Attacking the highest peak in Japan!
The first step to Mount Fuji
The day of departure had finally arrived. I bought a bus ticket to Mt. Fuji in Shinjuku with some friends from Taiwan. The ticket was a round trip ticket, totaling 5,400 yen (2016 price).
On the bus ride, we talked excitedly about our upcoming challenge. As the bus passed through the city, the majestic figure of Mount Fuji appeared on the skyline in the distance.
It was already 2:00 pm when we arrived at Wuheme. When we got off the bus, the first thing we did was to go to the restroom, but when we found it, it was a pay toilet. However, if you spend money in the restaurant, you can go to the toilet for free, so we went to the restaurant at the rest stop to have lunch after going to the toilet.
I ordered a curry rice in the shape of Mt. Fuji, which was delicious and very cute. After the meal, we bought hiking poles at the store, which are souvenir poles that can be stamped on the mountain huts along the way.
Due to the previous typhoon, although the weather forecast said that there might be light rain, we didn't expect that it would pour down right after we started hiking. We put on our waterproof hiking jackets and set off on the hiking trail in the rain and wind.
Below is the introduction of waterproof hiking pants and hiking jacket. Personally, I think Montbell's GORE-TEX series of apparel are great, they are really waterproof, so I don't need to wear an impermeable raincoat when I am hiking, and I can hike in the rain comfortably.
Tip: Montbell is a Japanese outdoor brand founded in 1975, specializing in high-quality mountaineering and camping products that emphasize lightweight and durability. The brand's products include mountaineering clothing, backpacks, tents and sleeping bags, and are made with a strong environmental focus on recycled materials and eco-friendly manufacturing processes, with Montbell's lightweight, waterproof "Gore-Tex" materials and high-warmth down products being particularly popular. The brand has many stores in Japan and internationally, and is trusted and supported by outdoor enthusiasts around the world.
As for the hiking shoes, at that time by MERRELL (MERRELL) in the Outlet have a special price, so I bought to try to see, the result is really very good to wear also super waterproof, if you are interested in clicking the button to refer to see.
One Hut, One Stamp
The road up the mountain was not flat, and the raindrops on the face, mixed with the cold wind, made people can not help but shiver. However, looking at my companions who were also determined to go forward, my heart was filled with a sense of courage to not lose. I was glad that I bought a GORE-TEX jacket and shoes so that my body would not be drenched by the rain, and I just exhaled white air all the way forward.
A short while later, we arrived at the first mountain hut. There was a warm fire burning in the hut, so we went inside to get out of the rain. We were greeted warmly by a kindly Japanese grandfather.
"Do I need to brand my poles?" he asked with a smile. He asked with a smile.
"Yes, thank you." We all handed him the wooden staff.
Grandpa skillfully pressed the hot iron stamp onto the wooden staff, making a "bellowing" sound. A beautiful mark was left on the staff, a reminder of our journey to this place. As I looked at the mark on the staff, I felt like we had a real record of our journey.
For the rest of the journey, every time we passed a mountain hut, we stopped to put on a new branding. And one branding costs 200 yen (2016 price), so we recommend those who will be climbing Mt. Fuji in the future to prepare an extra hundred yen in coins.
With more and more marks on the wooden poles, it means we are getting closer to the peak. As we climbed higher and higher, our calories disappeared very quickly. Although we ate lunch before going up the mountain, we got hungry very quickly, but we were in a hurry, so we had to eat some high-protein bars to quench our hunger, and then we were on our way again. I was glad that I had bought the following dry food to bring to the mountain:
Overnight stay in a mountain hut
As the altitude increased, the rain gradually stopped and the clouds became thinner. When we looked up, we saw blue sky and white clouds, and our mood brightened up. Walking on the winding mountain road, the scenery in the distance was magnificent, and one couldn't help but marvel at the magnificence of nature.
However, the fatigue of hiking also came gradually. The sky darkened very quickly, and we could not even see the road once we turned around. Luckily, we had prepared headlamps, or else it would have been really dangerous, so we accelerated our pace, aiming to arrive at the reserved hut before 8:00 pm.
Additional headlamp tips: It gets dark quickly in the afternoon on Mt. Fuji, and if the lodge is on a high spot (such as Yaohome), it may be dark before you get to the lodge. In addition, if you want to see the sunrise, you will have to start climbing again at 2:00 or 3:00 a.m., and there are no streetlights on the road, you will need a nightlight to let you see the road in front of you and the terrain underneath your feet. I personally recommend that you look for a waterproof IPX4 rating.1A waterproof headlamp with a maximum brightness of at least 400lm is required for hiking in the wind and rain, please refer to the following headlamps (the higher the price, the higher the price on the right side).
Finally, after a lot of hard work, we arrived at the "Genjo Room" mountain hut in Yakkome at around 8:30pm. The owner of the hut greeted us warmly and prepared a hot dinner for us. The simple curry rice was delicious and warmed up our cold bodies.
After dinner, we were arranged to rest in the big bunks. It was a quiet night in the mountains, but due to the thin air of the mountains, I had a headache, like altitude sickness, and I could not sleep at all. My companions seemed to have the same problem.
The following are common mountaineers portable oxygen cylinders, the more right the higher the price, at first I have to buy the rightmost oxygen cylinder, but then uncomfortable how to inhale is still no way to relieve the headache, until the nearby mountaineers told me that once the acute mountain sickness and then come to gulp oxygen is useless, so it is recommended that mountaineers can be in the mountain slowly adjust their breathing, the higher the height, the more you need to slow down your pace, and slowly start to use these cylinders in order to reduce the incidence of altitude illnesses. The higher the altitude, the slower the pace, and the more slowly the climbers should start to use these oxygen cylinders in order to minimize the incidence of altitude sickness.
Despite the snoring that was going on all over the room, I couldn't hold back my sleep and finally fell into a dream.
Annotation Area
- IPXX: IP (International Protection) is an international protection standard specifically used for measuring the level of protection of equipment against intrusion of solid substances and liquids in terms of personal safety.The IP protection level is expressed as IP + 2 digits, the first digit indicating dust resistance and the second digit indicating water resistance. In the case of dust resistance only, the first letter after IP is written as a number and the second letter is written as "X", such as "IP4X". On the other hand, in the case of waterproof performance only, the first character is written as "X" and the second character is a number, such as "IPX4". Therefore, there are different waterproof ratings from IPX0 (unprotected) to IPX8 (can be protected under severe conditions under water). Details of the ratings can be seen in the table below:
IPX0: No protection
IPX1: Protection against vertically falling water drops
IPX2: Protects against drops falling at an angle of up to 15 degrees.
IPX3: Protection from water spray within 60 degrees from both sides.
IPX4: Protects against splashing water from all directions.
IPX5: Protection against water jets.
IPX6: Protects against powerful water jets.
IPX7: protection against temporary submersion in water
IPX8: Protects against continuous submersible use. ︎
Related Resources
- 2024 Edition] Fujiden Nikakaru Fee
- Be aware of all adjustments in the mountains｜Safety and Information for Risks
- Mountaineering Headset Selection｜Necessary Items for Nitadori Mountaineering【Basic Knowledge for Beginners in Mountaineering】.
- Is Acid Spray Effective? Mountain medicine experts have heard of positive measures for alpine disease.
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