posted: September 30th, 2009 |
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The photos on this page continue with September 19th at 2:42 PM and go through the end of the day on September 20th - continuing the climb of Mt. Tate (Tateyama). Click on any thumbnail to begin.
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September 19th Continues From Page 2 (at 2:42 PM) |
  The 1st shot is another one of Jigoku-dani (Hell Valley in English) and the Hot Spring Hotel which we'll visit tomorrow. The angle is quite different on this shot than the shot on the previous page because we have now walked 13 minutes since the previous picture. The 2nd shot is Kazuya as we near the summit of Mt. Masago (Masagodake). The 3rd shot is the hut where we'll stay tonight. It's still further than it appears though - the time now is 2:46 PM and we won't arrive at the Hut until 3:02 PM - we still have to cross Mt. Masago! |
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  The first shot here shows an incredible green carpet on a small ridge - the carpet is made up of mountain pine. The 2nd shot is just an amazing scenery shot of the mountain and the 3rd shot is the Kuranosuke Hut - the hut where we'll spend the night - and now it's only 2 minutes away. |
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  As we relaxed at the Kuranosuke Hut we, of course, took several photos. The first 2 here are just general scenery. The 3rd shot shows you some sunset color. There were not enough clouds for the sunset to be really spectacular, but it was nice! |
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  Here are 2 final sunset color photos - the first one is actually looking towards the east. The 2nd one looks to the west. And, that's all for the 19th. By the way, it was such an incredibly clear night that we went out to look at the stars after it got dark. We were able to see an amazing number of them - including the Milky Way. Now, I don't know where you are in the world, but from here in Japan it is pretty amazing to be able to be in a dark enough place to be able to see the Milky Way! We've climbed many other mountains where we had hoped to see it, but we were always unfortunate in that it was either cloudy, or else so close to a full-moon that we could not see the Milky Way. An amazing night. |
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End September 19th, Begin September 20th |
  Now it's September 20th and it's sunrise. The first photo is Mt. Fuji and was taken at 5:25 AM - an amazing shot as Mt. Fuji is about 162 kilometers (101 miles) from this place. Look at how clear it is! The 2nd shot, looking towards the hut, was taken at 5:48 AM and still shows some decent colors. The 3rd shot - 5:49 AM, interesting colors. This was a clear enough morning so that there was not much color to be had. It was an amazingly clear day. |
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  The first shot here is the final shot taken from the Mountain Hut - it shows Toyama City and Toyama Bay down there some 2,900 meters below us. In the 2nd shot we are climbing towards Mt. Bes (Bessan) (2,874 meters = 9,429 feet) now and this is looking back towards the hut where we stayed. In the 3rd shot we are at North Mt. Bes (Kita-Bessan) (2,880 meters = 9,449 feet) and that is Kazuya in the foreground and Tsurugidake (Mt. Tsurugi) (2,999 meters = 9,839 feet) in the background. |
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  Chronologically this first picture does not belong right here, but I wanted to give you an "overview" of the area before the next photo. That is Mt. Tsurugi back there. Between us and the mountain look closely (this 1st photo is larger than normal so you can see detail) and you can see at least 2 huts down in the valley there and also a tent camping spot. Now, in the 2nd photo you see a close-up of the tent camping spot - all of those people are here to climb Mt. Tsurugi (Tsurugidake). Remember, on Page 2 I told you that according to Wikipedia, this is "the most dangerous mountain" climbable. Amazing - lots of people do it anyway I guess. The 3rd shot is, once again, Mt. Tsurugi (Tsurugidake). |
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  And here is a zoomed in shot of Mt. Tsurugi (Tsurugidake) - can you believe the number of people here on "the most dangerous mountain" climbable? And, it's only 8:28 AM. The 2nd shot is me on North Mt. Bes (Kita-Bessan) and the 3rd shot is Kazuya on North Mt. Bes (Kita-Bessan). Both of these shots look towards Mt. Tsurugi (Tsurugidake). Notice our clothes, it is extremely windy and therefore the chill factor is quite cold. We are both wearing gloves, sweatshirts and rain gear (to block the wind). |
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  In the first shot here we have passed the final hut and we are headed down to the valley where we started from. The 2nd shot shows you some pretty good fall colors on the mountain side. The 3rd shot is a beautiful blue sky shot looking through some cotton grass (Geum pentapetalum). |
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  Here are 3 amazingly bright fall color shots on the side of the mountain. |
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  Here are 3 more fall color shots. The pinkish color in the first shot is interesting - it is Cotton Grass (Geum pentapetalum) - a whole small field of it! |
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  And, this row shows you 3 more fall color shots. Note that these 3 shots are all looking UP the mountain. In previous rows we have been mostly looking down, but now we are looking up. |
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  The first shot in this row is another shot of amazing fall colors. The 2nd shot is an amazing color and composition shot, and for this reason I have included a larger than normal 2nd photo for you if you click on the thumbnail. The 3rd shot is another one of fall colors. |
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  Here are 2 shots of Jigoku-dani, or "Hell Valley" in English. I think you can see why it is named this. It's a bunch of steam and hot water coming up out of the ground! You saw shots of this area from the mountain in the final photo on Page 2 and the 1st shot on this page. We are now on our way to the Hot Spring Hotel shown in the first photo on this page for a nice hot spring soak to relieve our tired bones and bodies. |
Sep20_Tateyama_Jigokudani_ _Hell_Valley02_TateyamaRC |
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  Here is Mikurigaike Pond with a reflection of the mountain showing in it. And, the 2nd photo, the final shot of this climb and also this day, is a last look at Mt. Tsurugi (Tsurugidake). It was taken out of the bus window as we descended the mountain back towards Toyama City. |
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End September 20th, End Page 3 |