Attention, this post contains many images so it might be best not to view it on a mobile connection!
Read Part 1 here.
Initially, I only planned to hike to the summit of Mt. Kurodake on Oct. 5, 2014 because I was told multiple times by outdoor shop staff, tourist information staff and the people working at the Youth Hostel, that the popular Daisetsuzan Traverse was already impossible to do due to snow and bad weather. However, at the Youth Hostel I met Wu from China, who initially planned the same route as I had: to hike from Mt. Kurodake across a part of the National Park to Mt. Asahidake. So we decided that we were going to go up in the morning and see for ourselves if we could do it, in case the weather allowed. Note: we carefully weighted our options and were equipped with additional layers of clothing, flashlights and emergency utilities. Do not attempt this route unprepared! As there are also a lot of Brown Bears in the National Park, one is advised not to go alone and to carry a noisy bear bell. We did not have one, but apparently Brown Bears are in hibernation during the winter – so we were not to see one.
According to our map the trip should take us approximately 7h, but I read reports on the internet of people requiring roughly half the time. We wanted to hike from Mt. Kurodake til the Mt. Nakadake intersection and then decide whether we were going to climb Mt. Asahidake or rather walk around it. A map can be found here. The limiting factor was the last ropeway down from Mt. Asahidake which departed at 17h.
I woke up at 5am, packed my backpack and set out to meet with Kaho from Tokyo, whom I met the day before, in the Youth Hostel lobby. The weather was clear and we wanted to take the first ropeway up. However, there was a huge queue and we turned out to be the first in queue for the second ropeway. Good thing, because the second ropeway was nearly empty so we could go around in look in all directions!
They morning view from the ropeway was stunning! A lot better than the day before!
As we were approaching the fifth station the surrounding mountains became smaller and smaller…
The dew on the plants was still frozen – it was probably still around zero degrees.
From the fifth station we proceeded to take a ski lift up to the seventh station. You can see the summit of Mt. Kurodake in the back of the picture!
The ski lift was probably the lowest one I have ever gotten onto. It did not even have a restraining bar…
At the seventh station I met up with Wu and we wrote our hiking plan into a registration book, in case we would not return. No one else had signed out that day yet.
The way up would have been easy to walk, but there was a lot of ice beneath the snow with small puddles underneath.
Initially, there were many plants and trees along the way..
But we soon crossed the tree line and all that was left were bushes.
We also noticed clouds on the horizon so we decided to step the speed up a little bit, in case they were closing in.
After 1h we reached the summit of Mt. Kurodake! The wind was incredibly strong, instantly blowing my rain cape off my backpack, which I just managed to catch. The view was stunning!
1984 Meters!
There is a little shrine on top, which was already filled with snow.
We could see part of where we were going to go. The mountain in the middle at the very end is Asahidake. Looks close, but we were not able to see the huge caldera between us and Asahidake, yet.
The weather was good aside from the strong wind, the clouds did not seem to close in and the snow only about 10cm deep, so we decided to proceed.
Just below Mt. Kurodake is a self-catering mountain hut where you can stay if you bring your own food etc.
Apparently, we were not alone! We found some animal traces, maybe a fox or a deer..
We decided to stop by the hut to see if anybody was inside. To our surprise a few park rangers were just cooking their breakfast in the hut. They stayed the night to take pictures and were closing the hut down the next day to secure it from animals during the winter. We had a long chat with them about the conditions of the trails and they more or less said, that as long as the weather stays good we should not have any problems. We departed at 9’o clock.
So we decided to move on…
Meet Wu – he is from mainland China and trades Cameras on the internet. He also collects some himself and shot with a Contax T3!
There was not much vegetation left along the way. Apparently there are a lot of flowers in summer, though!
We finally reached the caldera! It was wider than expected.
Looking back to Mt. Kurodake..
The trail is on the top of the rim of the caldera and mostly marked by yellow signs, many of which were already covered by snow.
Sometimes we were able to see the trail quite well, however!
The vegetation got more and more sparse along the way..
And the trail a lot steeper..
We finally reached the summit of Mt. Nakadake: 2113m! It was only 10:15 so we were well ahead of the time we would’ve thought it’d take us to get to Mt. Nakadake.
The wind was still incredibly strong!
We were going that way..
From the Summit, we could see all the way down along what seems like a gentle slope.
Due to the strong wind very funny looking ice formations formed.
We kept on walking. A notification popped up on my phone – to my surprise I had a perfect connection!
We reached the Nakadake Intersection, where the trial splits into the direction of Mt. Asahidake and Nakadake Onsen.
