And then there were some mountains.

So, like bazillions of foreigners and Japanese before us, we decided to tackle Fuji-san.  It was recently named a World Heritage site, and rumors are circulating about how much they may charge to allow people to... climb, I"m assuming?  At any rate, we had a long holiday weekend, the climbing season is only two months, so we decided to go for it.

The week before we had had a rude awakening by climbing what was supposed to have been a beginner's level mountain.  What it was was covered in snow, fog, and freezing rain.

On the descent from Mt. Komagatake.  Yeah.

After our first taste of what being unprepared on a giant mountain feels like, we outfitted ourselves for every eventuality, including opting for taking the longer, less popular trail--the Goten(m)ba Trail.  We wanted to climb overnight, and the hazards of doing so--besides the obvious fact that you are climbing over night with no sleep in the dark--is the crowds of people also doing the same thing.  In bad weather conditions, this can be extremely hazardous, as you stand in long queues slowly losing body heat.  After our experience on Komagatake, we knew that would be disastrous.

However, everyone and their mother was apparently also heading for Shizuoka at the same time, as we ran into horrendous traffic and arrived at least an hour late to the trail head in Gotemba-shi, Shizuoka.  As such, I was dubious about what the night would bring.  

Hour zero at the Gotemba Trailhead, 1440 meters, approximately 4:30 p.m. on Saturday.

Though the first few hours were at a slight incline, we had to hike up a trail of volcanic rock--which is basically like climbing up a beach.  Our boots sunk in at least 6 inches with every step, and our boots were constantly filling with small irritating rocks.  As such, we found ourselves getting tired quite quickly, and I slowed my pace considerably.

Hour 1-- feels like we haven't gotten anywhere.

Another problem with starting at such a low altitude is the trail seemed endless at first, because the incline wasn't as steep, and you could see forever--things that seemed not so far away, were actually quite far, and it seemed like we were making no progress at all.  But, we didn't run into very many people, which was part of our objective.

Looking down the trail after about 1-2 hours.

Hour 2--rain and wind, woohoo!

After hour two, the rain--which had been making a sad attempt since the beginning of the hike--finally kicked it in gear, and decided to make friends with some wind.  The weather forecast said a 0% chance of rain...

Looking down toward Gotemba-shi at dusk.

We settled down to appreciate dusk and add on some layers just before the 3 hour mark.  The Gotemba Trail has the least amount of mountain huts of any trail--and they are not open past 7 p.m.--which I did not know.

Hour 3.5--finally!  Our first station.  Guess what?  It's closed and has no services!

After this point, A started getting sick and tiring easily.  Our pace slowed down to a crawl with frequent breaks.  He had been going really fast--a good 5 feet ahead of me at times--and was starting to fill nauseous and tired.  Our plan had been to hike to the 7th station and rest there for several hours.  What I didn't know was that on this side of the trail, the mountain huts close at 7 p.m., and you cannot buy resting space, beverages or food.  

There are three stations very close together, and by the 7.5 station A could go no further.  We asked around to confirm that the mountain huts were closed, and we happened to find a nice man who even spoke English, and told us he had some cancellations and we could stay there for 5500Y each.  

I didn't realize what bad condition A was in, until he told me he couldn't make it back down or make it anywhere.  So, we went into the hut, and A stayed there through the night.  We were very very very lucky to have found someone to let us in a hut, as I don't know what I would have done. The wind was very strong on this part of the mountain, and I was planning on staying outside.  As bad as A was feeling, that wasn't an option for him.  I am so thankful to the kind people at the 7.5 station, who were beyond gracious and helpful!!!  I highly recommend their mountain hut anytime.  It wasn't nearly as bad as other blogs have portrayed, and you can use the toilets for free and return back to the hut after your climb and hang out and recover at no extra cost.  I'm also glad A found the man to let us in, because it was definitely the best option for him, and I'm not sad to have gotten out of the wind either!:)

8th station around 2 a.m. Sunday morning.

We went into the mountain hut a little after 10:30, and my body started going into chills and shakes from exhaustion and bad conditions.  I stayed in the hut, resting, until the tour group staying in our hut all got up at midnight and made as much noise as humanly possible.  After checking on A, and confirming our plan to meet up, I left the hut around 1:30, and joined a long queue of people headed for the top. 

I was thankful for the others on the trail at this point, because every single one was as weary, cold, and determined to persevere as I was.  We all shuffled along in a makeshift line, passing those who had slept on the side of the trail for the night, and others who could go no further, or were taking breakfast breaks.  We all asked each other, "Osaki ni?" and we all replied with, "Nope, I'm slow too.":)  Somewhere in this long, 2.5 hour trudge to the top, my backpack cover blew off from the wind, but that's the only injury I sustained on the way up.  You could see the long line of headlamps snaking their way to the top, and with the help of a granola bar and a Red Bull, I made it to the end of the line.

Shrine gate at the Gotemba Trail head.

When you arrive at the top, it's almost anticlimactic.  You've been trudging along for so long (8.5 hours it took us, but at least an hour of that was due to our slow pace and frequent stopping just before we stayed at the mountain hut) that I almost didn't know what to do with myself when I could stop.  I looked around dazedly, trying to get my bearings.  I walked through the shrine gate, and to my right was a shuttered post office and a sign proclaiming 30 minutes to the shrine.  I figured I didn't need to visit a shrine that badly, and took the shorter route to the very top of Mt. Fuji, Mt. Kengamine.

The route to Mt. Kengamine is very short, and basically a vertical, rocky slope.  It took the last vestiges of motivation I possessed to make it to the top.  I fell down it about 5 feet on the way down, as a tour group was hogging the hand rails, and have a bruised left bottom and scraped hands to show for it.  

Sunrise on the descent.

However, at the top, everyone was relaxing, chatting and waiting for the sunrise. A nice group of Japanese men offered to take my picture, and I can now say I've been to the highest point in Japan--3, 776 meters.  We were all weary looking, with headlamps (now dormant) still strapped to our foreheads, rain gear, crazy hair, and dirty faces... but we were all victorious.  

Sunday, July 14  4:15 a.m.  Mt. Kengamine, 3776 meters

My advice to others who try this trek:

1.  The mountain hut we stayed at on the 7.5 station is nothing as horrible as other blogs have made mountain huts to be.  If you take the Gotemba Trail, it is my opinion the mountain huts are less crowded.  I highly recommend staying at one.

2. It is a LONG time until you reach a station, so use the bathroom, etc. before you go

3. It is severely sketchy about buying food or drink on this trail, so bring all you think you will need.  However, on the descent, you share the ascending trail until the 7th station, so there is food and beverages available.  It is much more comfortable to relax at one of the stations than the windy, crowded mess that is the top.

4. Pace yourself!  It is a long hike, and the greatest change in altitude of all the trails, and if you feel your heart rate pick up, slow down immediately!  You don't need to keep up with the myriad other climbers who *will* be relentlessly passing you the entire time.

5.  Potties are 300Y--not 100 or 200, but 300Y.  However, the 7.5 station has one porta-potty that is free.  Also, we did not see any bathrooms at all until the 7.5 station.  Plan accordingly!

6. Invest in good rain gear and pack covers.  Our hike said a 0% percent chance of rain, and it was more like it was a 0 % chance it was *not* raining.