Mount Fuji: The Icon of Japan

Fuji-San

If there was one thing on my bucket list I wanted to fulfil this year, it was to visit Mt Fuji.  Fuji-san, as it is commonly called, is a mythical, mystical mountain for the Japanese.  At 3,776m above sea level, this is Japan's highest mountain.  Its symmetrical cone, formed by volcano action, rises above the surrounding plains and dominates the landscape for miles around.  After coming to Japan every year for the past three years, it was about time to meet Fuji-San.

There are many spots from which you can view Mt Fuji, and many scenic places around the mountain itself to visit.  For our visit, we decided upon a day tour from Tokyo, since it seemed the most convenient (although I have to say that I would love to visit again, and spend a night or two at the Fuji Five Lakes area).  It is also nice to have someone taking care of things!  Unlike the previous tour to Nikko, we had an older Japanese lady who was clearly a more experienced guide than the other two as she could offer more information and background in general, eg on how the mountain was formed, and about Japanese lifestyles.  She was also quite firm and reminded us to be punctual at every point in the journey.  

Our very first stop on the tour was the 5th station of Mt Fuji!  It was truly quite exciting and exhilarating, as we were actually ON Mt Fuji itself and had a lovely clear view of the peak and the surrounding countryside.  The weather was beautiful - brilliant blue sky, almost glaring sunshine, and a refreshing wind blowing.  We were about 1,600 m above sea level, not even halfway up the mountain, but it was cold, with that crisp chill in the air which makes you feel energised and alert despite the cold.  At this point, the vegetation starts to fail so when you look up, you can see the volcanic rock of the mountain rising above you to the top of the peak, interrupted here and there with streaks of white - I assume these are springs off water falling down from the mountain.

Above all, I was so glad that we had such a great view of the peak.  We were checking when the best time was to get a clear view (find out more here)  and it was wonderful that it all went according to plan.  Or at least, almost to plan as I was hoping that the snow cap would be there.  I had read earlier that Mt Fuji had experienced its first snowfall of the year just one week before our arrival.  Sadly, because of the warm winds brought in by the tropical storm, the snow cap had melted by the time we got there.  Which means that another visit is definitely in order!

Wakuike Pond, Oshino Hakkai 

Kagamiike Pond - can u see Mt Fuji reflected?

After the stop at the 5th Station we went to visit a charming little village called “Oshino Hakkai”.  Mt Fuji had shaped the landscape in the area in many ways, including creating the 8 ponds in this area, spring fed from Mt Fuji.

The crystal clear waters reflect the blue of the sky, the trees, and in some of them... even a mountain.  After some trying, I managed to get a shot of Mt Fuji reflected in one of the ponds! (Tip: look hard!)

We went off to our next stop, eating our bento lunch along the way.  I have to say that I preferred the nice hot food on the previous tour.  We were also enlivened by the conversation of our fellow tour participants.   The thing about day tours is that you also meet lots of people - we met a fellow Singaporean (of course) and hooked up with her for photo taking etc.  There was a Malaysian family, a Chinese-Australian lady, and a few Americans - one of whom was quite chatty. It truly amazes me how some people can talk about themselves and their lives to chance-met strangers - sharing it theoretically with one person, but in practice at a volume which allows the entire bus to hear all the details!

The secret valley to the Shiraito Falls

Anyway, after a rather noisy interlude, we arrived at the Shiraito Falls, the next stop on our tour and one of the most beautiful waterfalls in Japan.  There is another waterfall just next to it as well, Otodome Falls, which is much smaller.

The Shiraito Falls are reached after a short walk along the side of a gorge.  We walked down the gorge, turned a corner and there, in this long deep valley was a shining waterfall right at the end.  But the waterfall was not just that single stream of plummeting water. As you walk along, you realise that there are a thousand silver streams of water flowing down the side of the valley, joining the little stream beneath.  

Our last stop of the day was the Fujisan Hongu Sengen Shrine - the shrine devoted to the “Goddess of Mt Fuji”, Konohana. Apparently, Konohana is the flower-princess and her older Sister, Iwa-naga, the rock princess.  Because Konohana’s Husband chose her over her older Sister, human life ended up being as fleeting as a cherry blossom and not eternal, like stone.  Our guide made an offering to the Goddess on our behalf and we proceeded to walk around the shrine compound.  Similar to the Oshino Hakkai area, there is another pond which is again fed by a mountain spring from Mt Fuji.  

 Fujisan Hongu Sengen Shrine

After our long day, our bus turned back to Tokyo and dropped us off at Shinjuku station.  We were given some discount vouchers for the Keiō department store - we went there really because we had some discount vouchers from the tour company which we didn’t use in the end. But, at the stationery section of the store, we found a calendar with a lovely woodcut pictures including the Great Wave by Hokusai!   So indeed, all our activities today were associated with Mt Fuji!  I can’t wait to make a second visit....

More photos of this day can be found on my Flickr page.