The Ultimate Guide to Climbing Mt. Fuji
- Into the Wild
- Feb 4, 2021
- 6 min read
*This information is current as of 2019*
In 2019, we planned our first trip to Asia and naturally we landed on Japan as one of our destinations. I got this crazy idea that since we love to hike, we should hike Mt. Fuji. This is an ambitious mountain to tackle when you’ve spent your life at sea level but then again, we’re planning to hike the Inca trail and eventually would love to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro so this was a good way to get our feet wet. I spent months sifting through information (mostly outdated) while researching the Yoshida trail and none of it prepared me for this trek. I decided to document my experience and provide my tips for planning and preparing for this hike.
Get to Kawaguchiko Early
*Image taken from Wikipedia
This is one of two stations where you can catch a bus that will take you to the 5th station on Mt. Fuji. This is where you will begin your hike from. You will need to reserve your bus ticket and it is important you get here early. We took the first bus of the day from Toyko station and with traffic, it took about 2.5 hours to get there. Then it takes another hour to get from the town to the 5th station. This meant that we didn’t begin our hike until late morning.
I recommend arriving a day early and spending the night in the town. This will allow you to catch the first bus to the 5th station the next morning and you will beat the crowds.
Spend an Hour At the 5th Station
The 5th station is at an elevation of 2300 m and it is important to give your body time to acclimatize to the elevation. Keep in mind, everyone is going to handle the elevation differently so it is important to understand the signs of altitude sickness. It can be a very real threat on this mountain and yes, we witnessed the affect firsthand.
Book a Mountain Hut
Do not try to hike in and out in one day. This is called bullet climbing and it is frowned upon for good reason. Helicopters may not be able to access the higher part of the trails and if you get into trouble; you may be on your own. There are only certain turn around points on the mountain since one trail is to ascend and the other is to descend.
Staying at a mountain hut affords you time to rest and the opportunity to summit in time for sunrise. Watching the sunrise on Fuji is very popular but be warned, the weather is unpredictable and you are not guaranteed to be able to see it. Mt. Fuji quite often is surrounded by clouds.
You can find a complete list of mountain huts here. I picked the mountain hut that I wanted to stay at and booked directly through their website. If this is your first time climbing Mt. Fuji, I recommend sticking to the Yoshida trail as it is the most popular.
Tip: Ensure you understand where your mountain hut is located, how long it will take you to get there and how far from the summit it is. You will be able to stop and rest at the other mountain huts but you will not be able to go inside without a booking. We stayed at Goraikoukan which is the highest mountain hut before the summit.
Below is a map of the Yoshida Trail and the locations of the mountain huts.
**Photo Uncredited.
Prepare for All Weather
Bring a wind breaker and/or a waterproof jacket. As you get into the clouds, there are water droplets in the air and your clothes will get wet. When the temperatures start to decrease, it is the perfect conditions for hypothermia.
Bring Proper Footwear
You will want hiking boots. We usually travel exclusively in hiking boots because they offer good support. It is so important they fit correctly. You will be walking down hill on loose gravel/ dirt for about 3 – 3.5 hours. If your boots are not properly fitted and your feet are sliding to the front of your shoes/ boots, you are in for an uncomfortable decent.
Tip: Do not break your boots in on the mountain. If they are new, spend some time breaking them in at home. Also, bring some kinesiology tape to tape any spots on your feet that rub. Thank me later…
Bring Lots of Water
When I was doing research, a lot of the articles I found mentioned that there were water fill stations at the mountain huts. We had brought lots of water with us however we discovered the hard way that there were no water fill stations.
You will be able to buy water but it is incredibly expensive. For added benefit, I brought electrolyte tabs that I added to my water to prevent dehydration. It’s quite warm until you get into the clouds.
Bring Cans of Oxygen
I’ll be honest, I got a lot of looks for this one but I also have asthma and I was concerned about the recovery. You can buy cans of oxygen for when you get higher up on the mountain and I did find it beneficial.
Tip: Don’t buy these at the mountain, they are incredibly overpriced. Instead, see if you can find them in the town of Kawaguchiko.
Eat Before You Begin
You want to make sure you a fueled properly for the hike. There are a few restaurants and places to eat at the 5th station so this can be a good way to spend that hour while you are acclimatizing.
Bring Snacks
We planned to buy protein bars at the 5th station. Sadly there were lots of chocolates, sweets, souvenirs and little in the way of anything useul for the hike. Be prepared with a plethora of snacks to keep you fueled during the hike. You will be scaling up lava fields and it will take a lot of energy.
There are concession stands at the lower mountain huts. Do not rely on these. You’re choices will be limited and as you get further up the mountain, food gets scarce.
Bring Cash
For obvious reason, if you do need to buy something at the concessions then you will need to bring cash. Also, the washrooms are by donation and they work off the honour system so bring some coins with you. You will be able to use the washrooms at any of the mountain huts along the way. The donations are intended for the upkeep and maintenance of the trails.
Bring a Headlamp
We had absolutely no intention of finishing in the dark but things happen. We both brought headlamps which was a lifesaver when it got dark. Even if you don’t use it, it is a good idea to have one.
Buy a Walking Stick
If you didn’t bring your own hiking poles, wooden walking sticks are sold at the 5th station. On your way up the mountain, you can pay a fee and have them branded at each mountain hut. It does add up however they make for exceptional souvenirs and because you actually used them on the mountain; incredible stories.
Tip: We shipped ours home when we arrived in Osaka to save ourselves the hassle of carrying them with us for the rest of the trip (we were stopping in two other Countries). We used Japan Post and if you plan on doing this, you need to package them yourselves. The lady at Japan post was nice enough to help us out but beware the length restrictions.
Prepare for Queues
Oh my… the queues. The hike took us 8 hours and we finished in the dark. It should have only taken 5. Again, I recommend spending the night in the town so you can leave early in the morning and beat the crowds. The Yoshida trail (the most common trail) gets VERY busy throughout the day so be prepared to wait.
Take Lots of Pictures
Of course, take lots of pictures. The views from the top of Fuji are breathtaking. Make sure you document the journey as it’s an accomplishment and you should be proud that you did it! The picture above is of the sunset that I captured while making my way to our mountain hut.
Know your Limit
Know when it’s time to turn around. People do die on this mountain, in fact, a Russian tourist died on Mt. Fuji only a few weeks before we arrived. The last thing you want is to get injured because you pushed your body too far.
Getting There
There are a few ways to get to Mt. Fuji but I will only outline the route we took. We took this route because we found the most direct.
You will be able to book all your tickets online and in advance however the 2020 season was cancelled due to COVID so at the time of this article, there were no buses going to the 5th station.
There is a direct bus from Shinjuku station in Tokyo but we had a hard time finding tickets for it. There seemed to be less options so we opted for the above which was easy and flexible.
All photo's were taken by me unless otherwise credited
*By Jakub Hałun - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=11430854
** This is the resource I used when planning which mountain hut to stay at, I tried to find a source but this image has been used on many websites with no credit.
留言