Takatsuma - Finally!

The combed peak of Takatsuma stands out as a beautiful steep face across the valley from  Mitahara and Hiuchi. Its ridge continues around to the slightly lower Ototsuma, presenting a range of north facing lines of consistently nice pitch and snow quality. I had gazed at these mountains for years, and finally found the right day and partner to make it happen.

The approach is relatively long, with a skin out a forestry road from Togakushi, before climbing to a low point between Saru-yama and Gojizou-yama. From there a traversing line is skied down to below the main climb itself. Most of the climb lines look fine, and the easiest option is probably to wrap around and climb the bowl system below Ototsuma. A skin track was in place up the beautiful thin ridge to the lookers right of Takatsuma however, and after some minor deliberation we started climbing. Conditions were ideal, and it was a relatively simple trip to the top. It does steepen out a little near the summit, and I imagine in some conditions this part would be tricky.

We skinned around to below the Ototsuma summit, where I stashed my skies and continued on foot for the last 100m. I was still getting comfortable on skies at this point, but probably would have been fine from the top (although it adds little to the line). We skied a beautiful sheltered gully down, finding nice slightly set powder all the way down to the flats.There is a wide range of lines to choose from, and easily manageable terrain.

It was a long trip back to the car, but after finally ticking off this long standing goal it was a happy one. A triple treat of iced-coffee, waffle cone and fried chicken was the reward. 

Yari Onsen Resort (May 2017)

It doesn't get much better than beautiful Kita Alps terrain. That is unless you could plonk down a natural hot bath and camping platform right in the middle of some fun slopes in said terrain. That is essentially the setup at Yari Onsen. In Summer a hut is built, and a fee is charged to use the bath. Until that happens though (and while the snow is still around), anyone is free to make the slog up the hill and soak away the muscle soreness that comes from skiing the surrounding mountains. 

I set off at a pleasant hour from the Sarukura carpark, making good time up to the low point on the Obinata ridge. Half way up the climb to Yari Onsen, I met another skier heading up for the night. We had a good chat, and I pushed on ahead. Once at the onsen, I set up my camp, ate some food and had a brief soak in the bath. Soon enough the peaks above drew my attention, and I set out for a climb. I initially intended to climb for an hour and ski back down the same way, but inevitably I kept going, and within a few hours was on top of Yari. The view was beautiful, with a sea of cloud stretching out to the west and soft light to the east.

I took a fun line directly from the peak, enjoying pleasant easy skiing once past the upper slopes. I spent 15 minutes watching a raicho on the way down, before returning to camp for a tasty dinner and early night. The next morning the weather was less pleasant, and I climbed once above camp, before skiing back, collecting my bag, and heading back to the car and Myoko. The gully from Yari into Shakushi-zawa caught my attention, and is a line I would like to return and ski in the future.

Myoko Three Peaks (August 2015)

In the Spring, I was fit enough to do a day ski tour from Sasagamine, up over Hiuchi and then on to the flank of Yake-yama. A semi controlled fall down a chute below Yake shook me up a little though, and I didn't end up climbing to the top. It did however plant the idea of doing a loop over Yake and Hiuchi, and then adding on Myoko-san for some kind of local 3 peaks route. It wasn't to be in the snow (I would still like to try though), but the right day did come up to do it as a bushwalk / trail run. 

I parked by Suginosawa bridge, and started thrashing my way up the bushy Yake-yama trail. Yake-yama is probably my favourite of the local mountains. It has a lumpy, strong presense, and doesn't have an easy approach on any side. The summit is also very beautiful, with lush green jungle transitioning into hyper-coloured volcanic rock and scree. I slipped down the other side into the saddle below Hiuchi. At this point my legs started to complain, but I still had two mountains to climb.

By the time I reached Koyaike Hyutte my calves were particularly sore. Some food, a cold soft drink and some internal deliberation and I was on my way to Myoko-san. The path over to Myoko drops into Kurosawaike, climbs the crater, drops down again, and then finally climbs the West Bowl to the peak. It all took its toll, and I was well beaten by the team I hit the top. It was slow going back to the crater and across the lake, but I picked up again as I started down the hill to Sasagamine. I even managed to jog most of the road back to the start!

I collapsed in the back of the car, fell asleep, waking to make the journey down to 7-11 for some magnificent fried chicken and and ice-cream. A top day out. Unfortunately Yake-yama is now off limits due to volcanic activity. I hope the trails do not become disused like so many others in this area.

GPS track is below.

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/875990628

The Legbreaker: Hannel's Spur (November 2015)

Back at work in Australia after a sabbatical spent in the mountains of Japan and Europe, I turned my attention to a few home trips I had been thinking over for a while. Top of the list was Hannel's Spur, reputed to be the biggest vertical climb in Australia at a leg withering 1800m. An old stock route for accessing the lush summer highland areas from Geehi, the track is now an overgrown former track linked together by scraps of fading tape. 

I parked my car and slept at Dead Horse Gap, waking early to drink a cup of coffee, roll down a big hill on my old mountain bike, and contemplate just what I was thinking. Some undulating terrain to the Geehi River warmed up the legs, and soon enough I was strolling across the flats behind Dr Forbe's Hut. 

Hannel's proper starts fine, but soon enough the track becomes hard to follow. In places I was following my nose rather than the track, and on numerous occasions I had to backtrack and search again. I remember sitting on a log half way up the hill, sweating, scratches on my legs bleeding, when a small bird landed on a branch next to me looking nonchalant. I'd genuinely been wondering if I was in over my head, but for some reason that bird calmed me down and I was off again. 

