I don’t like not knowing where I am. That’s why I like the window seat. And on sunny days like this, there’s an extra bonus in that all the familiar landmarks are easy to spot. These were taken at the beginning of my Golden Week trip to Kyushu.
Tou no Take
Tanzawa Traverse
Last weekend, I hoped to go up a mountain and see some snow. Tanzawa-san is around halfway between Tokyo and Mt Fuji, and it seemed to be a prospect to have a bit of white stuff on top of it without needing too much winter hiking equipment.
The first part of this walk was a revisit of the climb up To no Take. This is reached by taking the Odakyu Railway from Shinjuku to a station called Shibusawa (the kaisoku express trains stop here), and then catching a local bus up the hill to Okura. The track then ascends steeply up Okura Ridge.
I did part of this walk last July in the summer heat. This time, the trees had lost all their leaves, but the weather was crisp and clear. Instead of summer humidity, mist and haze, this time it was sunny and cool. And, sensational views of Mt Fuji.
To no Take
With my new gear in tow, I got out of Tokyo for the first time this trip, and headed out early on Sunday morning on the Odakyu Line to a town called Shibusawa (Kanazawa Prefecture), about 75 mins south west of Shinjuku. From there, it’s a short bus ride to Okura, where some hiking trails start through the Tanzawa-Oyama Kokutei Park.
To no Take 塔ノ岳 is a 1,491 metre mountain that attracts a lot of hikers – even on muggy, humid, misty Japanese summer days. The last row of vending machines before leaving the road and hitting the steep slope was very tempting. I must have lost litres of sweat climbing that mongrel of a hill. From bottom to top was a climb of around 1,100 metres.
At the first Yamagoya (mountain hut), I was wondering what I thought I was doing. It’s one thing to plan a hiking trip from the comfort of an airconditioned apartment, but it’s another thing again to execute the plan in this level of humidity. The yamagoya sell food, drinks, beer, and often accommodation. The standard rate seems to be around 5,500 yen for a sleeping space plus two meals. No tent necessary, but could be a bit squished in if there are a lot of people hoping for space.
The first yamagoya was a good stop for a break. Not only because it was the last water source before the summit, but also because it’s where I made friends and teamed up for the rest of the day with another hiker out by himself. Hayashi-san is an IT guy from Kawasaki, and even had a stove for a cup of tea for the summit.
Because of the humidity, it only got misty/foggy at the top, although thankfuly the temperature was a bit cooler. Along with the rest of the crowd, Hayashi-san and I ate our bento (mine puchased with throngs of other hikers at the conbini inside Shinjuku Station at 6:30 in the morning) on the summit, facing the direction of Fuji-san. On a good day, it’s apparently out there along with the rest of the Alps.
We came down a different path, passing some rock scambles with chains installed to haul yourself up the rockface. More yamagoya (some closed), and lots more people. We managed to get to our bus stop with only a minute or so to spare before the bus left – the next option was a 90 minute wait, or another hour down the hill to another bus stop.
Click on the photos to scroll through the album of the climb up and down To no Take:
It was then off to Tsurumaki Onsen, at the next station along the train line, to give the aching calves a soak. No photos of that obviously, so the next best thing is a link to the Onsen’s website so you can get the general idea. The onsen was full of hikers recovering from the day’s exercise.
Jinbocho outdoor shops & Marine Day
I’ve only been in Tokyo for 3 weeks, and am already busily planning how to spend my holidays. Monday is Marine Day (Umi no hi), a public holiday, and I’m planning to go nowhere near the sea. Instead, I’m planning to spend tomorrow up in the Tanzawa mountain range, south east of Tokyo.
I spent hours this afternoon wandering around Kanda (just near Jinbocho subway station) looking at outdoor shops. My friend Phil put me onto them last weekend, and again on Friday night. The best two are:
- L-Breath (part of Victoria Sports)
- Ishii Sports
These shops are huge. They have so much gear and hiking gadgetry. The whole district is full of sports and outdoor shops, so it’s easy to get lost in them all. I now have some new things (new day pack, headwear and reading material), some ideas of more new gear that I’d like to get.
More importantly for tomorrow, I have maps! The main range of topo maps is aimed at hikers, and have SO much info on them. They’re not just general government published maps with no specific purpose like in Australia. Mark Reed would love them.
So I’m a bit excited about all of this. The plan for tomorrow is catch an early train on the Odakyu Line to Shibusawa, catch the Kanachu Bus from there up to the trailhead, and head up the hill to To-no-Take (1491m, apparently with good views) and maybe even to Tanzawa-san (1567m, one of the “Hyakumeisan” – 100 famous mountains).
I’ve also been asked at work what I’m doing for summer holidays (August), so I’m thinking about heading up to Tohoku to escape the Tokyo heat and humidity. There was something on the TV news tonight about the weather this summer being hotter than usual. Yahari, chikyuu no ondanka.
The big trip being planned is a long weekend in September, when Phil and I plan on heading up Kita-dake, Japan’s second highest mountain (around 3,200m). Some very enthusiastic planning is happening at the moment.