As I wanted to go a little further, we split up there and Wu began to descend towards Nakadake Onsen.
But apparently I was not alone, anyway!
The trail up to Mamiyadake was quite steep.
On the summit of Mt. Mamiyadake (2185m) I met three Japanese hikers who just came from Mt. Asahidake. I chatted with them, asking about the conditions on Asahidake. The conditions were good, but the ascending trail was facing the wind so a lot of snow gathered there. They told me the snow was probably about 30-40cm deep which was way higher than my boots. As the view was not going to be all that different from what I had already seen, they recommended me to descend down to the outstanding Nakadake onsen! So we descended together…
Mt Mamiyadake!
We finally arrived at the Onsen and it was special indeed!
Thanks for reading!
To be continued…
Read Part 1 here and follow up with Part 3 here
Dimples says:
Hello,
Would you say doing the 7th station – kurodake summit (and then turning back down) is advisable for inexperienced hikers of average fitness, assuming proper warm clothes & hiking shoes? My wife and I will be in Sounkyou around 10th October.
If the snow and ice makes the route tricky for inexperienced hikers then we might perhaps not attempt the climb.
Dimples
September 3, 2015 — 14:12
nb says:
Hi Dimples!
The route up to the Kurodake summit is not that challenging if there is no (or small amounts of) snow. From the spot where the Gondola arrives you can take a ski lift up a little further and then hike up for 1~1,5h to the summit. You can’t miss the trail and it’s fairly well built out (steep parts have steps and so on). If the weather is good, I really recommend the hike as you get a stunning view all over the Daisetsuzan National Park!! Therefore I really recommend to try the climb if the weather permits and in case the trail is too slippery or there is too much snow you can still turn around. Depending on the time of day when you plan to go, you might want to check up on the lift operating schedule, especially the last descend.
Make sure to sign your name into the Registration Book at the mountain hut when you get off the ski lift right before the trailhead, and sign out again when you come back down, so that somebody knows about you in case something happens.
Have a great time in Sounkyo! It’s an amazing place in fall!!
September 3, 2015 — 23:31
Florie says:
Hello,
Very nice hike! I’m going to hokkaido on october 10th to 12th. I wanted to go hiking in Daisetsuzan Park. I come from Switzerland and I’m used to do hike during 4-5 ours. How long did you take do do you tour?
Do you have a map of the tour you did?
I read that there are some Bears there. Is it a big problem?
I was planing to go to this park by train form Sapporo Station to Asahidake. Is it a good idea?
I’m sorry to ask you so many questions but I’m afraid to go there and have no possibility of going a little bit out of the “normal way”. I don’t want to do something dangerous but just hike 1-2 ours on a tourist way ist not my cup of tea. And the tour you did looks very nice.
Thank you for your answer.
Have a nice day
Florie
September 6, 2015 — 21:08
nb says:
Hey Florie
Sound great – Hokkaido is a truely beautiful place! The hike from lift station at Kurodake to the Summit took us about 1h, from the summit to the Nakadake Intersection took roughly 2h45min and from the Nakadake intersection, along the Nakadake Onsen route until the Sugatami / Kagami Ponds took another 1h45min. So in total you are probably looking at a 5-6h hike! I’d factor in a longer break at the Onsen however, which will add another 30-45min.
Concerning the bears, if you in fact meet a bear it can turn out to be a very big problem ;)! However, at the beginning of October it is very unlikely to encounter bears (so I have been told and I have never seen a bear in the wild), as many will already be in winter hibernation (somewhat depending on the weather of course). Many Japanese people carry bear bells (practically cowbells) to make noise so that they won’t catch bears by surprise. Other people sing or talk to their friends.
If you are going by public transportation, you can go from Sapporo to Asahikawa by train (depending on train 1h30min~2h) and then take the bus from Asahikawa Bus Terminal to Asahidake (~90min).
Note that the Hike I did was from Sounkyo to Asahidake ropeway, which is the other way around.
I can pretty much gurantee that the hike at that time is not touristy at all, as the “official” climbing season ends on the last day of September. Therefore, you will most likely not enconter anyone during the hike.
The Daisetsuzan National Park is beautiful and definitely worth a visit! Actually doing the whole hike or not is something I’d only decide a few days in advance though when you can approximate the weather / amount of snow.
If you have any further questions, don’t hesitate to ask :)!
September 7, 2015 — 19:30
Luneko says:
Hello,
Would like to attempt to do your route or in the opposite direction about 11-13 October this year if the weather permits
I would like to ask how heavy was your backpack and if you deposited your other belongings anywhere and still have information of such services. Your blog served well as a guide. Great pictures ;D
September 17, 2015 — 09:09
nb says:
hey! thanks :D!
