I’m currently planing a 15-day trip to Japan, leaving in less than three weeks. I’d had it in my head that I wanted to try climbing Mt Fuji; while I haven’t climbed all that many mountains in my life, I’ve had a good time on most of the hikes that I have done, and it feels like a waste to *not* at least try to climb it.
The trail that looked the nicest to me was the Subashiri trail, with an estimated hiking time of 5-7 hours on the ascent and 2.5-4 hours to descend. The guides I found were mixed on whether or not a stay in the huts was strictly necessary, but they seemed to advise it mostly because of altitude sickness. However, because I waited until the last minute to plan the details of my trip, I couldn’t find any mountain huts with open spots.
Would it be a terrible idea to start the hike earlier, and just stop more often and for longer at the benches / huts instead? I’m mostly worried about safety, as I don’t really climb mountains often and my exercise routine consists of running a single 5k once or twice a month plus a bunch of low-intensity walking around my city.
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Being warm clothes and sleep on the ground. You only need a few hours if you start the night before. However, it’s more than likely you’ll find a hut somewhere that is first come first served. You’ll probably get some altitude sickness anyway but your not going to get anything serious at middle altitude if your reasonably fit. I’ve never heard of anyone getting seriously I’ll at 12k. You don’t need a guide it’s just a walk up.
>Would it be a terrible idea to start the hike earlier, and just stop more often and for longer at the benches / huts instead? I’m mostly worried about safety, **as I don’t really climb mountains often** and my exercise routine consists of running a single 5k once or twice a month plus a bunch of low-intensity walking around my city.
Mt. Fuji is the first mountain I’ve summited but I’ve done a lot of hiking previous to that and I’ve since summitted more mountains. When I did Fuji, I stayed at a mountain hut. The climb up was easy but the climb down was brutal for me due to IT band issues. I can do that climb easily now. Hiking is different than running 5k’s. Having said that, I don’t have a recommendation on whether you should or shouldn’t do the climb and descent in one day. I don’t think the recommendation against it has to do altitude sickness but I think it has more to do with the distance/time. Get there early. Rest for about an hour to get acclimated before starting the climb.
Hi OP,
When I climbed Mt Fuji last year, I didnt use the mountain huts and instead climbed the mountain throughout the evening to reach the summit by sunrise. I think it’s definitley doable considering how I also didnt hike too many mountains before that. To prevent and minimize the altitude sickness (which I was quite worried about) I made sure to take frequent breaks and bring oxygen cans with me.
To be honest, if you are worries about safety, I would recommend taking the Yoshida trail instead of the Subashiri trail. The Yoshida trail is considered the “easiest” amongst the 4 trails. It is also the most popular trail so there will be a lot of resting spots and I was quite pleased with the abundance of information in the trail in case you need help with something. Yoshida is also the most straightforward trail compared to the others in terms of terrain. The only I guess downside is that it might take a little bit longer depending on your fitness level and how often you take breaks. I started climbing at 8pm and only got to the summit at 4am and then another 4-5ish hours to get back down.
Are you planning to reach the summit for sunrise? If so, it’s never a bad idea to start early so you can pace yourself. I would make sure that you bring warm clothing because it gets VERY windy and quite chilly on top especially if you’re going to wait a while for the sunrise to hit. Once you start making your way down it becomes warmer so you can remove your layers there.
Let me know if you have more questions, I’d love to help.
It’s a bummer your ran out of huts. But as the other redditor said, there might still be a chance if you try to walk in. If I’m in your situation…I’d probably still go up to the summit and just make sure to take a lot of rest (maybe 30mins to 1 hour) depends on Station Hut to allow my body to acclimatize.
Mountain huts sell out more or less the day they open for booking. No use looking for spots once the season has begun. Personally I wouldn’t, the climb gets challenging as the air thins – so from a fatigue management perspective best not.
Not a good idea. Just last month there are news reports in Japan that foreigners are trekking up Fuji all night and/or using unsuitable gear, causing issues when injuries/altitude sickness happen, and stretching already thin resources on the mountain (food/medical/manpower).
In any case, I guess the rule of thumb is be safe and be a good traveller, don’t cause unnecessary work to the people there.
If I’ve learned something from the Abroad in Japan Fuji Video then: *Wear layers of warm clothes*. It can get quite cold at night and if you don’t have a place to sleep that can make your experience quite shit.
If you have proper clothing, footwear, snacks and water – completely doable for any “reasonably healthy” person. I hiked it at night and didn’t use a hut and most of my friends and family over the years didn’t, either. You’ll be coming from basically sea level so altitude sickness can be a problem for many folks. Consider bringing oxygen and aspirin, just in case.
I hiked it in one day. Got there at 7am and left at 9pm.
I wasnt really in shape, it was the first real mountain I climbed. I was moderate weight but wouldn’t had been able to run 5 miles without stopping to get you an idea.
I think it’s fine as long as you come prepared.
To be honest, Mt. Fuji is not that difficult to climb even for regular people. Last year I went with two friends and we wore normal clothes. The only thing that we brought was enough water and some chocolate bars, because you can eat and drink on Fuji itself. Just take the bus to the 5th station and you should be able to go up and down before the final bus has left.
