Quick Overview
Nyukasa Marsh
Although a bit of a trek from Tokyo 東京, Fujimi Panorama 富士見パノラマ and Mt Nyukasa 入笠山 is a great trip for flower lovers during spring, in particular it is famous for its Lily of the Valley, or Suzuran すずらん. During winter it becomes a ski resort, but it is still possible to climb to the summit of Mt Nyukasa 入笠山 to see the 360 degree panorama, which includes views of Mt Fuji 富士山, Yatsugatake 八ヶ岳, and the Japanese Northern, Central and Southern Alps 北, 中央, 南アルプス. The climb is really easy, with only 30 minutes up hill to the highest peak, and the rest of the trail is fairly flat with forests and marshlands.
Duration: 3 hours, 15 minutes
Difficulty: easy
Season: Suitable all year (becomes a ski slope in winter, with snowshoeing to the summit)
Starting point: Fujimi Panorama Resort 富士見パノラマリゾート
Finishing point: Fujimi Panorama Resort 富士見パノラマリゾート
Maps
This map of the hike can also be viewed at GPSies
The Hike
From Fujimi Station 富士見駅, take the exit and in the small car park there should be signs for the Fujimi Panorama Free Shuttle Bus 富士見パノラマ無料送迎バス. Just catch the bus to the lower Fujimi Panorama 富士見パノラマ carpark, about 10 minutes, buy your return gondola ticket (1,600 yen) and then walk up between the shops and then right along the bottom of the ski slopes to reach the gondola station.
Nyukasa Suzuran Garden
The gondola will take you up a fair way, and when you reach the top (Sancho Station ゴンドラ山頂駅) just follow the signs to the right towards the Nyukasa Suzuran garden 入笠すずらん公園. The garden itself isn’t very large, but it contains a number of different varieties of wild flowers. The season for Lilly of the Valley (Suzuran すずらん) is throughout June , but there are other flowers blooming all through spring and into summer.Once you are finished in the Nyukasa Suzuran garden 入笠すずらん公園, head up hill, but before starting to climb up the stairs, take the path to the right around the hill. Be careful to take the correct path, as there are actually two, one for walkers, and the other for mountain bikers who will race past, but don’t worry, its pretty obvious which is which.
Follow the path around the hill for about 10 minutes, before crossing a road, and entering a gated area. This is the start of Nyukasa Marsh 入笠湿原. Within the marsh make sure to keep to the board walks, but despite them, it’s still a very pretty area, also with a number of different flowers like irises.
Nyukasa Marsh
When you are finished there, take the exit on the opposite side to where you entered. There will be a mountain hut here where you can buy lunch and the only bathroom on the track. Continuing on, take the road to the left, and shortly there will be a path on the left through a forested area. Follow this path for about 10 minutes.
Once you leave the forested area, you will be able to see Mt Nyukasa 入笠山 directly ahead. Half of the mountain is grassland again. Keep following the path until you reach another road, and follow that up. You will come to another building that has an observatory, but keep heading up hill to the left of it. From this point it will take about 30 minutes to the summit of Mt Nyukasa 入笠山, with only one alternative trail headed left. Just keep to the right and shortly before the summit the trees will give way to the barren peak.
Mt Nyukasa Panorama
From Mt Nyukasa 入笠山 there is a 360 degree view. On a clear day you can see Yatsugatake 八ヶ岳, the Japanese Northern, Central and Southern Alps 北, 中央, 南アルプス, and even Mt Fuji 富士山. When you are ready to continue, head down the path opposite to the one you climbed up on. Walking down hill will mainly be through a bamboo area, and after 15 minutes you should reach the road. Head right, and about 5 minutes later you will see Kubikiri spring 首切清水 on the right.
Kubikiri Spring
Kibukiri 首切 actually means decapitation, and this spring was named that because couriers travelling to and from the gold mines in the area in past days would stop for a drink and have their heads cut off by bandits. Nowadays the water isn’t safe to drink, not because of bandits, but because cattle is grazed in the area.
Keep heading on the road and after about 20 minutes you’ll reach Oahara Marsh 大阿原湿原. Again, stick to the board walks here. Unfortunately you can only walk around the marsh, but it’s still very scenic, especially during the fall season. To walk around the marsh only takes about 40 minutes, and will return you to the road you were on previously. Now just follow the road back to the Nyukasa marsh 入笠湿原, taking approximately 50 minutes.
Oahara Marsh
From here, just backtrack through the wooded area around the hill for 15 minutes to return to Gondola Sancho Station ゴンドラ山頂駅.
To and From
As always, the following routes are just recommendations. Please use Hyperdia or Jorudan’s Train Route Finder to find the most suitable route for you!
From Shinjuku Station 新宿駅 you can either catch the Azusa あずさ or the Chuo Line 中央線, headed towards Nagano 長野 and Tachikawa 立川 respectively. The Azusa あずさ does the trip to Fujimi Station 富士見駅 in about 140 minutes, Unreserved seats are 5,360 yen, or Reserved seats are 5,870 yen. The Chuo line 中央線 takes approximately 230 minutes and costs 3,260 yen. On the Chuo line you will probably have to change trains 3 times to reach Fujimi Station 富士見駅, at Tachikawa 立川, Hachioji 八王子 and Kofu 甲府.
Unfortunately Fujimi 富士見 is outside of the area included in the JR Holiday pass.
On weekends and public holidays from the end of April to the start of November, and during the ski season, the Fujimi Panorama Resort 富士見パノラマレゾート runs a free shuttle bus from Fujimi Station 富士見駅 to the lower Suzuran Gondola station すずらんゴンドラ駅.
From the lower gondola station, ride it up to Gondola Sancho Station ゴンドラ山頂駅. A return ticket on the gondola costs 1,600 yen. The gondola starts running at 9:30am, and stops at 4:30pm.
Links
Fujimi Panorama Resort (Japanese) http://www.fujimipanorama.com/summer/index.php
Fujimi Kougen Tourist Information (Japanese) http://www.fujimikougen.info/
Hiking course map (Japanese) http://www.fujimikougen.info/hiking/img/02.pdf
Map of hike on GPSies http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=rqkqvzhbbypoklzm
My Flickr photo set from Mt Nyukasa http://www.flickr.com/photos/michelelisa/sets/72157624475871102/
Useful Kanji
Azusa あずさ
Chuo Line 中央線
Central Alps 中央アルプス
Fujimi 富士見
Fujimi Panorama 富士見パノラマ
Fujimi Panorama Resort 富士見パノラマリゾート
Fujimi Panorama Free Shuttle Bus 富士見パノラマ無料送迎バス
Fujimi Station 富士見駅
Gondola Sancho Station ゴンドラ山頂駅
Hachioji 八王子
Kibukiri 首切
Kubikiri spring 首切清水
Kofu 甲府
Lily of the Valley (Suzuran) すずらん
Mt Fuji 富士山
Mt Nyukasa 入笠山
Nagano 長野
Northern Alps 北アルプス
Nyukasa Marsh入笠湿原
Nyukasa Suzuran garden 入笠すずらん公園
Oahara Marsh 大阿原湿原
Shinjuku Station 新宿駅
Southern Alps 南アルプス
Suzuran Gondola station すずらんゴンドラ駅
Tachikawa 立川
Tokyo 東京
Yatsugatake 八ヶ岳
the story of an Aussie girl living in Japan, who loves travel, hiking, walking, flowers and food.
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