mount fuji climb report

since moving to tokyo at the end of march i've been going hiking every two or three weeks in anticipation of climbing mount fuji this summer. i did it -- on july fifteenth, a little after 4 a.m., i reached the summit. here's my climb report:

the bus departs from shinjuku at 4:50 p.m. there's a rainstorm en route and i realize that although i have rain gear, my shoes are probably not waterproof. fortunately, the sky clears quickly: typically moody mountain weather. i try to nap on the bus in preparation for the long trek ahead, but i can't sleep. perhaps my subconscious is trying to ask my conscious what the hell we've gotten ourself into.

the bus arrives at kawaguchiko fifth station, 2,305 meters up, a little after 7 p.m. the sun is setting and there's a soft breeze. i down a can of liquid courage (er, black coffee), throw on my new windbreaker/rainjacket, and chat with a young korean couple and a group of three approaching-middle-age american guys at the store. one of the american guys has done this before, so i (tentatively, at least) join their group. we start climbing at 7:35. i quickly fall behind, but catch up to them at the first 6th station, where we realize we took the harder path. we get maps (the store had run out) and start off again. when hiking it always takes me an hour or two to adjust and straighten out my breathing, and this time is no different: it's slow going. i lose them again. later on i run into two finnish guys and another group of three american guys, all around my age, and all in fairly similar physical condition. we continue along at about the same pace, the finnish guys taking longer breaks but walking faster. soon the terrain changes from upward slope to solid rock, and everyone pulls gloves out of their backpacks. finally, at one of the huts we're told that most of the exhausting rock climbing is over, and we all sigh in relief. at break points we share snacks -- dried fruit, chocolate, nuts -- and it doesn't sit well in my stomach. i feel a little shaky and my head is hurting from the altitude. two of the americans drop out around the 8th station a little after midnight, electing to stay in a mountain hut and get a good night's sleep rather than plow on. the remaining american guy and i push forward, not willing to pay 5000 yen to take a nap, and -- more importantly -- not wanting to miss the sunrise. my head feels better after awhile. it's getting progressively colder and we add layers as we go. to avoid hitting the peak before sunrise, we take a long break in a hut between the old and new 8th stations. we chat with an austrian family and an airforce girl from tennessee until the hut owner kicks us out to make room for more. we eventually find ourselves behind a climbing group, and the trail is pretty congested at times. just before the top is another stint of rock climbing. i notice a few people look like they might collapse from exhaustion, but none of them do. there is a soft streak in the sky that gradually spreads out and turns from whitish grey to pinkish red. behind us are little dots of light formed by climbers' headlamps and ahead is the little gate marking the end of the ascent. there are cheers as people walk under the red torii, and a few high fives as well. finally at the top (finally!), we wander around dazedly and take some photos. the finns are there, too, and we congratulate each other before going into a hut to huddle around some coals and drink hot tea. i venture out for some more photos when the sun finally comes up above the horizon, but then my fingers go numb and so i head back to the hut. i realize i haven't brought enough layers (at this point i'm wearing ski socks, jeans, rain pants, a tank top, t-shirt, sweatshirt, and windbreaker, wool hat, and fingerless bike gloves) and now that i'm not moving, i'm shaking from the cold. my new friend offers me a clif bar and i think maybe i'm hungry, so i eat it. it's too cold to take a nap and my climbing buddy looks pretty miserable too, so we decide to head back down. i've had some knee trouble on recent hikes so i tell him to go on ahead of me if i'm slow -- which i am. i walk very carefully to protect my knees, going sideways about half of the time. it takes longer, but it doesn't hurt as much, and i try to think of it as a bonus work out. i'm getting warmer but my stomach continues to protest the altitude, and i stop and put my head between my knees a few times. my forehead feels flushed and i realize what's about to happen -- i run a little off the trail and the clif bar makes an ungraceful exit from whence it came. after that i feel quite a bit better, and continue along without incident -- aside from a pause to check with some nice middle-aged japanese men about the correct descending path to kawaguchiko. the trail continues, monotonous rock and sand until finally little dots of green start to appear on the martian terrain and the sand gives way to soil, solid underfoot. at a few points the trail goes uphill instead of down -- a surprisingly welcome change. the scenery begins to change too (trees!) and, encouraged, i find myself picking up speed. between the sixth and fifth stations are a lot of climbers just heading out, and i greet them with a cheerful good morning. i chat with a guy from hong kong who had asked me if i was okay when my head was between my knees four kilometers up; he's surprised i've caught up with him. a chinese woman and her daughter, full of morning sunshine just-off-the-bus freshness run up to me with their cameras and gesture that they'd like to take pictures with me. they repeat "xie xie," a few times, and then we go off in opposite directions. i feel like i'm dreaming. a little later, i chat a little with a guy from laos and his tour partner from thailand, and they assure me december is a wonderful time to visit their countries. we say goodbye to one another when we (finally!) arrive at the fifth station around ten. the americans i started out with are sprawled on the ground in the sun, resting. i buy bus tickets and a souvenir, and sit down next to the equally exhausted finnish guys to wait for the first (eleven o'clock) bus. this bus is much more crowded than the one we took up, and the seats don't recline as far, but we're all too exhausted to care. next to me is a french college kid and i give him advice about what to see before he heads home in a few days. soon we're all passed out and drooling, and then we're in shinjuku! home sweet tokyo.

i did it. i climbed mount fuji!

i'm glad i went alone, too, because i didn't have to worry about forcing anyone to adjust to my pace, or adjusting my pace to anyone else's. i met plenty of good company on the way. though i can't deny it would have been nice to have shared the experience with someone close to me -- that wasn't really an option. this way i can feel tough and independent.

they say only a fool climbs fuji twice. if that's true, i know quite a few fools -- and i might be one of them. if i'm in japan during climbing season again, i might do it. it was a challenge, but a doable one. things i'd do differently the second time: bring more clothes, eat less on the trail, buy a souvenir at the top, and possibly invest in one of those oxygen can things or even an inhaler. and you know, i might even consider starting from the very bottom -- though i'd definitely stay in a hut partway up if i went that route.

my legs are actually less sore than they were when i did a much shorter climb a few months ago. (so far, anyway.) i'm glad i trained. i'm not an athletic person, but my body will pull through if i push it. my father once told me (in gentler words) that thinking of myself as weak was a cop out, a recipe for failure, and that i could do a lot more than i knew if i just tried. he was right. thanks, dad.

(photos soon to follow)

where did june go?

it's july. the weather is just starting to get hot and humid -- a little later than usual, thankfully.

i finished writing the end-of-term test for my returnee class a few days ago, and am in the midst of conversation tests for my other classes. my students are doing pretty well, especially compared to the students i taught at public schools. it's impressive what a difference one class per week with a native teacher makes -- especially for the girls who really put a lot of effort into it.

the end of the term came fast. finals at my main school are at the end of next week. after that i still have work through july 28th, but not at all my schools on all the regular days. in other words, i have a few extra days off. i'm going to climb fuji on july 14th or 15th. and for the few days leading up to my birthday i'll be in kansai. a week later i'll be in taiwan. then august, then seattle, portland, pittsburgh, mcminville: a whirlwind.