Before leaving Tokyo I was fortunate to find a group on couchsurfing.com that was climbing up to Mt Fuji overnight to catch the sunrise. There was about 50 of us in total, some of us from the organizer of the trips company and the rest were couchsurfers. One of the things that was really nice about going up with a group is the sense of community that we had from the beginning. I originally thought about going this alone and am so grateful that I had the people I had to summit with.
The hike itself wasn't too bad, and we made good time. The hardest part was probably dealing with the cold. When that wind was blowing, every part of your body felt it. There were times when I almost was blown over from the strength of the wind. We arrived on top a bit earlier than planned and looked for a place to rest, unfortunately they were hard to come by and some of us ended up resting on benches, convulsively shivering and reminding ourselves that "we will get through this, we will get through is." It was a cold cold night. but........ as the sun began to be seen, the base station on top was opened up and inside one could purchase a few essential items one of which was a bowl of ramen. SCORE!!
The sunrise was beautiful and we were all glad to have made the trek. The hike down was actually much worse than the hike up. Probably in part because the moment of excitement was passed but also because you are walking down a sometimes very loose and steep dirt path for what seems like a rather long time. It isn't very comfortable and if you fall it may hurt a bit (i somehow didn't, woohoo!)
Following the hike we went to an onsen for a little which was very comforting however it's a few days post hike and my upper quads are still a bit sore.
Fuji from the bus
The group before climbing fuji
Me before the hike
This was my core group of climbers. we were all pretty tired and cold at this point
miso soup at base station 7. it cost 400 yen (about $4.50 US) but the salts from it as well as the warmth provided were well worth it.
the sun starts to show
beautiful colors
as the sun began to rise, the top station opened up and inside they sold a few things one of which was ramen. i've almost never welcomed ramen more in my life.
the sun rising in front of a torii gate
i just love how i look here.
here's the sun
i've learned to harness the power of the sun
SUN!
the sun and the land below
looking down into the crater of the volcano
claiming the mountain in the name of the US
the lines form as people begin to descend the peak
i loved the color contrasts of the rocks on top
inside the crater
Summitting!
I loved how the clouds looked in the background. Harumi did not quite understand the artistic approach i was going for but that's ok.
don't ask me what I was doing here
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