Of course thinking back on it, we were severely unprepared… but if we still had a lot of fun without ever climbing a mountain before, and had some time to spare, you will be able to do it if you prepare a bit better than we did.
I hope you’ll have a lot of fun!
Me and my girlfriend climbed the fujinomiya trail which is the shortest train on the mountain and we climbed the whole thing is 6:30 hours with very short stops because we woke up late and had no problems with the altitude.
Fuji is easily doable in a day. However, bring layered clothes. It all feels good when you start, the more you go you realize you are climbing a mt.
Doable but warm clothes is a must. When the rain, cold wind and altitude sickness comes together, you’ll appreciate the huge winter jackets. I recommend start at 4-5pm to see the sunset, climb slow, take the time to rest.
How susceptible are you to altitude sickness?
If highly likely – stay is a must.
Very unlikely – then it’s all about your strength and stamina mainly.
Go up in the morning and you’ll be back down in the afternoon. That’s what I did a few days ago and it wasn’t a huge deal. Went up around 9 am was back down at 4 pm. Just had sneakers on with no gear. They have loads of places to stop and rest, drink, and eat. If you’re in decent shape you’ll be alright. Was the highlight of the trip for me.
You should bring full waterproof gear and thermals just in case. I hiked the Yoshida trail in 2019, I was in excellent shape and working out every day. However, I was wholly unprepared. I’m an experienced hiker and expected Fuji to be “easy.” However, that all changes when you get freezing cold sideways rain coming down on you. Nearly at the top of the mountain hiking all night, the rain was relentless with 40mph wind gust. With the windchill, it was around 20F, and I became hypothermic. To top it all off, due to my core temp drop, I also felt the effects of altitude sickness. Japanese had warned me my hiking gear was inadequate, I am conversational in Japanese, and assured them I was fine prior to my ascent. I ended up in a hut at the top with oxygen and hot water bottles under my armpits. I was hallucinating with purple lips and low oxygen saturation. I was young and stupid, and I regret not heeding their advice. Fuji-San is a mountain and should be respected. The weather is extremely unpredictable. Is it a hard hike? That’s subjective, with the right gear and weather it’s not bad at all. The day I hiked a typhoon, had broken apart off the cost and was shooting straight line wind across the mountain tops. Tldr: Never underestimate a mountian heed advice of the locals, TRIPLE check weather, over prepare! Bring thermals, everything waterproof, etc. Goodluck! – also, side note the weather was so bad that they stopped people from hiking the next day 🤣
Just don’t do it like me and my friends when we were 18 and climbed. We drank a beer at every hut on the way up. Greatest sunrise and worst hangover ever.
If you want to spend like 15 mins at the summit and turn around, then sure. But I did the Subashiri trail a few weeks ago, and we sound like a similar level of fitness, and I do NOT recommend that trail. The descent is a “sand run” that is actually more of a gravel run with hidden boulders that will make you fall and twist an ankle every hundred feet or so. It was truly an experience, but I had a mountain hut to sleep in the night before doing that descent.
One of my friends did the Fujinomiya trail in 1 day. It’s the shortest but the steepest one, so popular with bullet climbers (aka what you’re asking to do).
Like some others said be prepared for last minute (literally last minute) unexpected weather and it’s complete doable. I didn’t have rain proof gear so I had to hide in a restroom near the summit to survive the weather and make it to the top but I don’t recommend it and if a staff noticed me I would have been kicked out
It’s totally doable if it doesnt rain. I did it without sleeping at a hut, then immediately have to go down ( took 4 hours) without rest because I stupidly bought the bus ticket back at 10am….
I just got back from climbing Fuji. It is not physically challenging, but definitely challenging in terms of the weather at times. But if you really have the proper hiking attire, that shouldn’t be much of an issue (I didn’t, and was FREEZING). I thought what I brought would be enough, and underestimated how cold it could get. I was so wrong. But atleast I had some hiking gear, I saw someone who somehow got half way up the mountain in denim shorts and a tshirt, with no backpack. It was raining heavy the whole way up, 0 brain cells.
I slept at the hut for few hours and it was mostly for the experience. However do not underestimate Fuji and plan well. Once you climb there is a point of no return as you cant back down same route and must go up and descent the gravel path down.
I think it’s doable as long as you take a short break at every station, have sufficient snacks and layer properly. We wore long sleeves and pants on ascend and packed a pair of top and bottom windbreakers. It got chilly-ier from 8th station onwards.
I did Fuji recently on Yoshida trail as I heard it was the most beginner friendly and it was the only route available from kawaguchiko station (this was when I bought the ticket the day before I hiked…). I also went without the intention to see the sunrise so we took the first bus out at 630am and started the hike at 750am. We took 6 hrs to ascend and 4 hours to descend and made it for the last bus at 640pm.. the descend could be faster but we really took it slow, it honestly is doable as long as you don’t constantly exert yourself and take constant breaks to acclimatise and catch your breath and drink water. If you must catch the last bus just make sure you leave the summit by 230pm ish. But if it doesn’t matter, there will be taxis at fifth station you can take back, just a little expensive! Good shoes with grip were quite helpful when going up but i also saw people who hiked in airmaxes and mini skirts lol not recommended tho..!
