正丸・Shomaru

March 23rd

I can never get used to Spring in Japan, that lurches from single digits to the twenties and back again on a daily basis. Today was incredibly warm and we were fine setting out in light weight tops. I think just a t-shirt would have been chilly in the shade, but by the final stretch I was only wearing a tshirt and wondering how I’d manage when we really hit Spring temperatures, never mind summer!

This was a long walk and pretty exhausting. I’m not sure if it was because I wasn’t on top form or whether it was the trail. There were steep climbs up (there were ropes at the steepest parts) followed by sharp trails down without much walking on the flat, rather than a walk where you can push yourself on to the top and then have a nice long hike along the ridge. It was warm though, the birds were singing and green was starting to pop up here and there. Now and then there would be a wave of plum scent wafting on the breeze too, which I love.

The otokozaka up to Izugatake was closed so we took the onnazaka up, but unfortunately on the way up a stone, accidently kicked from a hiker above came tumbling down and hit one of the hikers close behind us. Everyone was okay if a bit bruised and shaken but it served as a sobering lesson to keep our eyes open, not only to where we put our feet, but for stones falling from the trail above.

The end of this hike is a nice, easy road, winding down the mountain beside a little river though when you’re tired it does seem to last quite a long time. The various signs suggest it’s 3.8km then, 2km, then 1.8km… I’m not entirely sure they reflect reality! It takes less than an hour once you hit the road though and we feasted on senbe and onigiri as we walked.