Climbing Mt. Fuji | Fujikawaguchiko, Japan (Ep. 4)
Hey, if you’re just here to watch me climb Fuji, feel free to skip ahead to this timestamp. Otherwise, enjoy the episode. Welcome back to Tokyo. In this episode, I’m exploring the Fuji Five Lakes region and climbing the legendary Mount Fuji. This is a part of Japan you don’t want to miss. My flight from Saporro just landed and Tokyo feels sweltering in comparison. My bus to Fuji doesn’t leave until tomorrow morning, so I have the rest of the afternoon free to explore Tokyo. [Music] [Music] tower. [Music] The next morning, I was greeted by a Thomas the Tanker bus to take me to Kawagucho. I love how they have so much character themed transportation in Japan. Since my mountain hut reservation isn’t until tomorrow, I have the full day to explore the Fuji 5 Lakes region. I really wish I had more time to explore the area because it was really nice once you escape the crowds surrounding the Kag Chico bus station. [Music] [Music] [Music] Oh, that’s better. [Music] [Music] The bus from Kawaguchica leaves every hour and takes us to the fifth station located at 2,35 m. This bus was completely full, standing room only. We still have almost 1,500 m to climb to the summit. That’s nearly a mile for Americans. Fuji has four trails to the summit, but I climbed during the first week of the season, so the Yoshida trail was my only choice. You could climb it outside of hiking season, but it is more dangerous and none of the huts are open. This is the only hut that I could manage to book. It cost about $53 and was my most expensive night of the trip. It’s super basic, but it’s the only way to camp on the mountain and ensure that you won’t be denied permits if they have all already been issued for the day. I barely slept that night, and I started my climb the next morning at 3:00 a.m. At the sixth station, you can take a free helmet for a 1,000 yen deposit. It’s not required, but I figured a brain injury from a rock was a lot less cool than wearing the helmet. The rest of the hike is fairly monotonous with occasional breaks at stations to drink water and eat a [Music] snack. The logistics for this hike were interesting. My hostel for the next night was booked in Tokyo, so I had nowhere to leave my bag. I carried my clothes, laptop, snacks, and 6 L of water all the way up the mountain with me. It would have been nice to have some luggage left at the hotel, but I did manage to carry it. I would absolutely not have attempted this hike with less than 4 L of water, though. [Music] [Music] The golden hour on the mountain is absolutely incredible. [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] After 6 hours of climbing, I’m finally at the summit. At this point, it’s nearly 0° and there’s a strong wind chill. As soon as you stop moving, it becomes obvious how cold the summit is. Unfortunately, the post office at the peak wasn’t open yet, so I wasn’t able to mail any of my postcards with the Fuji postmark. If you do repeat this hike, after about the second week of July, everything else at the summit should be open. Heat. Heat. [Music] The return hike to the fifth station used the bulldozer access trails and it only took about 2 and 1 half hours. Here’s the same shot of the sixth station in daytime. It was completely dark when I passed it on the ascent. [Music] Back in Kawagucho, I rewarded myself with some well-deserved mochi from Lawson and passed out on the bus ride back to Tokyo. I didn’t record anything else for that day, so now we’re on my final full day in Japan. My trips are always loosely scheduled, so I had planned this to be a buffer day. I used it to explore some more parts of Tokyo and sample as much food as possible. [Music] If you’ve seen me travel before, you already know that I spent the night in the airport terminal to save some money. Check out my review of the ANA business class flight where I explore the amenities and snacks that ANA has to offer in the Hanita Lounge, as well as my full review of the 12-hour flight in a completely lie flat seat.
I spent 16 days solo traveling Japan during the summer of 2024. Join me on my adventure as I explore Fuji Kawaguchiko. In this travel vlog, I visit Mt. Fuji, the Fuji Five Lakes Region, and say goodbye to Tokyo one last time. Join me on this adventure to discover what it’s like to climb the tallest mountain in Japan!
Check out my review of ANA business class (and how I booked it for $550) here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DK3g_-q4qzA
🌟 What’s in this video:
0:00 Intro
0:19 Tokyo (again)
0:48 Shibuya
1:18 Shinjuku Station
1:34 Bus to Kawaguchiko
1:58 Lake Kawaguchi
3:33 Fujikawaguchiko
4:10 Mt. Fuji 5th Station
4:44 Mountain Hut
5:04 Climbing in the Dark
6:19 Mt. Fuji Sunrise
7:28 8th Station
9:02 9th Station
9:58 Fuji Sumit!
12:02 Return Hike
13:13 Last Day in Tokyo
💬 More travel videos coming soon!
Episode 1: https://youtu.be/Bg7I-IJPWlo
Episode 2: https://youtu.be/ZrYOz035ocY
Episode 3: https://youtu.be/Bj3qX2Z0ezI
Episode 4: https://youtu.be/9cXXrKLpoQk
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