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This is Page 2 of 3 - the best of September 2013!
posted: September 30th, 2013
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This page begins with September 20th and a trip to and climb of Mt. Takao and then a camp-out at I-Ccho-Daira - with maps! Then we continue on to the following morning, September 21st, early morning views of Mt. Fuji. After that we climb Mt. Kobotoke-Shiro-yama and descend via the Hikage Creek Logging Road. The maps in Rows 1 and 2 cannot be viewed in lightbox, but the remainder of the photos can be viewed in larger size by clicking on any of them.

Begin September 20th
  Here is an experiment with inserting maps (satellite images) into web pages. You should see a Google Map below with Mt. Takao at the center. Just like all Google Maps, you can zoom in and move around as you like. This is where I am going today.

Click This Text For Larger View (new Window or Tab)

  This experimental satellite image shows I-Ccho-Daira at the center. I-Ccho-Daira is where I will camp in my tent tonight. If you zoom this map you see something that looks like an arc shape. This is a viewing platform which they built soon after the Michelin Guide made a recommendation that visitors to Tokyo should try and get out to Mt. Takao for a hike. Before that there was just a shelter here. The shelter is still here, but you cannot see it even if you zoom in to the maximum allowed. I'd appreciate any feedback you have about the maps - should I use them more often, never again, did they work properly for you, etc.?

Click This Text For Larger View (new Window or Tab)

  On Friday, September 20th Kazuya had to work and he had a dentist appointment on Saturday the 21st. I just needed to get out and do something, so I decided to go climb Mt. Takao (599 m = 1,965 ft) for the 95th time and then hike to I-Ccho-Daira, set up the one-man tent and spend the night there. On the way to the summit of Mt. Takao I took a few pictures of this Polygonum filiforme, as shown in the first photo. This has such a tiny flower. The 2nd image is a cropped out portion of the first shot. The 3rd shot is the scene which I was rewarded with at the summit of Mt. Takao.
Sep20_01_Takao_ICchoDaira_Polygonum_filiformeRC
Sep20_01_Takao_ICchoDaira
_Polygonum_filiformeRC
Sep20_01Crop_Takao_ICchoDaira_Polygonum_filiformeRC
Sep20_01Crop_Takao_ICcho
Daira_Polygonum_filiformeRC
Sep20_04_Takao_ICchoDaira_MtTakaoSummitRC
Sep20_04_Takao_ICchoDaira
_MtTakaoSummitRC

  I ate the lunch which I took with me at the summit of Mt. Takao and then continued. It's about a 30 minute hike from Mt. Takao to I-Ccho-Daira. This first shot, of a thistle flower, was taken at I-Ccho-Daira. The 2nd image in this row is a cropped out portion of the first photo. I waited until people stopped walking by and then at about 4:15 PM I set up my tent, which is shown in the 3rd photo.
Sep20_13_Takao_ICchoDaira_ThistleRC
Sep20_13_Takao_ICcho
Daira_ThistleRC
Sep20_13Crop_Takao_ICchoDaira_ThistleRC
Sep20_13Crop_Takao_ICcho
Daira_ThistleRC
Sep20_15_Takao_ICchoDaira_ICchoDairaTentRC
Sep20_15_Takao_ICchoDaira
_ICchoDairaTentRC

  I started cooking my supper at about 4:50 PM so that I would be pretty much done eating for sunset time, which was supposed to be at about 5:30 PM. When I arrived at I-Ccho-Daira I could not see Mt. Fuji, due to pretty heavy haze, but as it cooled off it came out, even if only vaguely. You can see Mt. Fuji in all 3 of these shots. In the first shot it is at just about the center. In the 2nd shot it is left of center and in the 3rd shot it is also left of center.
Sep20_16_Takao_ICchoDaira_SunsetTimeFujiRC
Sep20_16_Takao_ICchoDaira
_SunsetTimeFujiRC
Sep20_18FromDNG_Takao_ICchoDaira_SunsetTimeFujiRC
Sep20_18FromDNG_Takao_ICcho
Daira_SunsetTimeFujiRC
Sep20_20FromDNG_Takao_ICchoDaira_SunSetTimeFujiRC
Sep20_20FromDNG_Takao_ICcho
Daira_SunSetTimeFujiRC

  In the first shot in this row Mt. Fuji is again left of center. The 2nd shot shows some nice sunset colors on the Susuki Grass (Miscanthus sinensis). The 3rd shot shows the setting sun and Mt. Fuji. It's amazing to think that in just 3 short months, on the Winter Solstice (December 21st), the sun will set directly behind Mt. Fuji - look how far to the north of Mt. Fuji it still is.
Sep20_22_Takao_ICchoDaira_SunsetTimeFujiRC
Sep20_22_Takao_ICcho
Daira_SunsetTimeFujiRC
Sep20_24_Takao_ICchoDaira_SusukiGrassRC
Sep20_24_Takao_ICcho
Daira_SusukiGrassRC
Sep20_25_Takao_ICchoDaira_SunsetTimeFujiRC
Sep20_25_Takao_ICcho
Daira_SunsetTimeFujiRC

  Here are 3 shots of the setting sun. I don't have any idea what that mountain is that it is setting behind. The first shot was taken at 5:39 PM, the 2nd shot at 5:40 PM and the 3rd shot also at 5:40 PM.
Sep20_26_Takao_ICchoDaira_SunsetTimeRC
Sep20_26_Takao_ICcho
Daira_SunsetTimeRC
Sep20_30_Takao_ICchoDaira_SunsetTimeRC
Sep20_30_Takao_ICcho
Daira_SunsetTimeRC
Sep20_31_Takao_ICchoDaira_SunsetTimeRC
Sep20_31_Takao_ICcho
Daira_SunsetTimeRC

