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I have seen Mt. Fuji from Kofu many times. In fact I could see Fuji San from my apartment window in Kofu back in the 1980s. Seeing it from Shosenkyo (昇仙峡) would have been fabulous, but this was the hottest day of the year, and the air was thick with moisture–not the cooling kind of wetness, the muggy, mushiatsui (蒸し暑い) kind. Those are the worst days for visibility and a good reason to go to Japan in winter if you want to see Mt. Fuji.
Photomerged panorama of the Shosenkyo hike
Hottest day of the year, hottest part of Japan, extremely humid, and I was going to go on a long, uphill hike. The good news was the hike was mostly in the shade. Most people drive up to Shosenkyo these days via a car or bus. Don’t do it. Walk up. It’s a beautiful journey that you will mostly miss in a vehicle.
himawari (ひまわり) houses
While riding my bike back from Kofu to the onsen I was staying at in Kai (Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan) I came upon these houses in the dark. The street was somewhat busy for that time of night as it is the main thoroughfare (yamanotedoori or 山の手通り). I took a long exposure and let the headlights of the passing motorists light the scene for me.
1 yen coins jammed into rock overhangs on Shosenkyo hike
I was surprised to not see more hikers on my way up Shosenkyo (昇仙峡). Maybe I shouldn’t have been surprised given that it was a weekday and also the hottest day of the year (reaching more than 40 degrees Celsius). The top was fairly crowded though as most people drive to near the top or take a bus there. I took a bus to the bottom and walked my way up and down. The scenery was amazing. Along the way rocks created ceilings for part of trail and people had given up their coins to the cracks in the rocks.
Takeda Shingen Statue (武田信玄之像)
Kofu, Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan
I went past this statue multiple times a day for the first seven months I lived in Japan in the 1980s. I have changed much since then, but it hasn’t changed a bit.
