It’s a Long Way to the Top

Posted on 10/25/2022 Last updated on 10/25/2022

Have you ever done something that sounded good at first then maybe not so good when you are right in the middle of doing it? Me vs. Mt. Fuji would be a great example of that. It had always been on my bucket list, but I really had no idea just how demanding the climb would actually be. The journey to the highest point in Japan is a story in itself. And this is that story.

“Hey Honey, Let’s Climb Mt. Fuji!”

So it all started when my wife were talking about how hot it was, and my son thought and came up with the idea of climbing Mt. Fuji. While I wasn’t keen on the idea, my wife decided that was the best answer to the heat.

A few weeks later, I found myself at Station 5, the base of Mt. Fuji, after a train and bus ride. We bought our walking sticks that you can take to each station, and they will even brand it for you so you have a nice souvenir. Then on up to Station 6 where we had reservations to stay the night. The rooms were basically like big capsule hotels with only a curtain for a door. It was rather snug for the three of us, but we made it work.

Later in evening I went and sat outside, and was amazed at the view. I could see the lights of Tokyo when I looked out from the mountain and saw so many stars when I looked up in the sky. It made me smile when I looked up the mountain and saw what looked like lightning bugs, only to realize that they were hikers using head lamps to climb at night.

What Goes Up…

We slept well, other than the man across the way snoring loud enough to shake the whole cabin.

There are 4 trails (Yoshida, Subashiri, Gotemba, and the Fujinomia) that you can take to reach the summit. After breakfast, we hit the Fujinomia trail a little after 6 in the morning.

I was a little surprised because I had heard that there were always a lot of people going up and that it would be crowded. Maybe we just got lucky that day, because going up was very pleasant. We stopped at every station and rested for about 20 minutes, drank and ate a little.

Finally, we made it to the top of Fuji. There is a post office where one can buy and send postcards from Mt. Fuji. We sat there and talked with other people who had made it to the top and shared our experiences. Then it was time to make our way down. And that’s when things started going bad for me.

…Comes Tumbling Down

After we posted our postcards, we started our way down. I noticed my vision was getting blurry, like when you stand up too quickly. I knew it was the beginning of altitude sickness, but I was on my way down so I just needed to get down lower.

That cleared up a few minutes later, but then I noticed pain in both my upper legs and hips. The further I went the worse the pain got. I was thinking “Am I going to make it down from here?”. After several hours of what felt like extreme pain, I made it down, although the last 100 meters I could barely walk. The buses had already left so we grabbed a cab to get to the Shin station. I sat in the cab and didn’t move a muscle for the 1-hour drive. We got to the station and somehow, I survived.

It’s been 6 years since I took on Mt. Fuji and won. I look back now and smile because it was the most physically-demanding thing that I have ever done. While I probably wouldn’t try again, I am so happy that I did it. When people ask me about it, I always encourage them to climb it at least once. It’s not going to be easy, and it may hurt, but like many of the best things in life, it’s worth it.