Hiking Around Tokyo

I wanted to do another hike on the Izu peninsula since it had been a year since my last visit. Looking at my Mountains of Shizuoka guidebook, I noticed a peak I had never done above Toda Pass at the start of the Nishi-Izu Skyline. In May 2015, I had driven this scenic road to climb Mt Daruma, and in April 2017, I had walked from Amagi to Funabara Pass at the end of the Skyline. This time, I could connect the two passes, thus completing another section of the Izu-sanryosen Trail and summiting all the peaks along this nature trail. Most of the hike would be inside the Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park with views of Mt Fuji, the Izu Peninsula, the Numazu coastline and Suruga Bay.

Hiking in the Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park

富士箱根伊豆国立公園

Start of the Hike (left) Trail Below Mt Kinkan (right)

Path for Heda-toge (left) Trail Past Heda-toge (right)

I decided to walk North to South although I’d have my back to Mt Fuji most of the way. First, the buses ran more frequently along the road running through a tunnel under Funabara Pass, thus allowing for a more flexible end time. Second, I’d be facing away from the sun, an important consideration on an exposed hike through open grassland. I also chose to start halfway up the mountain even though the Izu-sanryosen trail officially starts at Niji-no-Sato, 8km away and 300m lower down. First, that part of the trail seemed to follow roads more closely; second, it was too warm to start hiking up from a lower elevation. Hopefully, I can return one day to complete this part, perhaps during the Autumn leaves season.

Hiking the Izu-sanryosen trail

伊豆山稜線歩道

Steps for Mt Kodaruma (left) & Mt Daruma (right)

Steps for Mt Koki (left) Steps from Funabara-toge (right)

To get to the start of the hike, I’d ride the Tokaido Shinkansen from Tokyo to Mishima station, and there, change to the Izu-hakone Sunzu line. At Shuzenji, I’d board a Tokai bus for Heda, a port town in West Izu, and get off at the Mt Daruma Highland Rest House, about half an hour from Toda Pass. For the return, I’d walk downhill for thirty minutes to the Funabara Pass Entrance stop, from where I’d catch a bus back to Shuzenji onsen, where if time allowed, I’d take a hot bath at the recently renovated Hakoyu. The weather was supposed to be sunny all day but with temperatures peaking at 25 degrees in the lowlands. I was looking forward to getting some spectacular views on a new route in a familiar area.

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View from the Mt Daruma Observatory

Forested Section at the Start of the Hike

It was the perfect Spring day as I rode the Shinkansen from Tokyo Station. I boarded the half full bus shortly after 9am for the half an hour ride to the Daruma-yama Kogen Resthouse (だるま山高原レストハウス 628m). After checking out the view of Mt Fuji and Suruga Bay from the Mt Daruma Observatory (despite the name it’s 4km from the top of Mt Daruma), I set off at 10h30 along the Izu-sanryousen Trail (伊豆山稜線歩道 meaning the Izu mountain ridgeline footpath), a 43 km nature trail connecting Amagi Pass with Shuzenji Onsen.

Following a Firebreak through the Forest

Trail for Toda Pass and Mt Kinkan

I was glad to be away from the crowds of the resthouse, few people venturing onto the nature trail. The first part was along a grassy firebreak, the light green grass contrasting nicely with the light blue sky, here and there pink shakunage and white kamatsuka flowers adding extra colour to the scenery. After about 15 minutes of gentle climbing, I reached the top of a small rise from where I could see the top of today’s first mountain straight ahead; standing on a rock protruding from the ground, I could see Mt Fuji above the trees to the right. I soon reached a narrow paved road past which log steps led straight up the forested mountain side.

Mt Kinkan and its Relay Station

View from the Top of Mt Kinkan

I was relieved to be in the shade for this climbing section, mid-may feeling more like mid-june. Shortly after passing a relay station on the right, I reached the summit of Mt Kinkan (金冠山 きんかんざん kinkanzan), shortly after 11am. The view was similar to the one from the Mt Daruma Observatory, but now I could also see Heda Port to the West. Mt Fuji was blue in the distance and its snow cap, receding quickly in this season, seemed to be floating in the sky. After a short break, I retraced my steps to the paved path and turned right. I soon reached Toda Pass (戸田峠), and after carefully crossing the road, made my way up some steps in the far corner of a parking lot.

