This morning after a very good nights sleep (the drugs worked) we were up with the lark, ready for our day trip to Mount Fuji. We set our alarm for 6am and by 6-05am I’d told Jane that she had already used to many words! I think we were a bit excited about the day ahead especially when we opened the curtains to see the bright sunshine and blue skies. Phew! The typhoon had passed and this could be our lucky day. We met up with Kanako, our guide again for today, and by 7-15 we were on our way.
Once again relying on the brilliant Japanese public transport system, we caught the Metro to Shinjuku which is the busiest station in the world (literally) and then crossed the road over to the Shinjuko Bus Station. It was very busy so it was nice to be looked after by Kanako who guided us onto our bus to Kawaguchiho which would take us 2 hours. The bus left bang on time and was very comfortable but unfortunately we hit bad traffic just outside Tokyo. There had been an accident and this lead to an hours delay. I was absolutely fine with this as I was busy doing some sketching to pass the time. Lovely and relaxing.
We could see Mount Fuji with its top covered in snow that had fallen in the last week or so. It was uncovered although there was some slight cloud whisping around it. Apparently, Mount Fuji is only uncovered by cloud for about 70 days a year so this was indeed very lucky. Well done Enid for choosing this time of year to travel as this does give you the best chance of a clear day.
We pulled up into the bus station in Kawaguchiho having just drive on past the famous Insta view of Mount Fuji with the Lawson shop in front of it! Kanako had to think on her feet today due to our lateness so we decided to make our first port of call the again famous shrine view. The thing about a day trip to Mount Fuji is that it’s not about being at Mount Fuji, it’s all about getting the best views of Mount Fuji. It is a beautiful sight and impressively large at 12,389 feet. Mount Fuji last erupted in 1708 but it is still classified as an active volcano.
To get to the Arakura Fuji Sengen shrine we had to catch a little local train and then hike up the hill which was quite a steep climb but we walked up the road rather than the 398 stone steps as our knees said ‘nooooooooo!’. When we got near the shrine itself there was then a massive queue waiting to get to the observation deck where everyone took their Insta pics! It was very painful and some members of our group got frustrated with the pushers in and slow progress. But we stuck with it for getting on for a hour and finally got our views and pics!
After these delays we were now splendidly running out of time to do everything. We had to get back to town and in the end decided that we give up the ride on the cable car and instead just take the little boat ride to the far side of the lake as Kanako said this would give us the best views of Fuji. We had a little time on our back to grab a snack – corn on the cob for us and sweet potato for Kanako. Followed up by a huge Fuji apple which they sliced up for us and which was delicious. We marched down from the train station to the lakeshore and got aboard the last boat trip of the day just in time. The views of Mount Fuji were stunning from here so I’m glad we made this choice. Over on the other side we did some more marching to get another view through the flowers. It was incredibly busy over here and so it was good that we didn’t have long to waste! We now just needed to get back from this side of the lake to our bus station on the other side! Luckily, there was a taxi just waiting for us so we hopped back in that and made it with 20 mins to spare before our bus was due to depart. This gave us time to buy some interesting wasabi beans and teriyaki chip snacks and beers for the bus ride home! Hurrah. Jane encourage me to try a wasabi bean and it nearly blew my nose off!
It was a very slow journey back and we were very tired when we said our final farewells and thanks to Kanako. We tried to find somewhere Japanese to eat near Tamachi Station but our map reading skills had deserted us and instead we found ourselves in the Rose and Crown pub at the station. Jane ordered mussels and received a bowl of precisely 7 mussels and I ordered a pizza which was tiny and as thin as a cream cracker. This was not going to cut the mustard so on our way back to the hotel we nipped into the Lawson and got ourselves an egg sandwich and a cream puff. Truly Japanese!
Despite all the rushing around today, it was fabulous to see Mount Fuji in such memorable circumstances. what a day!
