Complete Guide to Climb Mt. Fuji

 

Photo by Alpsdake

There is no doubt that enjoying the view from the top of Japan's tallest volcanic mountain will be a rare and extraordinary memory for any human being. This 3,776 meters high mountain has become a cultural and spiritual symbol of Japan.

 Approximately 300,000 people climb Mt. Fuji each year. After reading this figure, if it seems that the climb is quite easy, then I want to break that misconception at the very beginning. It is true that many novices, as well as professional climbers, climb this mountain every year but it is not at all easy! When we climbed, we saw many elder Japanese citizens and children also climbed Fujisan. But they are (Japanese elder people and the parents of those children) capable and careful enough and have a deep-rooted knowledge about this mountain. I personally think any physically fit person can definitely try to climb Fujisan.

The viewpoint of Subaru line 5th station

Why Climb Fujisan

Almost everyone in their lifetime has seen the iconic pictures of fall foliage or sakura with Mount Fuji as a background. right? Many people who are planning to come to Japan or now lives here has a dream to have a picture-perfect moment with Mount Fuji. 

If the question arises in your mind that whether the experience of climbing Fujisan is equally fascinating as it looks from the distance, then my answer will be - No. The two experiences are quite different. Climbing a mountain is difficult and strenuous. There needs to be an urge to do the whole process from the heart, which is not like any other day trip.

So why climb?

There is no better way to challenge yourself, to push your limits.

When you reach the top of the mountain after overcoming all kinds of obstacles, that joy is completely different.

Best Time to Climb

July, August, and early September are the three months when it officially open to climbers, as it is summertime, the weather is quite good and the snow on the top melts down. This is the recommended time to climb Mount Fuji, for general climbers and beginners.

during our climb

Although closed for covid last year, Mount Fuji is officially opening this year.

The Yoshida Trail will be open from 1 July to 10 September

The Subashiri, Gotemba, and Fujinomia trails will be open from 10 July to 10 September

The weather of Mount Fuji

The weather on Mount Fuji is very unpredictable and it has kind of serious alpine variable weather conditions. Thunderstorms are very common and rains come now and then. The sun continues to play hide and seek with the clouds. Even though it is summer, the temperature at the top of the mountain is between 6-7 degrees. For this, it is essential to keep warm clothes and a raincoat with you.

There may be a possibility of altitude sickness or AMS at the top of the mountain because only two-thirds of the normal sea level oxygen density is available on the summit.

Of course, before starting this adventure, it is necessary to keep regular updates on Fujisan's weather.

somewhere between 8th and 9th station

As I am an early-level mountaineer, I have no idea about off-season climbing, and I would recommend my readers who are climbing for the first time or are in the early stages like me not to think about off-season climbing. Because Mount Fuji is so steep and windy all year round, which increases a lot during the off-season as well as the large rocky ways are covered with snow which only the extreme climbers can climb properly.

Fuji Trails

It is usually possible to climb to the top of Fuji through four trails. Most of the adventurers usually start climbing Mount Fuji from the 5th station of any trail.

The most popular of these is Fuji Subaru Line 5th Station and the longest trail from 5th to the top is Gotemba 5th Station.

We also climbed the Fuji Subaru Line. I have heard that there are huts on all the trails but it is much easier to reach Subaru 5th station from Tokyo and the Five Fuji Lake area and another big advantage is that the sunrise from the top of Fuji looks most beautiful from this side.

The Subashiri Trail is the second easiest trail of the eastern part of the mountain and meets the Yoshida Trail near the 8th Station.

But the Fujinomiya trail is the easiest way. This 5th station is at the highest altitude from where the ascent and descent to the top is the same way and the shortest which is the most suitable for beginners.

Fuji Subaru line 5th station

What to take

There are a few things to keep in mind for any mountain climb. According to the natural environment of Mount Fuji and the rules of mountaineering, you should always have water and light but calorie-rich food with you.

In addition to these, you must have suitable clothing for climbing and hiking boots as well as a walking stick, headlamps, coins to buy water from the machine or pay for the toilet, trash bags to save your trashes, raincoats, and a portable oxygen bottle.

No worries if you don't take the walking stick or portable oxygen bottle with you, you can buy it from any store of 5th station.

