Takao san Hike (高尾山)

March 21 was the Spring Equinox, the official first day of spring. In Japanese it's called 春分の日 (shunbun no hi). So what better way to celebrate than by escaping the confines of the city and going for a little hike? This hike was the last of the year for the mountain climbing club and the last club outing ever for the newly graduated 3rd years.

The event was a happy, memorable, but slightly sad event, as it was the last time to hike with the 3rd years. The last club event in Japanese high school clubs is usually something of a party or celebration where the younger club members honour and thank their sempai for their guidance and friendship as well as to wish them well in the next part of their lives. Instead of having a party, the mountain climbing club has one last hike where the kohai (the younger club members) plan and prepare lunch for the sempai on the mountain. Last year, the hike was Jimba san to Takao san, a fairly long trek. This year was just Takao san, a 2.5 hour hike.

We let at 8:45 am at Shinjuku station and caught the train to Takaosanguchi (高尾山口), from which we started our hike. There are several trails going up to the top of Takao, which is around 600 m in elevation. We took trail 6, which is 3.3 km long and we reached the peak in about an hour. The trail is quite easy, but it can get get busy...

At the top we found a place to set our bags and the first and second years got started on lunch. They did a really good job planning, coordinating and hauling the supplies up the mountain. What did we eat? Cheese fondue with chocolate fondue for dessert. It was delicious!

Our first and only rest on the way up.

At the top, the first and second years are preparing lunch.

Cheese fondue with lots of vegetables, meat, and bread.

Enjoying fondue. We ran out of cheese first, but we had a lot of vegetables left, so we got creative and dipped the veggies in chocolate. The best combos? Broccoli and chocolate, pumpkin and chocolate, and carrot and chocolate.

Can't really see anything from the top, it was overcast and kind of misty. That direction is Tokyo.

Same thing, can't really see anything... :(

Tengu! There are lots of shrines on Takao and many statues of Tengu, a deity with a long nose. He's a god of the mountain, and is usually represented by two statues, one with a long nose and the other with a bird beak for a mouth and nose. He's pretty scary looking.