Japan: Day 23 — Hakone ...

Hiking up to Mt. Kintoko (1,212m)

My last day in Hakone and my last hike in Japan! This picture here is certainly one of my favorites. The forests in Hakone were absolutely magical!

There was a constant rushing fog from the volcano (which most likely was not the best to hike in) but it gave the forests a sense of eerieness.

I was up early and took a morning onsen. The plan was to hike Mt. Kintoki. I missed the first bus to the trailhead and the second bus wasn't scheduled to arrive until after 9am.

Taxis were parked near the bus stop so I decided to hop in one. It was ¥2300. The driver spoke a bit of English and dropped me off right at the trailhead. He even got out of the car to show me the map and gave me a suggested route!

One of the signs at the top of Mt. Kintoki

It was early and it seemed I was the only one around. I set off on my own and hoped to run into a few others along the trails. The hike itself wasn't too challenging. It was another steep climb but the trail let up in parts.

It took me about one hour to reach the top without any breaks. The breeze was wonderful up top but there were zero views. On a nice clear day, Mt. Fuji is in the backdrop but I had no such luck. I took a rest and had a small bite to eat before heading back down a different route.

I hardly ran into anyone on the way down. I was planning on hiking to the trails I was on two days prior but the day was hot and the sun was beating down. The trails had zero shade, so I opted to take another route down the mountain and hoped I would be able to find my way back to the hostel.

I found the main road and a bus that led me right back to where I needed to be! Perfect! I took the afternoon to do some laundry and relax in the onsen. I was scheduled on a train back to Tokyo the following morning. My time in Japan was quickly coming to an end but to be honest, I was ready!

On the way down from Mt. Kintoki via the Sengokuhara trail