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Japan

The North Alps - September 2009

Day 2

 

The tanoy sprang in to life at 5-50 a.m. announcing that breakfast would be from 6-00 a.m. I asked for o-yu (Hot Water) in the canteen and made some cup-a-soup for breakfast. As the weather was clear I decided to climb to the top of O-yama before setting off on the main hike to Goshikigahara. It took me about an hour to climb O-yama and I arrived at the shrine at the top around 8-10 a.m. I considered going a bit further to the slightly higher peak Onanjiyama (3,015 m) but the ridge was completely covered in low cloud so there did not seem to be much point. After the obligatory photographs I went inside the Shrine to warm up by the kerosene stove, and then headed back down to Ichinokoshi Lodge. I was back at the lodge by 9-15 a.m.

 

View of the climb to O-yama Peak from Ichinokoshi Lodge

View down to Murodo with the bus terminus on the left, from half way up O-yama

Loooking back down on Ichinokoshi Lodge, with Ryoudake in the background

O-yama 3,003 m

Shrine at O-yama 3,003m

 

 

 

Tengu

 

I left Ichinokoshi by 9-45 a.m. and headed towards Goshikigahara. The trail climbs away from Ichinokoshi to Ryuodake 2,872m, before dropping down again. The next peak is Onidake, at 2,750m followed by Shishidake at 2,720 m.

 

Shishidake 2,720 m

The trail ahead

You get a first glimpse of the Kurobe Lake prior to the peak at Shishidake, and after Shishidake the route drops down to Zara Toge at 2,348,m.

 

First glimpse of Kurobe Lake

It is steep in places and a steel ladder has been installed to help hikers over the more difficult bits.

 

Help via a steel ladder on difficult bit

 

 

Approaching Goshikigahara

As the Goshikigahara Plateau is reached the trail switches to log walkways installed to protect the land which has eroded. I arrived at Goshikigahara Lodge at 3-15 p.m.

 

Goshikigahara Sanso

So with 2 hours climbing O-yama and 5.5 hours hiking to Goshikigahara Lodge, I had been on the go for 7.5 hours. I checked in to the lodge and as it was not busy I had a tatami room all to myself. The lodge was quite nice and quite well organised, but I think that it has in recent times been moved from another location on the Goshikigahara plateau and has not yet been finished off properly. The taps in the washing area were all covered off with polythene bags, and the water was kept in large plastic buckets with ladles for spooning it out. The dinner was quite good that evening, and the miso soup (of which I had 3 bowls) was to die for. A bowl of miso, an Asahi Super Dry beer and sumo wrestling on the TV....... what more could you ask for?

It rained heavily all night and was still raining when I woke up in the morning.