Climbing Mt Fuji

One of the main reasons for my trip to Japan was to climb Mt. Fuji. This amazing volcano is 3776m high and is the highest point in all of Japan. There are many websites and blogs about how to climb it so all I'm going to talk about is what I did, and some tips on how I would do it differently.
First thing that you need to do is get to Mt. Fuji. I took the bus from the Shinjuku bus terminal right next to the Shinjuku Train Station. It was a bit hard to find but after you do its very organized. The cost for a round trip was 5200yen ($52). The bus takes about 2 to 3 hours to reach station 5.
Station 5 has tons of stuff for you to get and especially water 300yen. This is also where you will pick up your bus ride back. The people working there are very nice they even gave me a free postcard as a souvenir.
After getting set on all your supplies I decided to take is the Yoshida trail. The Yoshida trail is the most popular trail since if you don't make it to the top you can still see the sun rise. The trail is 3.6 miles up and 4.3 miles down. Going up is very tough since its loose rocks and you slip all the time. Not only that but there are parts where you are climbing up with your arms, and very steep steps on other parts. On the way down its just loose rocks and very steep decline. The decline is so steep many people slip and fall and it does a number on your toes and shoes. I would not use any sort of new shoes if you want to keep them they will get destroyed.
The view at the top is awe inspiring. It definitely something you need to see once in your lifetime its that good. Now saying that I would never climb it again. There is an old saying,  "Ichido noboranu baka, nido noboru baka" "If you don't climb it once your a fool, if you climb it twice you're a fool"

Next Post: Gaijin Bar Osaka

TG