Woke up easily and met Joss in the lobby of our hostel with my pack all ready to go.
We stopped off at a local supermarket and stocked up on food and water, then made our way to the train station. It took around 3 hours to get to Fujiyoshida, the village at the base of the mountain and by then I was pretty excited about things.
We started on the trail at 4 oclock hoping to reach Station 5 within 5 hours. We passed the shrine at the foot of the mountain where pilgrims use to pray for a safe journey.
We set a decent pace through the thick forest along the beaten track. We swapped stories and talked nonsense. The going wasn't too tough and our spirits were pretty high. We made good time and had reached 5th station by 8.30 so we were ahead of schedule. We had some food and put on some warmer clothes.
We then made a mistake. We ended up going up the descending trail which is mainly a thick gravel track. Every step we took we slid back a quarter step so the going was really tough. By this point we were starting to feel the altitude a lot more. We were both pretty breathless and I had a slight headache. We reached 7th station and I gratefully tucked into some food. I needed all the energy I could get. By this point it was around 10.30 and we took an hours break to eat and drink and let our stomach settle.
We pushed on into the night with my headlamp to guide us. We stoppe frequently as my altitude sickness was getting worse. My head was pounding and I was breathless almost constantly. We reached 8th station sometime after midnight and pressed on. Halfway between 8th and real 8th station my headlamp stopped working so we were forced to stop at a mountain hut. Our plan to reach the summit for sunrise was over. We bedded down in a mountain hut but got little to no sleep. We 'awoke' feeling worse than we did before. We pressed on and real 8th station but unfortunately that was it for me. The lack of sleep, physical exertion and altitude had me nausous and dizzy. I had no choice but to turn back.
I wished Joss luck, handed him my walking stick and headed back down to the hut we stopped in.
I got 2 hours proper sleep and woke up feeling 100% better. Joss arrived back and looked terrible.
"You okay?" I asked "Did you make it?"
He smiled "Just"
I was beyond pleased.
We made our way back down to 5th station and caught out bus back to the train station.
I was a little disapointed in that after the two hours sleep I am sure I would've made it to the top... but I didnt have time since we were on a tight schedule.
I learned a lot on Mt. Fuji. My own physical limitations for one and how I overestimate myself these days. I learned about planning ahead on such trips as this and to do more research on the subject. I also learned a lot about my climbing partner, Joss. It was a big experience regardless of whether I made it or not and I'm glad I could share it with him.
On a last note: When Joss came back down from the top he handed me a stone.
"I dont know if you're into that kinda thing but it's from the top." he told me.
I eventually understood. I have to go and put it back now at some point. In other words I will definately make it up Mt. Fuji.
