Mt. Takao is not the only mountain in the area, so time to go exploring.
This is part of the loop for Mt. Takao, and a much more hike-y kind of option, though I was not able to see Mt. Fuji from any of the summits, unfortunately.
Budget: JPY2,710 (~USD26)
JPY1,240. Train, Tokyo to Sagamiko Station.
JPY280. Bus, Sagamiko Station to Odarumi Pass.
JPY1,190. Train, Takao Station to Tokyo Station.
Hike Date / Difficulty (Elevation: 536m / 1,759ft)
July 11, 2021
Difficulty: 2 out of 5
Route below is around 9.1kilometers, with an elevation change of ▲722m/ ▽837m (3h45m)
An option (that a lot of trail runners do) is complete the loop and run from Odarumi Pass to Takaosanguchi Station.
Weather forecast: English / Japanese. I am using the nearby Mt. Takao's forecast as I cannot find the one for these mountains.
Trailheads.
Odarumi Pass (大垂水峠). Google maps pin. Google maps work. The bus stops are in the middle of the road, about 200 meters away from each other. Bus stop for those arriving from Sagamiko Station is close to the bridge, and bus stop for those going to Sagamiko Station is about 200 meters down on the other side.
Train, Tokyo to Sagamiko Station. (JPY1,240 one way)
Bus, Sagamiko Station to Odarumi pass. Bus schedule.
Only three buses on a weekend: 08:39am, 11:45am and 4:08pm. JPY280, 16 mins one way.
Alternative: There is a bus coming from Takao Station, but it stops at a different bus stop and requires an additional 2km ish walk from the bus stop to the trailhead.
08:28am. ETA: Sagamiko Station. However, my train was late and therefore missed my transfer. So now I had to reverse my hike and start from Takaosanguchi Station and end at Odarumi pass. There are three buses that comes from Odarumi Pass to Sagamiko Station (10:26am, 01:29pm, 05:54pm). So I set up my map to arrive around that time, and take a lot of breaks as necessary.
08:30am. Arrived at Takaosanguchi Station and started walking. I crossed the bridge right outside the station, and turned right. Following the map, I took a turn to the left (unmarked, and so the map was important) near the other bridge. Within about 10 meters there was a sign pointing right. Look for "四辻". I had to pass next to the house, which was weird. The first leg was a continuous ascent to reach the ridge.
08:50am. Arrived at "四辻". Turned right. From here on, follow the signs pointing to 草戸峠, and then 草戸山.
10:07am. Arrived at 草戸山. From here, follow the signs pointing to "大垂水峠". There was plenty of ups and downs, and bypasses to skip some peaks. So basically you can summit them all, or skip half of them. All gentle slopes, nothing technical. Plenty of benches all over, and I took a lot of naps and breaks.
01:25pm. Arrived at Odarumi Pass. Had to cross the bridge, and right below it was the bus stop. From Sagamiko Station. Since I am going to Sagamiko Station, the bus stop was about 200 meters down (the slope is quite obvious, so I walked to the path going down).
01:32pm. The bus arrived (a bit late), and thankfully they had IC card because I forgot to bring cash. Soon enough the bus arrived at Sagamiko Station, and was on my way home!
The unmarked turn. I turned left here, then turned back to take a picture.
A couple of meters in, there's a sign and had to turn right.
The path I had to take up.
Started ascending up.
Beautiful ridge.
Some steep ups and downs.
See?
Plenty of signs all over.
The summit of 草戸山
Summit marker.
Plenty of trails like this - on the right is the ascent to the summit, and the left is the bypass to skip the up and down.
Plenty of benches all over too. Perfect for a nap!
Dragon seat.
Great trail, really.
Best viewing spot.
Another summit and a marker.
Obora summit.
The bridge. On the left - close to the car, is the bus stop from Sagamiko Station. Had to walk down for the bus stop going to Sagamiko Station.
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