Mt. Fuji - Subashiri Trail (富士山の須走ルート)

It was my third time to climb Mt. Fuji (富士山), and though I already knew what to expect, I still felt that there was a new challenge waiting for me. In 2007, I climbed via the Gotemba trail (御殿場ルート), and it took me and my friends around 12 hours to get to the top, not including a stay in one of the inns along the way where we slept for about 6 hours. In 2010, my friends and I climbed via the Yoshida trail (吉田ルート), and it took us around 8 hours - an overnight climbed that started at 10pm of a Saturday and we arrived at Tokyo around 9pm the next day because of all the travel and break times.

For this climb, I wanted to finish it on the same day, and if there was no one coming with me, climb it alone. The day of the climb came, no one wanted to finish the climb on the same day, so I really had to climb the mountain all by myself. I wanted to climb all the four trails, so it was Subashiri this time. To make it also possible, I tried to match the target climb time I found in the internet (the link is at the bottom of the post).

To go to Subashiri 5th station (須走五合目), where the trail starts, I had to go to Gotemba station (御殿場駅) of the JR Gotemba Line (御殿場線). From there, a bus ride is needed, and it costs 1,500円 one way, but they also offer a 2,000円 round trip ticket. Of course I took the latter, to save some money and for me to have some motivation to get back as soon as I can. Once I rode the bus, there was no turning back.

9:40 - Arrival at Subashiri 5th station
10:00 - Start of the climb

5th station, where you can buy climbing sticks for 1,000円. It'll get expensive if you add flags, bells, etc.

10:55 - New 6th station (六合目)
11:00 - Continue the climb going to the next stop

New 6th station

11:28 - Main 6th station (本六合目)
11:30 - No time for long breaks, on to the climb
11:55 - Another 3-minute break, 35 minutes to the next stop

In each station, you can have your climbing stick stamped, for 200円, except in the summit where it's 300円.

My bag and climbing stick

Bells removed from climbing sticks

12:27 - 7th station (七合目)
12:42 - Continue the climb, this was a very long break
12:54 - Fatigue was setting in, and short breaks were becoming quite often

At this point, I knew that it's impossible to meet the target, but my motivation was that, if I wasn't descending by sunset, it would be impossible for me to finish the climb on the same day, and I was not ready for that. I didn't have a place to stay, I didn't have enough food, and I probably did not have enough clothes for the cold weather too. I also had to catch the last bus, which was at 20:30.

7th station

As you go higher, so are the prices. Coke is 200円 at 5th station. Here, it's 550円.

13:19 - Main 7th station (本七合目)
13:23 - Target: 30 minutes to the next stop
13:49 - 8th station (八合目)
13:58 - Continue the climb

Main 7th station

Sign at the 8th station, where the Subashiri and Yoshida trail meet.

14:13 - Main 8th station (本八合目)
14:18 - Target: 20 minutes to the next stop
14:40 - 8.5th station (八合五勺)
14:45 - On to the climb

8.5th station

This sign is commonly found in front of inns

15:36 - 9th station (九合目), no time to stop
16:07 - Summit (富士山山頂)

Entrance to the summit

17:03 - Start the descent
20:04 - Back at Subashiri 5th station
20:30 - Last bus going to Gotemba station
21:16 - Arrival at Gotemba station

Start of the descent

Mt. Fuji's shadow at sunset, covering the city behind her.

Almost sunset and I'm still above some clouds

Official climbing season is July to August, so by the time this is posted, it's already over, so for the next climbing season's planning, the following links may be helpful.

Climb Overview 1
Climb Overview 2
Subashiri Trail with target time between stations

1-Day Tour: Fukiware Falls (吹割の滝), Numata (沼田市), Kawaba (川場村), Tambara Lavender Park (たんばらラベンダーパーク)

It was summer and Obon (お盆) weekend, and most people in Japan travel, some of them going back to their ancestral homes to honor their ancestors. Even though we usually go to places on our own, my friends and I took a different approach that time; opting to take a 1-day tour of the Tokyo suburbs, specifically around Gunma prefecture (群馬県) available at Club Tourism (Yokoso Japan Tour).

The bus tour included stops at Fukiware Falls (吹割の滝), somewhere in Numata city (沼田市) for our free lunch and peach-picking activity, a sake (お酒) brewery in Kawaba village (川場村) and the tour's highlight, the Tanbara Lavender Park (たんばらラベンダーパーク). Since it was a guided tour, all we needed to do was go to the departure site, which was Shinjuku Washington Hotel. So, there would be no how-to-get-to-somewhere directions in this post.

After about a 3-hour bus ride, first stop was Fukiware Falls, advertised as the Niagara Falls of the East. I couldn't blame the organizers for hyping up the tour, but branding it as such left some of us disappointed. The falls was beautiful, no doubt about it, its uniqueness even gave it an identity. Maybe, it's just that we expected something big like the real Niagara Falls.

20 minutes away from the falls was our next stop, a restaurant somewhere in Numata. Lunch was included in the tour, and the menu was Kaisen Chirashi Sushi & Cold Shabushabu Udon. For vegetarians, I think you must inform the organizers in advance for them to prepare a vegetarian dish. Right after lunch, we went to the peach plantation near the restaurant. It wasn't the typical fruit picking activity, where you can have as much as you can. For this one, we only got to pick 1 peach. That's right, just 1 peach.

After the fruit-picking activity, we rode the bus again for about 30 minutes to a sake brewery in Kawaba. The staff gave us a tour of the brewery, with our tour guide acting as the translator, showing the ingredients and explaining the process behind making a Japanese sake. After all the talk, we were led to their shop and gave us samples, and 2 types of sake were available. Authentic sake was good, though none of us bought any.

Last stop was the lavender park, but on the way, the tour guide offered us lift tickets and ice cream stubs, for a fee. The lift tickets cost 600円/pax for a round-trip ride, and 400円/pax for a 1-way ride, while the lavender-flavored soft ice cream ticket was 300円. You can redeem the ice cream from any shop in the park that serves lavender ice cream. Apparently, Tanbara Lavender Park is also a ski park during winter, that's why it has lifts and nice slopes.

Before going into the park, there was the customary group picture that served as a souvenir. They printed it immediately, and if you want to have one, you must buy it right there, on the spot. It was 1,000円, and we bought 1 for all of us. As we entered the park, we were greeted by the colorful flowers that beautifully covered the foot of the hill. To maximize time and the place, we took only the uphill lift and decided that we'll just walk going back. Another picture was taken when we were at the lift, and this time, it was being sold at the exit. Each picture was also 1,000円. Once we reached the top, it was the lavenders' turn to amaze us. The place was very relaxing and it was a little cold compared to the city weather. When it was time to go back, we walked down the hill, and it's pretty much bare. Some of us claimed their ice cream at the exit, and from there, another 3-hour bus ride back to Tokyo, where we were dropped off at Shinjuku station (新宿駅).

Yokoso Japan Tour