She went up a mountain

When I first moved to Tokyo, my uncle recommended that I go explore Mt. Takao.  Since then, I've been meaning to go but have not made it.  It takes almost 2 hours for us to get to the base (only 1 hour from Shinjuku Station), which leads to a very long day with a five year old.

One of my friends and I have been wanting to get out town and do something with our kids in nature beyond Hikarigaoka Park.  With my son on break, it seemed like the perfect time.  The lure of some time in the woods enticed us both.

We got up early and were headed toward the train before 8 am.  I grabbed a couple things to keep my son occupied on the train.  When he got tired of watching out the window, he practiced his writing and played with a mini Rody. 

Takaosanguchi Station is really beautiful, as far as train stations go.  The wood walls really set the mood for a lovely hike.  We walked up to the cable car station and met our friends.  Even though we could hike up instead of taking the cable car, we chose the easier route.  The roundtrip ticket cost ¥940 ($9). 

The cable car runs up the side of the mountain, climbing 271 meters, with a maximum tilt of 31.18 degrees, steeper than any other cable car in Japan.  My son was super excited to go on the cable car and climbed right up front so he could watch us go up, up, up.  I had read about the incline, but wasn't fully prepared for just how steep it was.  Luckily, I've been to the cable car museum in San Francisco and I felt comfortable knowing how the system worked.

Once we reached the top, we were ready to start our hike.  The cable car only takes you up part of the way.  We still had another 328 meters to go. 

The manhole cover

The view from the first observation point after getting off the cable car.

The main trail is paved and really wide.  Besides the trees and beautiful scenery, there are Japanese artifacts all over.  The trail is lined with lanterns, statues of gods, and signs describing the nature. 

I really enjoyed seeing the different flowers, just starting to bloom, all over the mountain.  I am guessing that the summer would be even more interesting because there were so many flowers I have not seen before.

There is a huge temple on the mountain that the trail winds through.  It added to the peace and tranquility of the hike. 

We took our time reaching the top.  But when we did, it was spectacular.  Even though the clouds had come in a bit, making the view not as crisp, the landscape was awesome. 

There are a couple snack shops and restaurants along the way and at the top of the mountain, which always seems so odd to me.  While I tend to walk right past them, it turned into a really good thing when I could use a treat from one of the shops to bribe my son into not running back down the mountain.

After getting back to the trail head, we spotted a beautiful view of sakura (cherry blossoms).  After taking a couple photos, I saw something that I have never seen at a trail head before - a boot scrubbing station.  I had noticed that everyone's hiking boots looked brand new.  Now I guess I know why!

I read that the trails on Mt. Takao can be packed with people on Sundays and holidays.  I was so relieved that this was not the case on our sunny Friday.  While we didn't see the famed plum blossoms (I hear they peaked last week and I assume they can be seen from one of the other trails), it doesn't matter.  What we did see was worth the trip in itself.  I'm so glad my uncle suggested we go and see this interesting piece of nature.