I stayed at a youth hostel in Sounkyo the night before (great place btw) and they also allow you to deposit your stuff there. There is also a coin locker at the base of the asahidake ropeway where you can leave your stuff (if there is a free locker available of course). My backpack was maybe around 10-12kg, a lot of that was water and camera equipment though, most of which I of course didn’t need :p. Have fun on your trip – it’s a great hike with amazing views :)!!
September 17, 2015 — 15:38
Van Phan says:
Hi NB,
I am totally impressed by your hiking. I am going to Hokkaido in Nov. 18-22 of 2015. Would you suggest me whether or not to hike in Daisetzusan Park at that time of the year. I do love to explore and immerse in the nature beaty, However, is it too risky for a person from a tropical country like me to climb there in winter without any previous expericence? If the answer is yes, then, would only a ropeway tour from Asahidake and walking around the station be safe enough and worth trying?
Thanks in advance for your advice!
October 5, 2015 — 02:39
nb says:
hey van phan!
thanks for your kind words!
To be honest with you, I think that in mid November hiking the Daisetuzan traverse does require significant skill and gear. You’d need a lot of backup gear as well in case something happens to you.. I would not recommend going alone at that time of year either, it will probably be below -15°C and with a lot of deep (1m+) snow.
That being said, taking the ropeway up is definitely possible! You can walk around the Sugatami / Kagami ponds and look around – there will still be snow but they might have cleared the paths. Before you go there I’d advise you to check the weather forecast though. A friend of mine went there during winter once and upon exiting the ropeway all he could see was white :p!
October 12, 2015 — 17:51
Van Phan says:
Hey NB!
I really appreciate your heartfelt advice. Your discussion on troubles which might come up definitely help me figure out how tough my hiking would be. Actually, I am going to reconsidering my plan whether to conquer this mountainous spot right in this occasion or wait a lapse of time until more favourable weather. Meanwhile, I could still enjoy the breathtaking beauty of Daisetsuzan via your post :)) Thanks again!
October 12, 2015 — 19:42
Ting says:
Hi! I am heading to Daisetsuzan National Park in Mid May and planning 1 day for hiking. I can’t decide whether to hike Mount Kurodake or Mount Asahidake. Which do you think is a more scenic hike?
April 26, 2017 — 12:09
nb says:
Hi Ting! That is difficult to decide :p, I’d say purely from the scenery Asahidake is probably slightly more beautiful. However, there are also going to be more people as it is famous for being the highest mountain in Hokkaido. Either way you can’t make a false pick – enjoy your trip!
April 26, 2017 — 16:18
Sandra says:
Hi
Your blog is wonderful. I am planning a hike to Mt Asahidake on Oct 7. I was told that it will likely be snowing then. I really wanted to try hiking though I am not experienced. I will be gg with my husband
who has trekked Nepal before. I guess I will check out the weather before I attempt the hike and worst case would be if I am unable to trek further, I just turn around and head down!
August 7, 2017 — 17:49
Jolanda says:
Hi, We’re planning a 5-day trip to Hokkaido in our Japan Holiday end of September 2018.
One of the things we would like to do is the hike from Sounkyo (ropeway) to Asahidake (ropeway). Starting in Sounkyo because then you have to climb less then starting in Asahidake. However I read most people start in Asahidake.
Can you explain why most people start in Asahidake? (Descending is easier for us then climbing).
How much time it would take to travel from Asahidake back to Sounkyo?
January 2, 2018 — 05:52
nb says:
Hi Jolanda, that sounds like a nice trip :)
To be honest I don’t know why most people start at Asahidake and then traverse to Sounkyo rather than the other way round. But my guess is, if it makes any sense, that most people do it that way (i.e. online/in books it is described that way) so most people do it that way. I doubt there are many real reasons for the direction. You could probably come up with reasons (prefer having the sun behind rather than shining from the front/wind is more likely to come from a certain side or the landscape might be more beautiful to look at at a certain time) but that’s beside the point I think :).
By travelling back I think you mean by bus/train right? You would need to go from Asahidake by back to Asahikawa (approx. 90mins) and then take a train til Kamikawa Station (approx. 45min express or 70mins local) and from there a bus to Sounkyo (approx. 30min). Buses from Asahikawa Station directly to Sounkyo also exist I think and take approx. 2h.
If you have any more questions please let me know :)
January 2, 2018 — 21:59