Hiking in Japan

Extra information:

The peak is also known as Echizen Fuji and is one of the 5 Mountains of Echizen. It was supposedly first climbed by Taicho Daishi, the founder of the Hakusan faith. It is mentioned in Matsuo Basho’s classic Narrow Road to the Deep North. In addition, Murasaki Kishibu, the author of The Tale of Genji, lived at the base of the mountain for a short time.

Shinkansanen route (aka Aratani route) : Exit Echizen-takefu station on the Hokuriku Shinkansen. Exit the station on the east (the opposite side of the bus rotary and Michi-no-eki shops). Walk through the parking lot and turn right (south) and walk parallel to the Shinkansen tracks in the direction of Tsuruga. Follow a narrow road with a small stream on your left and you can see the towering pointy, Fuji-shaped figure of Mt Hino right in front of you. Turn left when the road dead-ends at Route 201 and then an immediate right through the torii gate. Walk on the narrow road past a shrine and keep going south in the direction of the mountain (Google Maps will be helpful here). Pass through the village and then walk on a narrow road through rice fields and re-enter the village at the base of the mountain. Walk straight and you’ll find Hino Shrine, the trailhead for the Aratani route. The trail starts to the right on the shrine and climbs up to an electrical pylon, drops to a saddle, and climbs steeply (via fixed ropes) up the northern face. Just before the summit plateau you’ll reach a junction with a trail merging in from the left. Ascend the final section of boulders and fixed ropes to reach the summit plateau at the northern shrine (北の社), which has spectacular panoramic views. Continue on the ridge for a few minutes to the inner shrine, and then the triangulation point a few minutes beyond.

Viewpoint: I forgot to mention it in the video, but if you want the view featured in the thumbnail, then make sure to walk out to the Northern Shrine (北の社), which is a short walk north (to the left) of the inner shrine. If you’re coming from the Shinkansen route then this viewpoint is the first thing you will see when you reach the summit ridge. The route in this video does NOT visit this point, as you need to make a short side trip from the inner shrine.

Map：If you need a digital map for the mountain, here is the YAMAP map.

This entry was posted on March 27, 2024 at 8:32 am and is filed under Archive. You can subscribe via RSS 2.0 feed to this post's comments.

Tags: Fukui, Hiking in Japan, Hokuriku, japan, Mt Hino, 日野山