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Mt Fuji

29 Comments

Tour groups and individual hikers make their way up Mount Fuji around 5 a.m.

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I've done this climb... and yes it is as miserable an experience as it appears here... check out the "mud" ! Just another overly exhalted activity to do in boring ol Japain ! Ho-hum !

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Awsome pic, but would like to know month, date and temp at 5 am

<strong>Moderator: It was taken last Sunday.</strong>

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westurn are you crazy?

I did the climb and loved every minute of it.

some14some, I climbed at obon, and it was freezing (climbed all night to see sunrise at the summit) but well worth a bit of discomfort.

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I did it once and must say once is enough.

Not really a very interesting mountain to climb and the food and accomodation at the hut. Lets just not say anything about those.

Yeah, it gets cold towards the top and at night.

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Mt. Fuji's the kind of mountain that you admire from afar. Up close though it's nothing special.

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Aah yes, the good old "渋滞", traffic jam to the top. Anyway there are only two challenging way to climb: start from Fujiyoshida at the bottom, will take you 10 to 12 hours. Or, hurl your downhill-bike up with you and go down the south side, bulldozer road!

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there's an old adage that says "one is wise to climb Fuji once, a fool to do it twice" (or something like that). Couldnt agree more. especially if u get stuck behind a bunch of oyajis and obasans who turn it into an 8 hour marathon from hell.

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teru, teru, teru...

"westurn are you crazy?2

no, just honest... like these folks:

"Not really a very interesting mountain to climb"

"Mt. Fuji's the kind of mountain that you admire from afar. Up close though it's nothing special."

"Aah yes, the good old "渋滞", traffic jam to the top."

Not crazy, terusensei. This picture speaks volumes about the experience... hot at the bottom, freezing at the top, mud in July, dust in August, crowds-crowds-crowds ! And you loved it ??? Bwahaha ! Try the worlds #2 most climbed mountain for a real experience with nature ! Yep, the cascades are wonderful... and no vending machines or ramen shops along the way !

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It looks like these folks are climbing something on Mars.

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"Try the worlds #2 most climbed mountain "

Mount Monadnock?

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westurn are you crazy? I did the climb and loved every minute of it.

No, hes not crazy. I did it about 7years ago, rained most of the way up, 1000s of people, the stench from the outhouses was disgusting, and got to the top with nothing but my first every migraine and 20ft of visability..

Yes, it sucked the big one!

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Sorry but it looks like these people are fighting to get through a pile of manure, yuck!

As others have said fuji from afar looks nice but up close its certainly not picturesque, so like viewing from afar fine & once you climb the pile dont look at it! Look away!

osakini dozo, no thx!

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I get impatient when I'm stuck behind old people on the streets. I think I'll pass doing it all the way up a mountain.

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I've been up Mt. Fuji 3 times and will go again. Climbing up at night seems crazy to me because of the crowds and because you can't see anything. Climbing up in the daytime is exhilarating with an excellent view (you don't look at the pumice under your feet, but at the landscape and the clouds floating beneath you and getting progressively further and further below you).

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TeruSensei - Are you crazy? I did that climb and I can guarantee you I'll never do it again.

"One is wise to climb Fuji once, a fool to do it twice"

Or, a fool to do it once, and a bigger fool to do it twice ha ha ha

It might have been worth it had there not been a complete cloud cover at the top - we could see nothing but white mist...and I got a splitting headache on the way back down...

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"I've been up Mt. Fuji 3 times"

Some people never learn ha ha ha

Nah, I can think of worse things to do - just give me a minute...

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I started at night and made it in time to watch the sunrise. The view is breathtaking. I guess if you experience bad weather than you just had bad luck. For me I would check the weather and make sure i climb on a sunny week. I will climb again for sure.

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My experience on the climb.

Hit it with 2 of my japanese female teachers at around lunch-time. The taking of our money started at the base-camp. From the stick onwards, etc.

Climb started easy, once you get past 5th base forget nature/vegetation, just rocks and a winding road.

It ended up as an exercise in frustration, tons of people, climb route was badly maintained. Every time we hit a hut they took guys for their money. Want a burned mark on your stick = 300yen. Need about 20 to cover the ascent.

