Mitsutougeyama Hike

In order to escape from Tokyo's less-than-delicious air, and get a bit closer to the elusive Mt. Fuji (the 'official' climbing season doesn't start for months yet) we decided to go for a day hike just below Fuji-san itself. The train ride there was unexpectedly cheap, as we were sitting in a no-mans-land corridor between two carriages and the conductors just ignored us, and the weather was fantastic - more remeniscent of Alpine Summer than anything colder in Europe.

We set off up the hill through the forest. The trail was pretty clear, although it was obvious that this was super-low-season, and the only Japanese people we saw coming in the opposite direction were (rather ominously) wearing crampons and looking very serious. It was a great few hours, with some fantastic views. Photos can be found here.

The way down from the summit was a bit more exciting, as it became increasingly dark (until the sun set completely about an hour from the bottom) and the occasional snow on the ground was replaced by one section where the foot-wide track traversing the 45-degree slope was almost entirely covered with ice. Still, we survived without any serious misadventure and eventually collapsed onto the train after a satisfyingly tiring day. Yet another argument in favour of the Tokyo lifestyle - there's certainly no hikes like that within an hour and a half from London.