Mount Fuji 2012 – Speed Ascent of Japan’s Highest Mountain

It is said that every Japanese person should have climbed Mount Fuji at least once in their lifetime – but for most mountaineers, the 20-kilometre route and nearly 3,000-metre ascent represent at least a full day’s hike.

Konohana Sakuyahime was kind to the participants of the speed ascent of Mount Fuji, which, at 3,766 metres, is Japan’s highest mountain. For the goddess, who according to legend dwells on the mountain’s summit, may well have played a part in ensuring the ascent was a resounding success. Only after the traditional rituals to welcome the female deity of Mount Fuji did Benedikt Böhm set off from Sengen Jinjya at an altitude of 870 metres. The temple gate marks the official entrance to Mount Fuji. This traditional route is marked by ten ‘stations’. Benedikt walks the first seven kilometres with skis and ski boots on his back to the Uma Gaeshi car park at 1,490 metres. From Uma Gaeshi, the route continues on foot along a muddy trail through dense forest up to 1,840 metres. From here, he continues on skis along the partly icy path to the end of the tree line, where he catches his first unobstructed view of the vast white summit plateau. The conditions and weather are good, though a very strong and cold wind blows in the summit area. From an altitude of 2,900 metres, progress is only possible with crampons, and an icy slope over the final 600 metres makes a descent impossible.

After just 3 hours and 29 minutes, Benedikt has covered over 20 kilometres and 2,929 metres of elevation gain and stands on the summit of Mount Fuji. The descent nearly proves his undoing. Böhm gets tangled in his crampon straps and tumbles down the icy slope. In the process, he loses his skis and only finds them again 600 metres lower down. After this critical moment, he finally reaches the temple gate after a total of 4 hours and 59 minutes. The Japanese team, including Kazuya Hiraide, one of Japan’s finest mountaineers and winner of the ‘Piolet d’Or’, is thrilled. It appears to be the fastest ascent on skis to date.

For European mountaineers, Mount Fuji is a very special experience: