Climbing Takao Yama
This weekend, I finally met up with my fabulous Tokyo friend, Yuka-chan, and her boyfriend, Shuugo-san, to ascend the legendary Takao-san (高尾山). Mt. Takao is located in Hachiouji, Tokyo, about an hour train ride from south-west Yamanote line. We met up in front of Takaosanguchi station at 11 am. There’s a huge map showcasing all the different hiking trails, which seems to draw the immediate attention of the many enthusiastic mountaineers. In general, it was a lovely atmosphere with the sun shining brightly and an excited crowd looking forward to a hike through nature. Just on a quick side-note in case you are contemplating to visit Takao-san yourself. Before or after your hike, you might as well check out the famous Trick Art Museum, which is also in walking distance from the aforementioned station. It’s a funky place full of weird props, optical illusions and that sort of wacky stuff. Back on topic, Takao!
After walking up through Hachioji for some 3 minutes we arrived at the actual start line, a wide area with many shops, a memorial, a shrine, and many cherry trees. It didn’t take us long to figure out where our entry point was, since – thank Kami-sama – in Japan guiding signs are everywhere, especially in busy places. Once we began our actual ascent, the amount of people around us had already shrunk down significantly. Not long after, we passed a bunch of fat Buddha statues in red clothing. Mesmerized by their slick style, I offered a prayer. Turns out they were actually the individual deities of Mt. Takao, which also have their respective shrines all over the hiking trails.
Maybe a good 30 minutes into the climb and many small shrines later, this was our resting place. Since there was a fallen tree, which you could conveniently sit on, it made the perfect place to drink some green tea, eat an apple, and some snacks. The picture might also give you a good idea how an ascension might look like. While I can personally only talk about two trails (up and down), I would assume that all paths are pretty narrow, with many trip-wire like roots and a constant stream of descending people. Expect to hear, and maybe say, a lot of “konnichiwa,” “suimasen” or “shitsurei shimasu.” Turns out hiking Japanese people are a very jolly and open bunch.
This was on a sunny day, however it was also during an overall questionable time in human history, when you would expect people to gather less in public spaces. So take it for what you will, but this should give you a good idea of what an average day on top of the famed mountain usually looks like. For all the hungry people, you can simply pick your poison, queue up, and get some yakisoba or whatever else you fancy. Luckily, I avoided the upsells, by simply bringing my home-cooked Japanese Curry (カレーライス) all the way up. Naturally, you can also get stuff like ice cream or grab some drinks from the vending machines. Just before the top, you will also have the opportunity to empty your bladder. That might be the preferred option, when compared with the toilets at the very top, since the queues are likely much shorter. While we’re on the topic of toilets, later on our descent, I encountered my first disgusting toilet in Japan. Contrary to the usual reaction when encountering a repulsive public toilet, I was refreshed with relief. Finally, I saw with my very own eyes in Japan, what was considered normal over in the west. The seemingly infallible Japanese also had dirty toilets somewhere… on a mountain! xD
This is the summit cross that we must have reached after around an hour of hiking. As expected, it surely feels great to reach a mountain top and take in the scenery all around you. It’s almost as if the physical altitude was also mirrored by a mental detachment from your everyday struggles. Yet, Takao-san standing at just below 600 meters, is not actually that tall. The hike, however, is plenty fun and the view is delicious all around.
Once our energy was replenished, it was time for our descent. To min-max Mt. Takao, we chose a different route, which soon led us over a suspension bridge, through Tori gates, past stone carvings and holy trees of old age, across convenient observation decks, and finally to the finish line. Over three hours had passed when we grabbed our grilled dango back in the valley – yum! So what next, after a tiring day, covered in sweat? PIN PON! Onsen, of course. So that’s what we did.
We found an onsen which was kind of on our way and had pretty good reviews. That was actually surprisingly difficult. And after bathing, relaxing and eating within that onsen complex, as we left we were greeted by a pitch black night sky. Must have been one of those new moons. So, we split up and I had to find my way back with no mobile data and no GPS, only a couple of blurry Japanese screen photos taken from Yuka’s smartphone. Yeah, it was kinda wild. But, once I fell into my bed, I was looking back on an awesome adventure with a smug smile running across my face. Takao-san? 5/7 perfect, would replay.
