Day trip to Takaosan, Japan
When: June 2018 weather: warm 25C
Nikon P900 Leica Q
I had a morning free whilst in Tokyo recently and decided to try a day trip to Takaosan or Mount Takao, about an hour’s train ride from Shinjuku. Setting off from my hotel early, I took the first train at 0615 to Takaosanguchi which is the last stop on the line. Unfortunately this was the slow local train which took 1.5 hr to arrive; the limited express takes under an hour.
Arriving at Takaosanguchi, hte last stop on the line
Exiting the train station, there is a large signboard which shows the different trails
As the funicular was just about to leave, I took it to save me climbing half the mountain. On disembarking, there is a pleasant path from which you can choose which trail to walk….I chose trail 3 to go to the summit.
pleasant walk from train station to funicular railway.
fairly steep funicular railway
Leaving the funicular at the halfway point of Takasan, there is a pleasant walk….interestingly there was a granite ball with the word meaning “Eye’ inscribed on it!
the flowers were attractive
and rhododendrons were in bloom
Trail number 3 afforded nice views of the surrounding mountains…
but only an occasional Japanese white eye was seen..
japanese white eye
the trail was pretty steep and hard work in the warming morning….
Finally reaching the summit, the provision of cold drinking water points was a godsend!
Oriental turtle dove
One of the attractions of Takaosan is that on a clear day from the summit, there is a view of Mount Fuji….as you can see this was not a cloudless day….
Eventually, as the clouds drifted, a glimpse of the left side of Fujisan appeared
then the summit….
and then the right side of Fujisan appeared…so all in all, I did get a full view of the mountain although it was a mental composite image! 🙂
The Biwa trail or trail No. 6 was the route I chose for my descent…although it says you walk by a stream, in places, you actually walk on stones IN the stream so make sure you wear a good pair of water resistant shoes!
interesting flowers on trail…
Apart from the white eye and the turtle dove, this was a disappointing outing birdwise…there was a lot of birdsong but the thick canopy made it v difficult to spot the birds….on my descent, I stopped at an open part and finally spotted a lifer…
Brown eared bulbul….here the brown ear can be easily seen.
The downward trail was easy to negotiate after the stream and nicely shaded from the sun.
near the bottom of the trail you will come across these statues wearing red caps….
I managed to catch a quick express back to Tokyo Shinjuku and was back by 1.30pm for a late lunch. Takaosan was disappointing for birding but interesting in the scenic area and views of Fujisan.
The Natural Traveller 