Hiking: Eboshidake and Nenjodake

Two litres of water wasn’t enough. Foolishly I left one litre back in the car for when we returned but should have taken it with me. There was a freshwater spring on the trail where I planned to top up but it was running dry despite plenty of rain in previous days. Even high up in the mountains the Japanese summer can be relentless and that was the case this time. Always take more than you need. Besides, carrying extra weight is good for you.

For only the second time a friend joined me on the hike so we chose to go a few extra kilometres to Nenjodake (念才岳 2291m) for views of Mt. Kosomo (越百山 2613m) and the Chuo Alps. A steep ascent to the ridge line and the first summit of Eboshidake (烏帽子岳 2194m) preceded a further two hours of hiking through bear territory. I’ve only seen a bear in the mountains once and it was in this area. On that hike it ran away from me but I wouldn’t want to startle one. I had a bear bell and we made plenty of noise to let any bears know we were around.

Nenjodake was worth the extra hike. The views were wonderful and I discovered a new trail leading down the valley and directly up into the Chuo Alps making a multi day loop possible sometime.

But the summit was hot and directly exposed to the sun. It was too hot to linger so after 10 minutes or so we turned around and headed back.

Time: 7 hours 21 minutes. Distance: 15kms. Ascent: 1591m approximately. More details here on my YAMAP account.