were exhilarated. We were happy to have the opportunity to experience climbing this beautiful volcano, happy we did good research on what the bring on this journey and happy that we made it back in time to catch that last bus back into town, because a soft, clean hotel bed was definitely calling our name…
Although Mount Fuji is situated in Japans countryside, there are plenty of things to do in the area! Near the northeastern base of the mountain is the Fuji-Q Highlands, which is considered one of the worlds largest and most entertaining amusement parks. It is crammed full of incredible rides, fabulous food and fun games, including some super challenging escape rooms that we loved.
South of Mount Fuji is the Fuji Safari Park and visiting this open air wildlife park was a truly memorable experience. Most of the park is meant to be driven through and you can do this with your own vehicle, in rental vehicles or on safari buses. We were considering renting a vehicle, but ended up deciding to take the safari bus and I am so glad that we did!
Once we found our seat on the bus, we were handed bowls full of raw chicken and vegetables with a set of long tongs. I had a feeling that this meant we would be feeding some animals, but I was super surprised to find out that we would actually be feeding lions, tigers, wild cats, bears and birds. It was a fun, crazy once in a lifetime experience.
After the tour, we explored on foot and found places throughout the park where we were able to hand feed the less dangerous wildlife and watch some very exciting shows. They also had a wide variety of food options and the entire park was landscaped beautifully. I would highly recommend this experience!
I hope you enjoyed our Mount Fuji experience and even more so, I hope that one day, you get to have your own experience with this incredible volcano. Plan everything in advance, bring lots of layers and wear your best hiking shoes and be sure to tell her we said hello…
