Aka Dake (赤岳) [in Mt. Yatsu-ga-take (八ヶ岳) range]

I had been thinking about it for a while to go to Aka Dake. At 2899m, it's high enough for me to maintain some acclimatisation, and also close enough to Tokyo for it to be doable as a day hike. The other times I wanted to go there, I was either feeling tired or had no wish to wake up at 5:30 to get the train.

Transport is good. The express train (~6,000 yen) takes 2 hours to Chino, whence a bus (~1,000 yen) brings you to Minotoguchi (美濃戸口), at 1500m. There you have a choice of three paths to Aka Dake. The North and Middle paths follow a stream and are the most popular. There is also a South path following a ridge line, which is tougher as it has a lot of ups and downs.

I took the middle path, which follows the stream, and it is cool and shady. It was recommended to me by one of my fellow passengers. After you emerge from the forest, you can climb steeply up to the ridgeline via ladders and chains. Then it is an easy walk to the base of the last climb to the top, which is quite steep and may require the use of hands for balance.

This hike was quite fun, as I met quite a few people at the bus queue, including some which I had already seen in other hikes and I talked for a long time with a retired Japanese trader who happened to live in my neighbourhood. Perhaps we'll go for a beer? Virtually everybody recommended sleeping in the huts, especially on weekdays, as it's not too crowded then.

The weather was quite cool today, so I ended up not needing a lot of water; the tree cover initially and the cloud cover near the top also helped. Sadly, the clouds wouldn't disperse, and a thunderstorm was approaching, so I went back down to catch my bus. On the way down, some people apparently recognised me from another mountain (they were pointing at me and saying the name of that mountain, but I had not met them before as far as I can remember).

This time I took it at a reasonably fast pace, lightly jogging at the more boring flat places, and otherwise moving at a respectable pace. It took me 2:45 to reach the top: the final section was quite a lot of fun.

I arrived in a total of 5:00 after I started (indicated time on the map is roughly double - one could probably do it in less than 4:00, but I took it at a comfortably fast pace); about an hour before the bus, so I took the chance to have a shower, use the onsen, and have a nice big meal while waiting. I also went through half a manga about a high school climber or something of that sort. 

More photos here:  Photo Album