Mt. Fuji

We hiked Mt. Fuji on July 16th. Ric made it to the top along with three friends. Danny and I made it to the 7th Station (there are 10 "stations" on Mt. Fuji; most people start climbing from the 5th Station, which is the last station at which there is parking).

Unfortunately, on the day we went there were gale force winds! Poor Danny kept getting knocked down by the winds -- even I was "pushed" by them. It was rather frightening. The next day, one of Ric's co-workers went with his family and conditions were perfect. Another co-worker went over the weekend and, in addition to winds like we experienced, there was sleet! That's Mother Nature for you....

As you can imagine, the winds caused the volcanic dirt to fly around a lot. Most people wore goggles of some sort and had masks to help keep from breathing in the dirt. As it was, our nostrils, ears, scalps, and backpacks were filled with sand. I even had the sand on my torso under the five layers of clothing I was wearing (sports bra, long johns, long-sleeved heavy T-shirt, button-down hiking shirt, and heavy jacket)!

But, we were all glad for the opportunity!