Peak: Dainichi-iwa (Big sun rock)
Range: Chichibu-Tama national park
Nearby Mountains: Mt. Mizugaki, Mt. Kinpu
Originally, the plan was to climb Mt. Kisokoma in the Chuo Alps region of Japan. It is over 3000m, and we were expecting sunny but very cold conditions. In order to be well rested and prepared, I travelled to Komagane station the night before and stayed at a nearby business hotel. Although it was set to be a sunny day the next morning, during the night I arrived, the region was hit by a wicked blizzard.
Also, despite all my preparations, I somehow lost my hiking sunglasses, which would have been a big problem for my very light sensitive eyes. Two weeks prior during an easy day climb on Mt. Buko I didn't bother to wear any sunglasses and ended up getting a ocular migraine at the peak. So, I really wanted to avoid it during this climb. Fortunately, one of the hikers had several spares - and although they were pink stylish glasses - it was still better than being blinded.
The next morning, I met two of the hikers who were staying in the same hotel, and my other two friends picked us up in the hotel parking lot. To reach the mountain we would have to take a mountain bus and then a ropeway. We arrived in the parking lot about 15 minutes before the bus departure. While the team was gearing up, I went to check the bus ticket price. The reception told me that the bus was not running due to blocked roads, and all the hikers were just waiting around in hope that the roads would be cleared in time. We knew that if that much snow had caused a road block at the bottom of the mountain, even if the bus did arrive within another hour, all that fresh snow at the top would probably pose a risk for avalanche. So, the plans for Mt. Kiskoma were out the window at that point.
However, we weren't ready to fully give up on a hike just yet. It was already 9:00am, and if we didn't want to waste the day, we'd have to choose another mountain and decide fast. All the nearby mountains in the region were hit by too much snow, and most lower altitude mountains were too far away. We also didn't want to bite off more than we could chew, and end up trying to rush off the mountain before dark (which happened to me just one week prior). So, I suggested we try the Dainichi Rock. Its the top of a ridge on the way to Mt. Kinpu. (We wouldn't be able to make it to Mt. Kinpu in time, but this rock was a reasonable target. The parking still made us pay the 800 yen fee for our 30 minutes of parking, even though the bus never came.
We reached the parking lot at around 11:30am, and immediately began our climb. We found the trail to be a bit icy and slippery, but we were able to manage it without any crampons. After about 15 minutes of climbing, most of us no longer needed the heavy winter clothes that we have prepared for Mt. Kisokoma, and so I was just wearing a black hoodie with some long sleeve shirts underneath. Another 15 minutes up the trail and we had reached an amazing viewpoint of Mt. Mizugaki. After taking some photos, we continued up the snowy trail. I realized I had a hole in my boot, and so my feet were already getting cold. I put a heat pack in to balance it, but I definitely started to feel the cold. The course was a steady climb with some little breaks along the way. We passed by two shelter huts along the way, with the final hut hidden off the trail just about 30 minutes below the rock. We made it just below the Big Sun Rock, when I finally decided it was time to put on the crampons.
The wind was cutting through my hands, and by the time I had put the crampons on my feet, I had realized I had tied them up too tight, but my hands were too cold to try to fix it. We took a quick snapshots at the top while I was desperately trying to warm up my fingers, and then began to make our way down. Despite the pain in my feet, the crampons were a big help for the descent, although my usual clip on mini-crampons would have been enough for this one. The ones I was wearing felt a bit like overkill. Since I rushed putting them on, they pressed up against my toes and damaged my toenails. This happened a year ago with the same group on Mt. Nishi-Hotaka and my big toenail fell off completely, which I discovered at the hot spring (also grossing out Shane). This time it wasn't so bad, but it did bruise my toes. Another problem I had was that my 1L bottle of sports water had fallen out of my backpack while in the trunk, and I didn't notice until I was at the top. I had only a 250mL of tea on me, but Lynn was nice enough to lend me some of her spare water.
So to recap: Lost my sunglasses, I put on my crampons improperly causing foot pain, didn't double check my water supply and got dizzy, had a hole in my boots, only wore a hoodie because I was overheating in the other jacket. Most hikes I feel quite prepared, but this time I felt like a complete amateur. We also didn't change out of the wet clothes or stop by a hot spring so on the way home, so since I was still in damp clothes during the train ride back, I caught a cold which lasted at least a week. And while I got back home and curled up in bed, some of the other climbers in this group went out clubbing in Ginza that very night. Did that ever make me feel old and out of shape (they were only like 2 years younger than me). Sometimes I am very prepared for a hike, but other times things just don't go the right way. I think a big part of my problem was that I hadn't had a weekend off from hiking in over a month and it was catching up with me. So following this hike, I decided to take a couple weeks off to just relax and regain my energy and focus.
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