Of course, we had to go to the most famous mountain in Japan, Mt. Fuji. Probably everyone in the civilized world has seen an image of this iconic mountain. But we also had to go here for another reason. When Bob, Collette’s dad, was stationed in Japan (1952-1954), he and a few of his buddies climbed Mt. Fuji. Honest to God’s truth. I have letters from Bob to Mary to prove it so we had to go see this mountain. Who knows, maybe we will stand exactly where he and his buddies stood before their ascent.

We booked a private tour that was just about the same cost as any one of the hundred group tours. Ours was in a private van, theirs in a 45 passenger bus. Same sights as the other tours but at our schedule. Weather for our today is forecast to be cloudy, cool (60-65F), no rain. There is a slim chance we will get a view of Mt. Fuji without too much haze, but maybe not. Our stops today will be Oshino Hakkai, a small village in the Fuji Five Lake region, located between Lake Kawaguchiko and Lake Yamanakako on the site of a former sixth lake that dried out several hundred years ago; Kuzuryu Shrine, home to a 9-headed dragon (statue) that protects the lake and helps singles find love; and Oishi Park that during the late spring and summer, has beautiful gardens and views of Mt. Fuji. At this time of year, we will enjoy the ice cream and a stroll along the lakeside.

Mt. Fuji is actually an active volcano. The last official eruption was in 1707 with an unknown number of casualties due to Japan’s agrarian society at that time. It was difficult to assess the damage done by the last eruption due to the number of farms and lack of consolidated living areas.

First site of Fuji

Mt. Fuji is the tallest mountain in Japan, coming in around 3,776 meters, or 12,388’. It has also become the icon of Japan’s long standing tradition of mountain worshipping by groups like Fuji-ko who built shrines and created rock monuments in honor of the mountain. Today, between 200,000 and 300,000 people climb Mt. Fuji, just because. And mostly in 1 day!

Oshino Hakkai village

Oishi Park view

Oshino Hakkai

Oshino Hakkai

Operational flour / rice mill in Oshino Hakkai

Spring water from Mt. Fuji – Oshino Hakkai

Mt. Fuji from Oshino Hakkai village

To get a better view of Mt. Fuji, we rented a private boat for a 30-minute ride out on lake Ashinoko. Fun ride but taking pictures was too difficult.

Fun day. We did get to see Mt. Fuji, all be it a little hazy. We tried the special ice cream at Oishi Park, pretty good but I’m not sure I would make the drive just for the ice cream. And we may have walked where Bob and his buddies walked when they started their journey up the mountain. We’ll never know.

Temple Guard

Temple Guard #2

Flowers we would have seen if we were here later in April

Prayer flags

Mt. Fuji hiking trail start. Maybe this is where Bob and his friends started.

Prayer tags

The symbol of Buddha’s footprint

Shrine

Tori gate

Yes, that’s snow

Back on our guided tour tomorrow and our first day traveling on the Shinkansen (Bullet Train) to our destination, Matsumoto. For this part of the tour we will pack a change of clothes for two days and have our bags forwarded on to our hotel in Kanazawa. Bullet trains have very limited space for suitcases.

What else…Fuji apples!