All we did along the climb was see red rocks, steps that collapsed and tons of people that were a hindrance. Buy anything on the mountain and you PAY. So we carried supplies. Weather was fine.

Honestly, I saw nothing beside rocks and poor path, the few huts we hit tried to take us for everything we had.

Finally we hit the top-hut, and got served food at 700yen(child portion) that I can buy for 50yen. Refills, etc NO WAY JOSE unless you pony up. Sleeping/resting quarters, drop your bag for a pillow and share the blanket with the guy/gal next to you. Couldn't even stretch the legs.

Sleep, no way every 30 minutes you get woken to ask for guys/gals for the next ascend.

Finally did the ascend in the dark(freezing cold). Made it to the top and waited for sunrise. NO show it was cloudy.

Descend was fun too, try running down a mountain on a criss-cross road of loose stones, etc.

Going down hurts and tires you more than going up. Got to base-camp and need to wait for 2hrs to get on the bus to get a train to home.

End-result: I paid a ton for nothing and would have paid more if I was not prepared. Never saw the famous sun-rise as the weather didn't play along.

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I could be wrong but it is a nice mountain from some distance. To a real mountian climber it is not challenging.

Climbed from '48 till '60 basically in the Cdn Rockies in Alberta & B.C., also the USA once. All were a challenge to all of us & enjoyed so much.

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its good if you like pain, garbage, and vending machines...otherwise buy a postcard, that's what they're for

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from a distance it looks great, but up close it looks like a half-eaten hamburger...

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Wow.. you guys are crazy! What do you want? Air conditioned pathway to the top? May as well stay home :)

I got by backside kicked the first time I went and came tumbling back down from station 8 (under estimated the climb!). I went again and it was so worth watching the sunrise and the clouds from the top!!

aesthetically yes... the mountain is a dissapointment compared to how beautiful it looks from far, but then it is a volcanic formation! What do you expect?

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Zero00.

Some of us climbed the Alps(Europe), etc and Mt Fuji is just a let-down when compared.

You think a Fuji sunrise is better than a Matterhorn sunrise?

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It is amazing at the number of people struggling to make it to the top. Still after all of that & if they live in sight of Mt. Juji or often get to see it when visiting they will know that they made it up & down Mr. Fuji.

I know when I lived in Banff National Park I could look around from the town & know I had climbed Mt. Tunnel (a nothing as the King & Queen of England had hike up it yrs ago-----though the rock face from the east side was very different, to Cascade Mtn., Rundle Mtn, to Mr. Edith, Effi, Louie.

Yet I knew many Banff residents had NOT climbed them---there is your difference & why I compliment those taken in the photo of going up & coming down for in thier future.

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I hope everyone has a garbage to fill up.

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Who cares that its not beautiful and they stiff you for everything youve got on the way up? If you miss the weather and get a bad day that is bad luck. But you can say you climbed Fuji. What an experience! I did it two weeks ago on the first day it was open this year. It hurt like hell. Mentally it was tough. We got lucky with the weather and saw the most amazing sunrise. After we got down we couldnt walk properly for 3 days. BUT WE DID IT! Ive been wanting to do it for 6 years now. It feels GREAT!

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Kirakira25.

Point is will you do it again?

Don't get me wrong I enjoyed my 1st trip but I won't do it again. Yes, it is tougher than the guys want you to believe and takes longer than advertised.

But when all is said and done, I paid a ton(for nothing) and won't do it again(maybe with son and family/right thing to do).

This is from someone that grew up close to the austrian/swiss/french alps and also did the rockies and the drakenbergs in South africa.

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Zen Builder

God no, are you kidding me?! Done, ticked, fabulous experience, really glad I did it, love hiking and stuff, but no, no more immediate plans to doss down in a flea-infested pit for the night and be relieved of the best part of ichi-man for the privilege! It was fun to return to my backpacking roots temporarily for a couple of days, but I am way too old and used to my creature comforts for this stuff now!

I also completely agree that it IS tougher than many people and the guidebooks say it is. Anybody who buys walking shoes in the Tokyu Hands in Lalaport Toyosu - don`t listen to the guy who says "Pah! Fuji? No bother at all!" That said, I met a 67 year old "fuji-virgin" like me at the lodge. It can be done, just slowly!

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Hiking in 4 days!! Can't wait!!

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