The official climbing Mt. Fuji season will start July 1st. I should start to prepare for climbing Mt. Fuji. I try to walk a lot and exercise everyday. Mt. Fuji is the tallest mountain in Japan. It’s 3776 meters tall. It is world famous for its perfect conical shape, and is the symbol of our beautiful country. The snow capped Mt. Fuji in the spring and autumn is especially famous. It stands about 100km away from Tokyo. So if it is a clear day in winter, we can see it from Tokyo. To be precise, around 80 to 90 days a year, we can see it from Tokyo. All Japanese love Mt. Fuji. Because we regard is as sacred object. We believe that deities or spirits reside in nature, and they have supernatural power. In olden times many Buddhist monks climbed it to train themselves in Buddhist ascetic practice.
Mt. Fuji is one of the active volcanoes in Japan. Actually there are around 80 active volcanoes in Japan. It is very scary. However thanks to the volcanoes, we are blessed with onsen, hot springs. The last eruption was in 1707. It is said that it got dark even in the daytime at that time due to volcanic ash. Many people suffered from a respiratory disease. It can erupt anytime. We don’t know when it is going to erupt again.
Mt. Fuji was designated as a world heritage site last year. So it is becoming very popular to climb it. It takes 7 to 8 hours to reach the peak from the 5th station, which is the height of about 2400m. The ordinary plan to enjoy climbing Mt. Fuji is that we start from the 5th station afternoon. Then we stay at a hut overnight. Next day we get up very early in the morning, continue climbing to the peak. And enjoy watching a sunrise. I tried it last summer. However I couldn’t reach the peak because of altitude sickness. I will try it again this summer !!