Fuji-san

After a few days in Tokyo we left the city to spend a night climbing up Mt. Fuji.  We were lucky and caught a break in the rain for the six-hour uphill hike.  We started on the trail around 10pm.  It began as a wide path through a pine forest, but quickly gave way to a series of switchbacks up a rocky volanic surface.  The ascent was punctuated by numerous guesthouses along the trail, each containing a large group of tourists (mostly locals) preparing to make the trek.

As we neared the summit a queue actually formed and our pace slowed to a crawl.

 We arrived at the summit a very slow hour later.

Just in time to be greeted by views of a sunrise over the clouds.

 After pausing to drink coffee and eat some bananas we also toured the top of the crater.

The trip down was much faster.

It began raining the minute we stepped onto our bus back to Tokyo.