[Cambridge Graduate CUP, Wolfson FC vs Robinson/Selwyn College 14:0]

[special thanks to Franz for organizing this and to all the nice people who came along] 27th of Dec 07 – 2nd of Jan 08

for downloading the pictures or watching them one-by-one: http://www.flickr.com/photos/chrisfi/sets/72157603804445688/

Some short advice, if you plan to climb Fuji-san:

1. If you want a sportive challenge, you can climb Mt. Fuji in one day (I met a Norwegian guy who climbed to the top and returned within 3 hours – needless to say that he is crazy 6-8 hours is more realistic. But you would miss a lot of the true beauty.
2. If you want to see the true beauty of mount Fuji, stay in one of the huts overnight. If weather permits, you get to see
   • Sun-set
   • Night-view
   • Sun-rise
   • And climb to the top the next day (when it is supposed to be warmer)

Now to my story:

On my arrival at Kawaguchi-ko station, which is a popular starting point for exploring Japan’s highest mountain, I wondered where is Mt. Fuji? I turned and looked and turned and looked, but instead of spotting the famous cone-shaped volcano, I only saw a big hill covered in clouds and the other way, some not so high mountains. Only later I realized that what appeared to be a big hill, was actually the beginning of the 3776 m throne, hidden in clouds.

As I arrived there in September, there were less regular bus connections than in August, which is the official climbing season. In addition some mountain huts along the track are shut, but September also means less tourists, sharing the sometimes really narrow hiking route. So I took a bus to the highest accessible station, which is the Kawaguchiko 5th station.

My plan was to hike as far as possible on my first day (maybe even climb the top), stay overnight in one of the huts near the top, and then early morning climb to the top to see the sunrise, before returning safely to the 5th station, where my bus would wait. I would call myself fairly fit, nevertheless I could feel the air getting thinner the higher I was climbing. The toughest part, however, was the weather: above 3000 m weather conditions might change very quickly. On the first day I encountered such heavy winds that being only 30 minutes from the summit I was forced to return to the safe hut. The next morning it was raining heavily and. The Japanese tourists showed more determination – they started packing at 4:30 AM

I recommend, staying overnight in one of the huts. Considering you only get a small sleeping place among 20 other people in the same room, it is not cheap (around 6000 Yen), but it is definitely worth it. I was so impressed by the night views of the nearby lakes, and the city-lights of Tokyo’s outskirts. Spending a night at 3200 m is a real special feeling. Most travelers get up at around 4 AM to climb the final meters to reach the top and observe the sunrise from there. I, however, decided to get up later (at 4 AM it was raining heavily and sooo cold, I decided to postpone the ascend and enjoy more of the warm bed). At 6:30 AM the loudspeakers went on, and somebody was shouting as if a fire has broken out (the best alarm clock!) – so I got up and was perfect on time to see the sun rising above the clouds. I was standing in front of the mountain hut, my mouth wide open, and I was just amazed.

From minute to minute it got warmer, and the ascend to the top was now fairly straight forward. 60 minutes later I was standing on the summit. It was warm and fairly pleasant. The round to the real summit takes about one hour, and you need to be lucky (as I was) to see into the crater. The summit itself is nothing special: you will find a plaque there, saying something in Japanese and a really ugly weather station on top, that you are not allowed to enter. On the other hand as you walk the path around the crater, you get a very nice 360 degree view of the area around the mountain. Later then, it started to rain again, and it became a bit more unpleasant as the wind caught up. Mt. Fuji had enough of me and said in his kind way: GO.

During this hike, the sun burned my face, and an unforgettable experience into my memory.

Thanks to the nice people I met during this trip and : A Norwegian hiker, who was running up and down within 3 hours (a true sportsman); he has won this trip through a mountain lottery back home (unfortunately I don’t remember his name … if by any chance you are reading this, get in contact with me, I would like to share some pictures!) Mark from the U.S. working at Boeing; And Henni from Germany, always a smile on her face and ready to share a funny story of her India/Nepal trip.

Welcome to hell!

Noboribetsu lies in the South of Hokkaido, about a one hour train ride from Sapporo. It is easy to reach, and makes a perfect day-trip from Sapporo. From the train station you catch a bus to the Noboribetsu spa area. Ask at the tourist information about the timetable for return trips.

This region exhibits high volcanic activities. So you can either explore this unusual scenery or just relax in one of the many extravagant hot spas.

If, however, during your hiking, you come across one of its lakes, and start thinking to go for a short swim – think twice. The water is feed from hot sulphur springs, which makes it more than 50 C hot.

I was courageous enough to dip my feet into one of its flowing-off rivers, and but could not keep them in for longer than 5 seconds – ouch …

For more pics, check out my flickr-slideshow

A big thanks to the wonderful people at the RIIF-group at AIST, Tsukuba. I had a wonderful time visiting you. A special thanks to Nakamura-san, who served as my host. For every question I had, he had an elaborate answer and we usually ended up in lively discussions [in addition, every time I mentioned another cultural trip I was planning, he supplied me with detailed time tables, maps, Japanese phrases ... - this made it impossible for me to get lost].

[my training period: 1st of August - 2nd of September 2007]

A few photos, for more have a look at this site

Nakamura-san (host) to my left, Nonaka-san (group leader) to my right (with eyes closed)

Nakamura-san to my right, Steffan right behind me.

A group photo in front of Newton’s cloned apple tree (a gift from the UK)

Here, some pictures of me in Action:

Japan is a country with strict safety regulations – e.g: it is highly recommended to wear a safety-helmet at all times ( … just joking … but in case for emergency I received a personal helmet, and kept it in my locker)

That’s me posing in front of the famous ozone generator, the group’s second commercial prototype. [despite its beauty, I still prefer my computer and the theoretical work]