So I took a trip to Mt. Fuji during Obon. I’ve wanted to climb this mountain since my first trip to Japan. It was too cold and inconvenient then. This time, I was ready and prepared. That didn’t stop me from getting really really sick. I wound up staying at the hospital in Yamanashi Prefecture during my Obon trip. Two days and nights with IV for fluids and IV antibiotics. My first real stay in a hospital. Trip: ruined.

I decide to try again. This time without a travel crew as I had to take some vacation days. I fuck up majorly and wind up blowing $120 on a taxi to complete the climb. But complete it I did. It was harder than I expected. There isn’t much oxygen up there and there was no time to get acclimated so it is pretty tough. And the distance is pretty great, vertically. Got some sunrise photos. The downhill was brutal on my knees. I couldn’t go fast. Love having trekking poles.