  Here are the 3 final shots of the sun setting behind some unknown mountain. The first shot in this row was taken at 5:40 PM, the 2nd shot at 5:41 PM and the 3rd shot was also taken at 5:41 PM.
Sep20_32_Takao_ICchoDaira_SunsetTimeRC
Sep20_32_Takao_ICcho
Daira_SunsetTimeRC
Sep20_33_Takao_ICchoDaira_SunsetTimeRC
Sep20_33_Takao_ICcho
Daira_SunsetTimeRC
Sep20_34_Takao_ICchoDaira_SunsetTimeRC
Sep20_34_Takao_ICcho
Daira_SunsetTimeRC

  Today was 1 day after the full moon, so I had time to finish my supper and then I hiked down a little bit to where I could watch the moonrise. The haze in the sky made for an amazingly orange moonrise! The first shot was taken at 6:17 PM and you should definitely note that there is an airplane passing in front of the moon in this shot. It's in the upper portion, about 1/4 of the height of the moon, from the top. The 2nd shot was taken at 6:31 PM and the moon has risen enough so that it's not so orange now, but I must tell you that, seeing as this shot was saved as a Digital Negative, that I was able to change the tint to more white in the processing. The 3rd collage, also saved as a Digital Negative, was taken at 6:33 PM and I processed the Digital Negative once without reducing the orange color of the haze very much (left side), then I processed the Digital Negative again and changed the tint to more white (right side). You should note that both images in this collage came from the same Digital Negative. And, that's all for today.
Sep20_38FromDNG_Takao_ICchoDaira_MoonriseRC
Sep20_38FromDNG_Takao_ICcho
Daira_MoonriseRC_Airplane
Sep20_47FromDNG_Takao_ICchoDaira_MoonRC
Sep20_47FromDNG_Takao_
ICchoDaira_MoonRC
Sep20_51Crop_Takao_ICchoDaira_MoonRC
Sep20_51Crop_Takao_
ICchoDaira_MoonRC
End September 20th, Begin September 21st
  Now it's the morning of September 21st. The first shot in this row shows Mt. Fuji (near the center) and other mountains. The 2nd shot is zoomed in to Mt. Fuji. I cooked and ate my breakfast, took down the tent and packed everything up and continued on to Mt. Kobotoke-Shiro-yama (670 m = 2,199 ft) for the 44th time. The 3rd shot here shows some Lycoris radiata (Cluster Amaryllis) just below the summit of Mt. Kobotoke-Shiro-yama.
Sep21_01_ICchoDaira_Hikage_MorningFujiRC
Sep21_01_ICchoDaira
_Hikage_MorningFujiRC
Sep21_02_ICchoDaira_Hikage_MorningFujiRC
Sep21_02_ICchoDaira
_Hikage_MorningFujiRC
Sep21_05_ICchoDaira_Hikage_Lycoris_radiataRC
Sep21_05_ICchoDaira_
Hikage_Lycoris_radiataRC

  Nice views from the summit of Mt. Kobotoke-Shiro-yama. These 3 shots all show Mt. Fuji. The 2nd and 3rd images are both HDR (High Dynamic Range) photos. Each was created from 3 exposure-bracketed photos using Photomatix Pro software and the Details-Enhancer Option. They came out nicer than usual for HDR photos.
Sep21_06_ICchoDaira_Hikage_Kobotoke_FujiRC
Sep21_06_ICchoDaira
_Hikage_Kobotoke_FujiRC
Sep21_09_10_11_TMDE_ICchoDaira_Hikage_Kobotoke_FujiRC
Sep21_09_10_11_TMDE_ICcho
Daira_Hikage_Kobotoke_FujiRC
Sep21_12_13_14_TMDE_ICchoDaira_Hikage_Kobotoke_FujiRC
Sep21_12_13_14_TMDE_ICcho
Daira_Hikage_Kobotoke_FujiRC

  As I hiked down the old logging road from the summit of Mt. Kobotoke-Shiro-yama to the bus stop I found some nice examples of Impatiens textorii (Pink Impatiens) flowers. The center image is a collage with the flower only cropped out from the first photo in this row and the first photo in the next row.
Sep21_19_ICchoDaira_Hikage_PinkImpatiensRC
Sep21_19_ICchoDaira_
Hikage_PinkImpatiensRC
Sep21_21_22_CropICchoDaira_Hikage_PinkImpatiensRC
Sep21_21_22_CropICcho
Daira_Hikage_PinkImpatiensRC
Sep21_21_ICchoDaira_Hikage_PinkImpatiensRC
Sep21_21_ICchoDaira_
Hikage_PinkImpatiensRC

  Here is another example of Impatiens textorii (Pink Impatiens). That's followed by 2 shots of Impatiens noli-tangere (Yellow Impatiens). And, that's all for this date.
Sep21_22_ICchoDaira_Hikage_PinkImpatiensRC
Sep21_22_ICchoDaira_
Hikage_PinkImpatiensRC
Sep21_23_ICchoDaira_Hikage_YellowImpatiensRC
Sep21_23_ICchoDaira_
Hikage_YellowImpatiensRC
Sep21_26_ICchoDaira_Hikage_YellowImpatiensRC
Sep21_26_ICchoDaira_
Hikage_YellowImpatiensRC
End September 21st, End Page 2
Thanks so much for taking the time to look at this page. Now, please go on to Page 3 for the continuation and conclusion of this month's adventures. Go To Page:


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