One of Japan's 100 Famous Mountains, formed of enormous granite pinnacles at the western edge of the Okuchichibu range. From Mizugaki Sanso via Fujimidaira, you look up at Oyasuri-iwa on the way to the rocky summit ridge.
Source: GSI tiles (Geospatial Information Authority of Japan) ／ The route is the editor's measured YAMAP activity track (GPX).Some sections have GPS-log gaps, shown as dashed (estimated straight) lines.Scroll-zoom is enabled after you click the map.
Location & access
Coordinates are the trailhead and summit points from the editor's own GPS track.
Watch
Editor's note
Mt. Mizugaki is a 2,230 m peak standing at the western edge of the Okuchichibu range, one of Japan's 100 Famous Mountains. With countless rock pinnacles and towers formed by the weathering of granite, it is a distinctive mountain quite unlike Yatsugatake or the Southern Alps. Here I climb this famous peak, which rises in the editor's home town of Hokuto City (Sutama), and set down what I found.
I walked it in the residual-snow season, at the end of March. From the Mizugaki Sanso car park, I passed Fujimidaira, dropped once into the valley of the Amadori River, and after Momotaro-iwa the steep rocky section just below the summit began. Looking up at Oyasuri-iwa, I followed the chains and ladders to the rocky summit ridge. Chain spikes were indispensable on the residual snow and ice, while from the top the view opened out grandly to Mt. Kimpu, the Southern Alps and Mt. Fuji.
The editor's measured time, including breaks, was about 4 hours 47 minutes (departed 06:10, summit 8:29, back down 10:57). The distance is short — about 2.7 km one way — but the summit area is a continuous run of rock, making it an intermediate mountain. Combining it with Mt. Kimpu (2,599 m), where the path divides at Fujimidaira, is a way of enjoying the western Okuchichibu that is all its own.
Because the distance is short it tends to be underestimated, but just below the summit are rocky sections with chains and ladders. In the residual-snow season chain spikes were essential. It is a popular mountain, so get to the car park early. Watch for wet and frozen rock, and enjoy it with a plan that leaves plenty of margin.
Routes
The classic route: starting from the prefectural Mizugaki car park and Mizugaki Sanso, you pass Fujimidaira Hut, drop down to the Amadori River, and push up to the summit from Momotaro-iwa. The distance is fairly short, but just below the summit there is a continuous run of rock, chains and ladders. In the residual-snow season the editor walked, chain spikes were essential.
The routes to Mt. Mizugaki and Mt. Kimpu split at Fujimidaira Hut. Starting from the same Mizugaki Sanso, many people also combine it with Mt. Kimpu (2,599 m) on a separate day or with a hut stay — a popular base in the western Okuchichibu.
Editor's record
The editor's actual timings on this hike (from the video record). Use them as a guide to course times.
History & culture
Mt. Mizugaki is a 2,230 m peak standing at the western edge of the Okuchichibu massif, and one of Japan's 100 Famous Mountains. Located in Hokuto City, Yamanashi, it is known for its distinctive form, with countless rock pinnacles and towers formed by the weathering of granite.
Oyasuri-iwa, Momotaro-iwa, Fudo Falls and other giant and oddly shaped rocks are the highlights. Starting from Mizugaki Sanso and Fujimidaira at its foot, it is often climbed together with Mt. Kimpu (2,599 m), the principal peak of the same Okuchichibu range. It is a forested mountain that does not reach the tree line, but the summit area is a continuous run of rock, and from the top the view opens out to Mt. Kimpu, the Southern Alps and Mt. Fuji.
Access from the Hokuto (Sutama) side is good, and it is one of the famous peaks of the editor's home area of Hokuto. It has also long been enjoyed as a climbing crag.
Photos
All photos were taken by the editor on the actual hike. Tap to enlarge.
A giant rock appearing on the snow-covered trail. Mt. Mizugaki is a mountain of granite pinnacles (around 1,820 m).
Climbing through snow, rock and a backlit forest belt (around 2,060 m).
Looking up at the rock pinnacles of Mt. Mizugaki through the trees (around 2,160 m).
Just below the summit, a path of rock and residual snow (around 2,200 m).
Standing on the summit of Mt. Mizugaki (elevation 2,230 m), with the rock pinnacles and ranges of Okuchichibu behind.
From the summit rocks, a view over the ranges and rock pinnacles of Okuchichibu.
On the descent, heading down through the snow-covered forest belt (around 1,960 m).
Descending toward Fujimidaira (around 1,710 m).FAQ
