He Who Climbs Twice

Someday, I will climb Mount Fuji a second time. My current plan is to climb the full Yoshidaguchi trail, both the ascent and the descent. I will also see the sunrise from the summit, on a clear morning.

I expect that doing all this will take three days, not two days.

Here’s my rough idea of how I would do this, starting from Tokyo:

1. Day 1: Wake up at 5 AM in Tokyo. Take the train to Mount Fuji station. Stop in at the visitor center and get another map and postcard. Take a cab to 7-11 by the shrine, arriving at roughly at 9 AM. Get 6 liters of sports drinks and 2 liters of water. Walk to the shrine, then walk to Hotel Seikanso, between 5th station and 6th station, and get there before the kitchen closes. Eat dinner and sleep.
2. Day 2: Wake up between 5 AM and 7 AM. Climb to about 8.5 station, stopping either at Hotel Tomoe-kan or Goraikou-kan. Eat dinner and sleep.
3. Day 3: Wake up at around 3 AM, and climb the last little bit of the ascent in darkness (with a better headlamp), to see the sunrise from the peak of the Yoshidaguchi trail at around 5 AM. Then hike to the actual 3776 meter summit of Mount Fuji, arriving between 6 and 7 AM. Start the descending hike at 9 AM, and descend the full Yoshidaguchi trail. Arrive at Mount Fuji train station by 7 PM, and take the trains back to Tokyo, to arrive at around 11 PM.

I could also do this same hiking itinerary, but starting from Lake Kawaguchiko. While a hot shower was amazing at the end of the hike, a soak in the onsen at Guesthouse Sakuya would be perfection. On Day 1. I’d wake up at roughly 7 AM at Guesthouse Sakuya, and on Day 3, I’d arrive back at Guesthouse Sakuya in time for dinner and the onsen.

Now, chances are if I was doing this version of that itinerary, my wife would be there as well—having a very relaxing three days at Guesthouse Sakuya, and admiring Mount Fuji from afar. (I’m not a wise man, but she’s no fool!)