Rain walk to the rain pond (Mt Yabashira & Amaike)
Hike date: September 26, 2026
Determined to test out my new hiking boots in the rain, I headed to the slippery boardwalks of North Yatsugatake and the Amaike rain pond. With the rain driving down I was regretting my decision as soon as I arrived at the free parking lot at Mugikusa pass (2,100 metres). The temperature on the car dashboard read 9 degrees outside. Still I had come that far so I put on my rainwear and stepped out into the deluge.
The hike starts by circling a small pond on wooden boards that wouldn’t look too solid even in dry weather. It didn’t get better as a large part of the walk to Amaike consisted of endless wooden boards laid over moss-covered rocks. It really was a struggle to stay upright and I made very slow progress. This whole area is an ancient volcano that’s been weathered and eroded over the millennia and I was admiring the volcanic craters and rocks when I wasn’t watching my footing. Eventually I arrived at Amaike, which as ever was completely deserted. I’ve been there many times before but had never seen it so swollen with rainwater. A little more rain and the circuit walk will become impassable. From Amaike I made a quick diversion to the equally deserted Mt Yabashira before doing the circuit of Amaike and heading back to the car park over Mts Shimagare and Chausu, which I’d climbed on a different hike a couple of weeks back. I was pretty wet by the time I got back to the car and the new boots needed drying out. Still I don’t think many boots could have survived the sustained soaking they got today. It rained throughout the length of this 12-km hike, in which I saw only one other hiker.
Check here for more information about Mt Yabashira and Amaike.
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