BYOT: Fuji-san

Well we are getting closer and closer to the present but we are not there just yet. So the day after Disney I am back at work upgrading the network with a guy sent in from HQ. It was cool I finally have a solid knowledge of how the crazy place is setup. Then if that wasn't enough or you know I am young no recuperation needed here. Saturday hubbs wanted to climb Fuji. ok well it was the last weekend we KNEW he would be home and available possibly the last weekend he would be available during climbing season ever, so away we went. And hey I got my new overnight pack from REI on monday so lets break it in by climbing a vertical mile. WOOHOO!!!

Ok the saying is "a wise man climbs Fuji once in their life, only a fool does it twice." Oh hell no! It was Hell!! The joy we get is to say not only did we do it but we made it to the summit. We left at 2am to drive 3+ hours. At a little before 6am we were dropped off at the 5th station at below 7841 elevation and reached the peak 7+ hours later at 12388 elevation. To say it was hell is an understatement. The only reason we made it is because i am so damn stubborn (I was in agony and barely able to move by the 8th station) and I did not want to be the reason we did not make it. We had to be at the top by 1:30pm or turn around no matter where you are and at 12:30pm we were sooooooo close. Well we made it with 15 whole minutes to spare. Bought some crap, cos that is what you do in japan and then we headed back down. At 5:30pm we hit the 5th station and stumbled onto the bus, nasty dirty sweaty, covered in ash and my big toe covered in one giant blister. Like I said it was hell. I wanted to do the overnight hike but now I am like hell no, it is too dangerous to climb in the dark, besides there was still snow which means it still gets very cold at night.

So after the fact I find out how dangerous it is. The area is known for suicides, people go there to die. Compasses do not work there because of other magnetism. Hypothermia is a common cause of death. An oh yeah the thing we saw as we left that really hit home was the rescue teams gearing up and the guy counting every person who came up to the 6th station. I also found out that most people's reactions are like mine, now why the hell they do not tell people I do not know. So here is my public service announcement - Climbing Mt Fuji is sheer HELL!!!

Of course the whole way up and down you have scantily clad Japanese men and women literally running up or down the mountain. Was I impressed? Hell yeah! BUT do I really care? uh no congrats you can run up a mountain, I'll just trudge along, i still made it to the summit.

Here are the pics :D