4-day traverse in Mt Tsurugi & Tateyama mountains
Explore the Tateyama mountains and climb Mt Tsurugi on this 4-day hiking traverse in the North Japan Alps, together with Yukihisa, a local JMGA mountain guide.
Japan Alps
4 Days
Aug - Oct
Intermediate
Intermediate
Description
The Tateyama mountains are a group of peaks in the north side of the Hida Mountains (or North Japan Alps). They are a very popular destination among hikers seeking adventures and scenic views.
During this 4-day trip, we'll traverse the Tateyama mountains and walk down to the side of the Sea of Japan.
Our trip we'll begin in Murodo, a beautiful spot at the highest point of the famous Tateyama-Kurobe alpine route.
On the third day, we'll walk on a steep and rocky mountain ridge and reach the summit of Mt Tsurugi (2999 m).
Climbing this pointy peak (its name means 'sword' in Japanese) will be one of the highlights of our trip. In fact, Mt Tsurugi is considered the toughest mountain with established trails in the country.
It would be better to have some easy rock climbing experience before this trip. Basically, you need to be able to walk on a ridge for 10 hours, carrying a 10 kg backpack.
However, as there are many hiking routes available, I will choose the most suitable for the group, according to your pace and physical conditions. I can also arrange shorter versions of this itinerary if you want.
Besides, you should consider saving an extra day in case of bad weather. If that's not possible for you, we might shorten the itinerary.
We'll get lunch boxes at the mountain hut, for light meals on our way.
At the end of this trip, you can stay in Toyama City and visit the surroundings. You should also try the great seafood cuisine of Japan Sea in Toyama!
Please contact me if you'd like to come on this 4-day hiking traverse in the North Japan Alps! I will be glad to show you the best places in this beautiful area.
If you'd like to explore the south area of the North Japan Alps, you should join me for this 5-day traverse in Mt Yari and Hotaka mountains.
Price includes
- Guiding fee
Price details
- The following items are not included in the price: Guide Expense (Transportation: approximately JPY 30,000 including taxi fee with clients, Accommodation: approximately JPY 11,000 per night including 3 meals for 3 nights)
- Accommodation for client (approximately JPY 11,000 per night including 3 meals for 3 nights)
Itinerary
Day 1: Murodo / Murodo mountain hut
We will start our tour from Murodo, and will stay overnight at Murodo mountain hut (2450 m).
Hiking time: 20 min.
Day 2: Tsurugi-sawa mountain hut
From Ichi-no-koshi, we will traverse Tateyama to Tsurugi-sawa. We will stay overnight at Tsurugi-sawa mountain hut (2,500m).
Hiking time: 6-10 hours
Day 3: Mt Tsurugi summit / Hayatsuki mountain hut
From Betsuzan Ridge, we will climb up Mt. Tsurugi (2999 m), and descent through Hayatsuki Ridge. We will stay at Hayatsuki mountain hut at night.
Hiking time: 6-10 hours
Day 4: Banba-jima / Toyama Station
From Banba-jima, we will go to Toyama Station by taxi. Our tour will finish at Toyama Station at around 1:00 p.m.
Hiking time: 3 hours.
Details
More info
- If we are stranded at mountain huts due to bad weather or any other foreseeable reasons, the extension of guiding day would cost JPY 22000 per additional day.
- Those who have diseases that prevent from climbing mountains can not join this tour. (ex. a respiratory disease, circulatory disease or paroxysmal disease, etc.) Also, people who take medicine for high blood pressure or hyperglycemia can not participate on this tour.
Kit list:
- General items for standard summer traverse
- Rain Gear
- Middle Layer clothes
The following items can be rented if there are the right size (3 items: JPY 7,000 for 4 days)
- Helmet
- Harness
- Winding lanyards for self-belay
Meeting point
FAQs
What are some recommended accommodations near our adventure location?
About the guide
Yukihisa
Mountain Guide
I am a JMGA mountain guide, born and raised in Azumino at the foot of North Japan Alps. I've always played outdoors in the hills or rivers nearby and at the age of 10, my playground expanded into the North Japan Alps.
When I turned 23, I became passionate about alpine climbing and joined numerous expeditions abroad, including those in South America, Tibet and Nepal. In my late 20s, I returned to Nagano to join the mountain rescue team of the North Japan Alps and also started mountain guiding, and have been doing it now for over 20 years.
My work in the mountains is quite diverse - I work on mountain rescue, help with mountain hut logistics, maintenance of mountain trails etc. as a locally bred mountain guide.
Since 10 years ago, I've started my work in the mountainous and glaciated areas of Antarctica with the Japan Antarctic Research Expedition (JARE), as a field guide /manager for researches in geology, geophysics, and meteorite research. I alternate my work between Antarctica and guiding domestically in Japan.
From 2017, I will join JARE again on an expedition crossing the Antarctica followed by an overwinter stay with the research team at the Syowa station. I will resume my guiding in Japan from April 2019. You can follow the Antarctic project I am involved in here - http://polaris.nipr.ac.jp/~icc/NC/htdocs/?page\_id=149. We will be extracting an ancient (more than 800,000 years ago) ice core to recreate the environment then.
I will be able to guide you on whichever mountain you like in Japan but my favourite field of guiding is where I grew up, the North Japan Alps (in particular Mt Yari and the Hodaka ranges). I like to guide on uncrowded mountains and routes carrying tents for sleeping, but I also guide a lot on rocky climb routes.
For visitors to Japan wanting to experience the mountains here, in addition to the classic climbs, I'd recommend you to also enjoy something very 'Japanese' like Sawanobori (only offered in Japan!) and foraging!
Languages
Japanese | English
Certificates
JMGA
What people are saying about Explore-Share
Man
Climbing with guide Guillaume was absolutely a highlight of my 2-week Europe vacation. Originally, we were planning on climbing in the Calanques, but the park was closed due to wind and fire danger. Guillaume chose another amazing location (Pic de Bretagne) based on my climbing abilities and preferences and kindly offered train station pick-up and hotel drop off, which I appreciated very much. The multi-pitch route we did was not only fun but also the right amount of challenge, which I thoroughly enjoyed. The communication from the team (Gauthier) was prompt and clear—highly recommend!
Maxine
Luis Silva was a great climbing guide and belayer! He taught me how to do moves that were difficult and encouraged me to try routes that were challenging for me! Because of his encouragement, I managed to complete these routes! I really enjoyed the climbs and completed 8 routes in the Sesimbra/Azoia area. The weather was perfect, no direct sun and cool enough to enjoy the climbs. Explore-Share made booking an outdoor climbing experience in Lisbon extremely easy. Luis, our guide, was fantastic, and the platform’s organization was flawless.
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Joshua
We had Léo as a guide for our day climb in Fonty. We were blessed with a knowledgeable, warm, and instructive guide. Communication with Léo and Ivan was smooth and swift. Explore-Share was excellent in arranging everything for our day climb. The communication was quick, and the platform was easy to use, making our adventure stress-free.
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