The feeling of coming out of the scrub and into the alpine was sensational. My legs were tired, but I got a second wind that carried  me up the peak of Kosci. I drank some water from a cleanish looking creek, took some photos, and quietly cheered inside at the thought that I was on my way back to the car. I managed a job down into Dead Horse Gap, surprising a brumby on the way. 

I drove back down to Geehi campground, soaking my legs in the river and eating a delicious home made stew and bread. My legs were sore the next day. GPS track is below.

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/956970639

Floating up Fuji

It was a fitting end to a magnificent season of skiing. Like every tourist who views the sweeping curve of Fuji-san from the passing train, I'd admired the beauty of this mountain for some time. As a summer hiking destination, it doesn't really excite me. Huge crowds, expensive, and a mountain that shares its beauty best from afar. As a ski line though it does hold some allure. Wide, sweeping slopes, and the chance to impress almost any Japanese person you talk to 😀

I had a small window between organising my life in Myoko and picking up Mum in  Takayama. The weather forecast complied, and I drove across Japan in beautiful warm spring weather. It's quite something to get closer and closer to the mountain, and what looks relatively small but beautiful from a distance, becomes very impressive from up close. I watched the sun set across Fuji from above Motosu Lake, and then drove up to below the Fujinomiya toll-road for a pleasant nights sleep.

 

Fuji seems to hold a reputation for being dangerous out of season, so I was feeling focused as I woke to the sight of the huge white cone looking steeper than it does from far away. I'd expected to find a few backcountry touring types in the 5th station car park, but arrived to 100+ cars and a range of people from the experienced to the very inexperienced. Temperatures were marginal, and so I packed slowly to let the snow soften a little. Unfortunately the snow coverage on this (Southern) side of the mountain was not as extensive as I expected, and so the first 400m of vertical were summer trail mud and rocks. From there it was a relatively straightforward walk in crampons to the lip of the crater.

By this stage the sun was beginning to soften the frozen snow, but despite there being almost no wind 2000m below, strong gusts were ripping across the peak. By all accounts this is typical of Fuji, and I probably had conditions as good as could be expected. I walked around the crater, climbed the peak and chatted with a few other climbers. I had met another Japanese skier with DPS Wailers on the way up, and we decided to enjoy the ski down together. The ski down was a pleasant 35 degrees or so, although the snow was beginning to break up and melt away. From the crater I had seen the other ski routes on the North and East faces, and I suspect that on a day like this they would have been far more enjoyable from a skiing perspective. 

The climb and ski were relatively straightforward and went without much thought, but back at the car I did have a few quiet moments of reflection on the season. From being a beginner on-piste skier, I'd managed to drag myself to the level of being able to feel comfortable climbing and skiing a mountain like Fuji by myself. Not much in the scheme of things, but definitely something I felt proud of.

Monkey life

I've always done a little bit of indoor rockclimbing, mainly as a means of keeping fit, but more recently under the watchful eye of Lane Cove tough guy  Joran I've stepped it up to being a more regular pursuit. Inevitably this led to talk of doing some outdoors climbing (Joran has experience in this realm), and after my usual round of putting off and flaking, the day finally came when excuses could be sustained no longer. Plans were made for a day of adventure in the Blue Mountains, and the multi-pitch adventure of Sweet Dreams was selected as being the ideal introduction.

Naturally I was feeling a little nervous on a number of fronts (exposure, technical difficulty, fitness, general softness on my part), but before I could even roll through these issues we found ourselves at the bottom of a track down off Sublime Point and racking up for a climb. Wonderfully my concerns were completely unfounded, with relatively easy climbing and previous leading practice in the gym making for a controlled sense of adventure. The exposure and beauty of being out on a cliff was really something else, and the simple climbing of Sweet Dreams made this easy to appreciate.

A pair of climbers were tackling another multi-pitch climb on the same section of cliff, and it was great to watch them working their way up what looked like a relatively featureless face (certainly when compared to where we were). I was able to snap off some great photos that give a real sense of the insignificance of a climber when on these walls (which are the photos here). Something to aspire to in the medium term.

We finished the day with some single pitch sport climbing at Shipley Upper. It was good to work through a few more (relatively) challenging climbs, but it wasn't long before my arms were giving out. This has since been addressed through a comprehensive training plan, and I'll absolutely be back for more.

Spring turns (a fitting end to season 2014)

The October long weekend is becoming a bit of an annual event in my calendar. The opening of the road out to Charlotte Pass makes for easy access to the main range, reducing the slog out from Guthega to a much shorter walk up from the Snowy River. It also usually offers nice snow conditions, with enough cover up high for great touring and corn snow that makes for fun turns.

James and I headed out at a moderate hour on Saturday morning, with a few uncovered patches shortly after the river requiring skis off, but then solid cover up to the top of Carruthers. We made camp slightly below the peak, assuming that a small fin of rock would provide enough shelter for a pleasant night. We were completely wrong, and by around 6pm the wind direction had shifted the speed accelerated. We put up a rather poor little snow wall (that blew on top of me during the night), then settled in for some sunset photos followed by dinner. It was possibly the worst nights sleep I have had in a tent, with the nylon constantly flapping across my face. 

We managed some great runs, swapping the splitboard and tele skis regularly. I snowboarded down into club lake via the middle chute, then skied down into Little Austria. We also did a few easy runs on the north east side of Carruthers. On the Sunday we toured out towards Watson's Crags, and although we weren't able to ski any of the great terrain on offer, it has provided plenty of inspiration for future trips.

We ended the weekend sitting in the grass by the snowy river, enjoying a cup of tea and some crisps and soaking up the warmth of the sun.