Facilities

The biggest reason why even beginners can easily enjoy the thrill of mountaineering in such a steep and tall mountain is that there are sufficient pay toilets and mountain huts for taking rest are available at various stations.

our capsule Hotel, Fujikyu Unjyokaku

One thing to keep in mind that book a mountain hut online as soon as you set the day to go because it is very difficult to find any space at those huts at that time cause a lot of people to climb during the peak season.

Package Tour

There are several package tours also available to climb Mount Fuji, for those who are going for the first time and have no idea about climbing, or even for those who do not want to have any planning headache, these package tours are very popular and good. They will take care of all the arrangements for coming and going from Tokyo, food, and lodging, etc.

Our itinerary

For those of you who have never had such an adventure before, I want to tell you that if we can, then you can too. We had no previous climbing experience. But before doing this climb, we did a complete health check-up to see if we were physically fit to climb or not. And I will give you this advice so that you do not have to face any bad situation.

well now let's come to the point.

We went there on 16th July. From Shinjuku St. at 8.30 am we took the Fuji excursion train (free ride if you have JRPass) that arrived at Kawaguichiko station around 10.30 am.

That day, we spent the morning near Lake Kawaguchi leisurely and after finishing our lunch around 2pm we headed toward Subaru 5^th station by bus.

Lake Kawaguchi

 There we already booked our capsules at the Fujikyu Unjyokaku Hotel. Leaving our luggage there, we roamed the nearby Viewpoint, Fujisankomitake Shrine, and Souvenir shops then finished our dinner and returned to the capsule.

Fujisankomitake Shrine

The next day at four in the morning we started our journey but saw that it was raining heavily. Then we put on our raincoat and walked out. We saw the surrounding forest covered with clouds and fog, the sound of rain overwhelming everything. Silently we began to move forward.

The dawn of our climbing day

After a while, the intensity of the rain subsided and the clouds parted a little and a beautiful view of the green forest came into view.

We were not in a hurry. Instead, if necessary, we stood for a while to take some rest. Within the first hour, the forest path ended and the red stony mountain path started. Now we started to get some feeling about moving towards a higher altitude. When we looked up, we only saw a little bit of the mountain, the rest is hidden behind the clouds. It felt like an adventure movie. we didn't know what's in front of us, just a strange thrill that worked inside my mind. Finally, we arrived at the 7th station. I realized that we have moved up a lot because now I can't see anything below. We came above the clouds (*literally)!

somewhere between 6th and 7th station

A hut, pay toilet and a shop available here. We finished our breakfast with a hot cup of noodles and enjoyed the view there. On the way, however, we ate biscuits or calorie bars and ion water (Don't drink any carbonated drinks during your climb) from time to time to maintain our stamina. Even then I didn't know how difficult and strenuous the path ahead was going to be! Finally, after starting the journey, we saw that there was nothing in front of us except large stones! We had to climb those rocks to reach the top. However, there were ropes on both sides of the entire steep slope, which indicates the safe boundaries of how far you should go.

After crossing a craggy path like that we reached the 8th station where we got some great fellow climbers with whom we had some tea time and took pictures. Ah, great time!

Then again, we moved forward. Occasionally, I got tired but that didn't create any major problem. Here one thing I want to mention that we bought a portable oxygen bottle from the 5th station, which became helpful during that time. Not everyone has difficulty breathing at higher altitudes, but many may experience fatigue (a sign of altitude sickness), but in both cases, this oxygen is needed. At exactly 3PM we touch the summit.
Yes, it took us 10 hours to get from the 5th station to the summit. We were in no hurry, got enough rest, and walked all the way. The higher we go, the more the environment of Mt. Fuji changes. We spent the night at the hut of the summit. All the arrangements of the Hut in such a place are commendable.

Final torii gate at the summit, we are about to cross

At the next dawn, we saw a lot of people who climbed during the night were waiting outside to be witnessed the sunrise from the top of Japan. But we all had sheer bad luck that it rained profusely that morning and we didn't see the sunrise. After the rain stopped, we came down within 5 hours. This is how our adventure ends.

The whole journey, the sudden change of the weather on the mountain, the experience of watching any (active) volcanic crater, all the struggles to reach the top, these are the experiences that will last till your last breath.

Hope you will enjoy our vlog too.