I did the hike in late July but am not updated on the conditions now but reading on what others are saying, just gotta plan accordingly.
Hello OP, funny enough I climbed MT. Fuji last week and was in a similar boat as you, lots of last minute planning and figuring it out as I went. Currently still moving around Japan and am heading back to the US Sunday.
What I advise as a relatively healthy individual myself. Both me and my girlfriend think we could have made the accent and decent in 1 day, however the last bus that takes you back to Fujiyama station leaves the mountain at 7pm, and we found lots of people were banking on making that bus back to town.
There is a bus back to town every 2 hrs. With 7pm being the last.
What we did: we caught the 8:15 bus to the mountain and didn’t start climbing until 9:30. So we ran out of time in our heads and opted to turn around at the 4th hut / halfway / on our way up and go back down to catch the 3pm bus back to town and enjoy a nice dinner in town.
If you want to 1 day it, you 100% have to catch the 6:30 bus up the mountain and start early. I think it’s totally doable, we just ran out of time and opted to not get stranded on the mountain.
Also, seven eleven was our saving grace in the morning, bought plenty of snacks and water, even though we also bought bread at the base of the mountain.
Hope this helps and good luck!! Hope you’re able to complete what I was not. I will 100% come back in the future and complete this mountain. The hike was fun while we did it!!
There are little hovels you can sleep in and old men can teach you things. You can trade tobacco and sometimes find bottle water near the trees. If you see a bear don’t scream like a bird. Running is discouraged but sometimes you can buy cakes from the cake shop on the mountain. Good luck
I was in a similar position a few weeks ago and was very motivated to do it in one day. In the end I did it as a day trip from Tokyo, with plenty of time to spare. Arrived at the 5th station by expressway bus from Shinjuku at 9:20am and started off the trail, people were warning me about bullet hiking but honestly it’s not that hard, if you’re relatively fit. I made it to the summit in 2 hours 51 minutes, tho I only stopped for short breaks a few times. Then I walked around the peak, sat down, had lunch, no rush at all. I was back at the 5th station at 15:25 in time for 3rd to last bus to the train station. Granted, I bought canned oxygen just in case, because I had not been at that height before and didn’t know how my body would react. I dosed it regularly, but honestly hard to tell if it helped or not. I also had a very heavy backpack because I was carrying way too much water and food – I packed 4 litres of liquids, but in retrospect I could have done with 2l. Or if you want to make your backpack even lighter you can just buy overpriced water at any of the stations whenever you need. It’s important to say I’m not advising anyone to do the bullet hike. It’s personal choice and risk, as it is a pretty strenuous hike. I’m simply saying it is doable, if you are fit enough. I also don’t run marathons or anything but I do walk and hike quite a lot, which made it easier. Worst case scenario, set yourself a time limit, so if you are not at the peak by say 2pm, you turn back – that’s still an awesome experience! I wish you all the best for your trip, and if you’ve got any questions feel free to ask.
You can easily walk it all the way through which is often called Shot gunning it.
Iv hiked it 4 times and the first time was the most horrible thing iv done in a hike as I left around 11am and walked up to the hut which was so busy noisy and no space that I couldn’t sleep.
So stayed up and then hiked in the morning to the top then had to hike down.
It was over 24hrs awake from the travel time from Tokyo to the mountain up then back down. I felt sick in my stomach when leaving down. I now only shotgun it.
I leave at 11pm and hike up and relax when I need it. If you’re not a seasoned hiker leave around 9pm .
Here are my tips.
Bring water and food. You can buy it on the way up but the higher you get the more expensive it is.
Make sure you have wet weather and cold gear. Its Hella cold up top and its mostly the wind that gets you. If you have hiking shoes my biggest tip is to bring some plastic bags to cover them as the wind will go through them and freeze your toes.
The rest. Enjoy it. It’s a crazy ride but well worth it.
Climbed up Fuji about 13 years ago. Wanted to make it up there for the sunrise, but made it up way faster than anticipated. I was pretty cold so I found some rock cover and jammed myself into it. I shivered until the sun came up and then it warmed up really fast.
Climbed up Mt Fuji last July (2nd week). If you’re planning to really do that… on your targeted day, kindly check the weather forecast if there’s a high chance of rain. I made a good decision call to reserve a hut on my ascent, because it was raining throughout (from afternoon until early morning).
It lead to my fatigue since it was really cold and windy, as I don’t usually hike giant mountains on rainy days. Btw, I stayed at 9.5th station. I took the Fujinomiya trail going up, and Yoshida trail going down. Fortunately, going down was peaceful for me as there were no more rains.
So please pack/prepare well and train your body.
Enjoy and travel safe! 😎
wasnt the main news about mt fuji in the last few months:
– a lot of people try
– too many people try without as hut and causing issues