Mt. Takahata (高畑山) to Mt. Kuratake (倉岳山)

Rich, vibrant green trees with the sound of the stream and birds serenading me, and I am reminded of why I love being back in the mountains. Big thanks to this blog for the recommendation.

Budget: JPY2,340 (~USD22)

• JPY1,170. Train, Nakano Station to Torisawa Station. 
• JPY1,170. Train, Yanagawa Station (梁川駅) to Nakano Station.

Hike Date / Difficulty (Elevation: 990m / 3,248ft)

• April 2020, May 2020. 
• Difficulty: 3.5 out of 5. 
• Route below is around 11.7kilometers, with an elevation change of ▲1,149m/ ▽1,182m
• PDF Map Link

When to Go

• It seems that the ideal time to go is autumn, which is likely around end of October to November given that the pond will probably reflect bright red leaves. 
• Spring, on the the other hand, has gorgeous greens, so it's still a pretty nice place to go. 

Special Notes

• There are plenty of springs that you'll have to cross, so if it's raining, maybe don't do this hike. 

Itinerary

• 05:37am. Train, Nakano Station to Torisawa Station. You'll likely have to transfer once. In my case, I transferred at Hachioji Station. 
• 06:58am. Arrival, Torisawa Station. Start trek. There's only one exit. Once you exit, turn right, and keep walking on the main road until you see the sign on a small wood sign pointing to Mt. Takahata - but in Japanese. (高畑山) The official trail head is a gated place (picture below), and you just have to open the small door and close it. Here's the google maps pin. If you look it up on satellite mode, you'll even see the gate. 
• 08:10am. Arrival, 分岐. You'll have the option to skip Mt. Takahata and go straight to Mt. Kurotake. In this case, I continued on to Mt. Takahata. 
• 09:30am. ETA: Mt. Takahata-summit. No benches, just choose your rock if you want to stay here. I marvelled at Mt. Fuji for 2-3 minutes, moved on. 
• 10:30am. ETA: Mt. Kuratake-summit. Sit down at the bench while looking at Mt. Fuji, take an hour lunch break.
• 01:15pm. ETA: Yanagawa Station. Once you are seeing the end of the trail, look up your google maps to check the train schedule, as trains come every 30 minutes. 

You'll see this sign while walking on the main road. 

The entrance is at this little triangular door. 

Mt. Fuji IS visible from both summits. 

Do you see the little snake? I didn't either. Til it almost bit me. 

The exit! It might not be the easiest thing to find going up.