Mt. Fuji
At 3776m Mt. Fuji is the highest mountain in Japan. There is a Japanese saying -
"A wise man climbs Fuji once. Only a fool climbs it twice."
I wonder what category I fall into after 58 visits to Mt. Fuji. I created this site to share my passion for Mt. Fuji and hopefully provide some helpful information too for those thinking about their very first climb.
I first came to Japan in 1991 and spent 2 years working as a High School Assistant English Teacher (AET) in Kagawa Prefecture on Shikoku Island. I was based in Marugame and from the back of my apartment I would often see the shape of a small mountain which locally was referred to as Sanuki Fuji. Sanuki was a reference to the old name for Kagawa and Fuji because it's shape resembled the true Mt. Fuji. Sanuki Fuji provided a lovely view from the back of my apartment but that was all. I left Japan in 1993 without ever climbing Sanuki Fuji or even getting a glimpse of the real Mt. Fuji.
I returned to Japan in 2007 and it was in late autumn as I was travelling on a Chuo Line train heading towards Okutama that I got my first ever sighting of Mt. Fuji. As the train continued west out of central Tokyo I kept glimpsing something large and white between the buildings but it wasn't until the train was clear of the tall buildings that I got a clear sighting of what was instantly recognizable as Mt. Fuji. Geographically I had no idea where Mt. Fuji was in relation to Tokyo and it came as quite a surprise to learn that it was actually visible from high places in and around Tokyo and the greater Kanto area. My interest was kindled and I didn't have to wait too long before I got a chance to climb Mt. Fuji for the very first time the following summer.
Read about my climbs and enjoy a few more of the amazing scenes I have found on my many visits/adventures to Mt. Fuji - click here.
At 3776m Mt. Fuji is the highest mountain in Japan. There is a Japanese saying -
"A wise man climbs Fuji once. Only a fool climbs it twice."
I wonder what category I fall into after 58 visits to Mt. Fuji. I created this site to share my passion for Mt. Fuji and hopefully provide some helpful information too for those thinking about their very first climb.
I first came to Japan in 1991 and spent 2 years working as a High School Assistant English Teacher (AET) in Kagawa Prefecture on Shikoku Island. I was based in Marugame and from the back of my apartment I would often see the shape of a small mountain which locally was referred to as Sanuki Fuji. Sanuki was a reference to the old name for Kagawa and Fuji because it's shape resembled the true Mt. Fuji. Sanuki Fuji provided a lovely view from the back of my apartment but that was all. I left Japan in 1993 without ever climbing Sanuki Fuji or even getting a glimpse of the real Mt. Fuji.
I returned to Japan in 2007 and it was in late autumn as I was travelling on a Chuo Line train heading towards Okutama that I got my first ever sighting of Mt. Fuji. As the train continued west out of central Tokyo I kept glimpsing something large and white between the buildings but it wasn't until the train was clear of the tall buildings that I got a clear sighting of what was instantly recognizable as Mt. Fuji. Geographically I had no idea where Mt. Fuji was in relation to Tokyo and it came as quite a surprise to learn that it was actually visible from high places in and around Tokyo and the greater Kanto area. My interest was kindled and I didn't have to wait too long before I got a chance to climb Mt. Fuji for the very first time the following summer.
Read about my climbs and enjoy a few more of the amazing scenes I have found on my many visits/adventures to Mt. Fuji - click here.