10 November 2026
A grey Tsuruga Fuji
Takeshi Nosaka from Awano station
IC card not accepted. You need cash to buy a ticket to enter the station, then on the way back, take the ticket when you board the train and pay when you exit Tsuruga station. No convenience store, get your supplies at Tsuruga station. No sunshine, the weather forecast showed all day sun, but there was almost none. No rain, just very grey. 2 stops from Tsuruga to Awano station, 10 minute ride. That is the facts that are not the stats, now for the stats -
23,800 steps
12.27km - the shortest hike of this trip
4 hours and 14 minutes - I hung around at the summit waiting for sun
898m vertical ascent
969 calories burned - under 1,000 (sad face)
Also, for no reason whatsoever, many people refer to this mountain as Turuga Fuji.
Awano station. I was the only person who got off. As mentioned above, buy a ticket at Tsuruga station.
Today's bear warning is cuter than most.
There are a lot of camp grounds at the base of the trail, this appears to be a school camp area, there is a gym behind me with an indoor basketball court.
If you are more into glamping, here are the colourful camping huts, bears love them.
The start of the trail was wide, rocky and with very tall trees. I saw an old man already coming back down, he had knocked the spider webs down for me.
The previous Tsuruga hike had a lot of creek crossings with waterfalls, here is the creek crossing for today, not so challenging.
First view, where is the sunshine that was promised?
Next view, a lot of smoke coming out of the power plant.
I am getting closer to the cloud.
After the forest, the leaves and colourful trees appeared.
The trees get shorter the higher you get.
Sideways trees, it was cold and windy, not even 10c on the mountain.
A great trail today, only one creek crossing, wide, well marked and lonely.
Nearly at the top, my hands were getting cold by now.
No leaves left on these grey trunked trees.
Just before the summit, a rest hut. If there was s thunderstorm I could go in here, which would mean missing the return train, so I would probably get wet if that situation eventuated (it did not).
The summit. It was only a 2 hour hike to the top.
I was just metres away from the cloud, down below, Tsuruga is in sunshine.
Possibly the mountains from 2 days ago, possibly.
There are always more mountains, they go all the way to the ocean.
It is possible to go this way and meet up with where I was 2 days ago, I will not, I will turn back from whence I came. Nice twilight.
It looks steep, nice golf course down there.
I briefly descended on another path to get this photo of rocks, I was timing my descent so I did not have to wait too long for the train.
On the way down the ocean is a lot more blue.
A lot of nice views.
I actually tried to slow down because I was still ahead of schedule.
Nearly down.
A brief bit of sunshine on the mountain.
Back at the campsite and I found a lookout of sorts, still 30 minutes before the train.
And so I was back on the platform with plenty of time for the stance, my hair looks like a poor fitting helmet, just the way I like it. So I am still sticking to the schedule completely despite my rainy trip. Both planned Tsuruga hikes completed.