Mt. Tateyama (立山), elev. 3015 m, and Mt. Tsurugi-dake (剣岳), elev. 2999
m, are without question two of
the most
spectacular mountains in the Northern Japan Alps, if not in all of
Japan. Since the 20th
& 22nd
highest mountains in Japan, respectively,
are fairly close to each other, they are usually
climbed together and like Mt.
Shirouma-dake can be easily done in a
weekend.
This is what I did, actually, leaving on a Friday night from Shinjuku,
Tokyo, via the Alpico highway bus and returning
back to Tokyo late on a
Sunday
night.
The 1-way bus fare from Shinjuku to Murodo is ¥13,000 and from
Osaka/Kyoto it's ¥11,000.
By far the most exhilarating part of this journey was the last 200 m or
so before reaching the summit of Mt. Tsurugi-dake. Chains, ropes,
ladders, and even built-in metal staircases were the
order of the day along this route, but the most hair-raising spots were
the two so-called “crab”
sections.
The first exciting crab section is called “kani-no-yokobai” (see pic
below), which in Japanese means crawling sideways like a crab. The
other one, as you have probably already guessed, is called
“kani-no-tatebai,” meaning crawling upwards like a crab, a pic of which
is in my photo album below.
Kani-no-yokobai
(crawling sideways like a crab),
near the summit of Mt. Tsurugi-dake (剣岳)
I must admit that it wasn’t nearly as scary as it looks, but let’s be
clear, it’s not a place for mistakes, so if you slip and fall, there’s
a very good chance you’ll meet your maker.
In
addition to my primary targets for this trip....the Tateyama
twin peaks
of Oyama (雄山, elev. 3003 m) &
Onanji-yama (大汝山, Tateyama's highpoint) and Mt.
Tsurugi-dake....2 other
Japan highpoints along this route worthy of mention are Mt.
Bessan (別山, elev. 2880 m) & Mt. Masago-dake (真砂岳,
elev. 2861 m), the
37th & 43rd highest mountains in Japan, respectively.
One of the things that I like best about the hikes from the Murodo (室堂)
bus
terminal is the breathtaking vistas one can see in the Murodo Valley
and throughout the Tateyama range, including a great view of Lake
Kurobe, which you can see in the photo album below. I also climbed Mt. Yakushi-dake
starting from Murodo (室堂).
I hope you'll have time to check out the slideshow below of my Flickr
photo album of this fabulous mountain climbing trip. I have a feeling
you're gonna agree with me
about the gorgeous scenery I saw. No disrespect to my own home country,
but we don't have anything even close to this in Texas, which may help
explain why I've lived in Japan SOOOOOO long.
Enjoy!!
Pics of Mt.
Tateyama (立山) & Mt. Tsurugi-dake (剣岳) Japan's 20th
& 22nd
highest peaks, respectively Oct. 5-7,
2001 (View entire
album at a glance here.)
My Google Map of Mt. Tateyama (立山) &
Mt.
Tsurugi-dake (剣岳)
In Oct. 2009 I created the customized map below, as I thought it'd be
cool to see all of Japan's 25 highest mountains at a glance. Google
Maps recently added the Google Earth feature to their maps, which
offers a very impressive 3D view if you have Google Earth installed on
your PC.
Using GE's tilt & rotate features, you can actually "fly"
around Mt. Ai-no-dake (間ノ岳), Japan's 4th highest mountain, and Mt.
Shiomi-dake (塩見岳), Japan's 9th highest mountain, as if you were in an
airplane:
(zoom out to see all 25 highest
mountains)
View 25 Highest
Mountains in Japan in a larger map
Note: The highest point of the Tateyama peaks is called Onanji-yama
(大汝山).
Route Map of Mt. Tateyama (立山) &
Mt.
Tsurugi-dake (剣岳)
Source: Yamareco.com
(Mouse over graph to see elevations & place names.)
Transport from Hell
The only mistake I made on this trip was to take it on the three-day
Sports Day weekend in early October. The hiking trails and mountain hut
where I stayed, Kenzan-so (open late June to Oct. 10), were
not so crowded, but the transport
services along the Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route on
that
Sunday when I
left were CRAZY.
The first segment from Murodo (室堂), the tunnel trolley bus, was no
problem.
In fact I was able to hop on it at 3:15 p.m., only 10 minutes after I
finished hiking. But in Daikanbo, I lost over 2 hours waiting for the
Tateyama cable car due to the holiday crowds. As a result, when I
finally got back to Shinano-Omachi Station (信濃大町駅), it was too late to
catch
a
train back to Tokyo.
Fortunately, a Japanese guy at the station suggested we share a nearly
one-hour taxi ride
over to Nagano Station, where we could catch a shinkansen bullet train
back to Tokyo. Although this turned out to be a tad pricey, the payoff
was that I was able
to reach Tokyo
Station by 11 p.m. and sleep in my own bed that night.
Sayonara !
Well, I guess that’s enough for now. Thank you so much for visiting my
website. Please come back again soon as I intend to add more data in
the future. In the meantime, you may wish to check out my Mt.
Tateyama (立山) & Mt. Tsurugi-dake (剣岳) schedule &
expenses page.
By the way, if you're in the market for any outdoor gear,
including packs, tents, sleeping bags, jackets, etc., you may wish to check out my new
Great Outdoor Gear Deals page! There you will find access to some of the web's best
real-time deals on outdoor gear from a few of the best outdoor retailers in the industry.
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If you're the high-tech type, you can subscribe to my RSS feed and that
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when this page is updated. If you have any quick
questions, feel free to give me a holler. Just click on "Contact Me."
Or if you have a more significant question, comment, or story, I hope
you'll be kind enough to
share it in the special section below.
Ciao !
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What Other Mt. Tateyama and Mt. Tsurugi-dake Climbers Have Said
Click below to see contributions from other Mt. Tateyama and Mt. Tsurugi-dake climbers...
I'm headed to Tateyama and Tsurugi-dake July 23-24
Thanks for putting this website together and for including some great hiking info and links. I have been hiking in Japan for years and have always had...
Does the Alpico bus you mentioned run all season?
Not rated yet
Hi Gary, I went up Mt. Kita-dake, Onanjiyama at Mt. Tateyama, and Mistutoke around Fuji last year. Planning to climb tsurugi this July to Sept. i have...
Too late to do Tateyama and Tsurugi in November?
Not rated yet
Planning on a trip in November. Is this too late in the season to safely do this hike. Are the mountain huts or Kenzanso open during this time of year??...
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