Hiking the Fuji-san
Hiking the Fuji-san from the 5th station is easy…but tired. You only have to put one foot after the other one about 500000 times and you are done. In the poster you can see the path to climb it and the way down.
This is something that you should do if you are in Japan in summer. A lot of Japanese people haven’t done it yet though. There are several ways of going to the 5th station. There are direct buses that leave from Shinjuku, or you can also go by train. If you go by train, use your favourite train route finder and use Kawaguchiko as you final station. From there you must take a bus to the 5th station itself.
5th Station
From here you can start hiking following the people. I think it is really really difficult to get lost (I would rather say impossible). About food and water…yes, take some, but you will find lot of spots where you can also buy it. And there is also a “nice” restaurant on the top of the mountain. It will look “nice” once you get there dying of tiredness (and you will)!
Next to the top of the Fuji-san
About the timing…the climbing from 5th station to the top CAN be done in 4 hours by a young man. Of course it can be done faster or slower. For the same person in the way down count 2-3 hours. Normally, people want to see the sun rise from the top of the volcano but you risk of do not see anything after a night of hiking if there are clouds. However, if you are lucky you will enjoy of very nice views of Japan!
Panorama from the Fuji-san
Another panorama from the Fuji-san
Do not forget that the Fuji-san is surrounded by five lakes, and you can take a nice picture of one of them from the 5th station before going back home!
河口湖 (kawaguchiko) or Kawaguchi lake