Paved Path for Toda-toge

Trail past Toda-toge

From this point the trail was mostly out of the forest. I had frequent views of the West Izu coastline, and looking back, Mt Kinkan and Mt Fuji. I passed other hikers in both directions as I was now on a popular section of the trail. After alternating several easy flat sections and tough log step sections, I passed the summit of Mt Kodaruma (小達磨山 890m), completely in the trees. After a short descent, the trail ended at the Nishi-Izu Skyline, but continued a few meters further, straight up a rounded hill covered in bamboo grass. At 1pm, I reached the summit of Mt Daruma (達磨山 だるまやま daruma-yama), a Shizuoka 100 famous mountain, for the second time.

Looking back at Mt Kinkan

Looking down at Heda Port

I spent a few minutes taking in the 360° panoramic view: looking north, I could see the route walked from Mt Kinkan, with in the background, Mt Fuji slowly fading in the midday haze; westwards was Heda port on Suruga bay, a cluster of buildings surrounded by forested ridges; to the south lay the rest of today’s route, rolling hills interlaced with the Nishi-Izu Skyline; finally, on the East side was the heart of the Izu peninsula, culminating in Mt Amagi. It was a windless, blue-sky day with not a cloud in sight and I felt quite warm even on a mountaintop. I sat on a rock for a quick lunch with a view but soon moved on to escape the heat and the constant coming and going of people.

Walking up Mt Daruma

Looking back near the Top of Mt Daruma

The descent on this side was shorter and easier, and after a short section along the Nishi-Izu skyline, the trail rejoined the undulating rideline. At 2pm, I passed by Mt Koki (古稀山 920m), a low-prominence peak with a good view of Mt Daruma. I soon continued on my way, and after some ups and downs, ended back on the skyline. When planning the hike, I was worried about the road sections but thanks to the grassy shoulder and little traffic past Mt Daruma, it felt relatively safe. After some welcome level walking, I reached Mt Garan (伽藍 867m), more of a plateau than a peak. The trail resumed on the right side, allowing me to cut out a wide bend of the road as it wound down the mountain.

View North of Central Izu past Mt Daruma

Nizhi-Izu Skyline (left) & Mt Koki (center)

This was probably the best part of the hike, the trail cutting through bamboo grass “sasa” fields, the mountains of central Izu rising in the far distance; to the right, I could see the rugged outline of the west Izu coastline disappearing into the distance. I saw no one else along this section adding to the sense of wilderness. After a short descent through forest, the trail ended on the skyline again. I turned left and followed it as it continued to lose altitude. This was the longest road section of the hike but I saw almost no cars or motorcycles. At one point, the vegetation vanished on the right side and a wide view opened up to the South.

Mt Daruma from near Mt Koki

Walking through the Sasa Fields

This was one the best views of the hike, rolling ridges covered in a mix of pale yellow grassland, evergreen forest and dark green cedars, the Amagi volcanic mountain range appearing in blue in the background. Just before 3pm, I spotted a thick square wooden signpost, typical of trails in the area, marking the entrance of a grassy track leading into the forest on the right. It passed near the top of a cliff created by a landslide; through the trees on the left side, I had the last view of the day of a forested valley, hidden from the outside world. At the bottom of a steep staircase, I popped back onto the skyline but soon turned right onto another hiking path through evergreen forest.

The West Izu Coastline from the Izusanryosen Trail

A Mix of Grassland, Evergreens and Cedars from the Skyline

Shortly after, I reached the top of the last log staircase of the day, taking me down, for once, to Funabara Pass (舩原峠), also known as Toi Pass (土肥峠), which I had also passed through on my 2017 hike. After a short break in the shade of an open shelter, I followed the road eastwards, as it headed down into Kamo River Valley. It was a pleasant walk in the shade of tall cedars, few cars to disturb the silence. A little before 4pm, the quiet road I had been following merged with the busy main road form Toi town, also the location of the Funabara Pass Entrance (舩原峠口) stop. After a short wait, I boarded the bus for Shuzenji Onsen.

Grassy Track through the Forest

Trail before Funabara Pass

I had a refreshing hot bath soak at Hakoyu (筥湯), situated in the center of the Shuzenji Onsen, my first visit to this famous hot spring resort. The spacious wooden bath under a high sunny ceiling helped further enhanced the relaxing atmosphere. Afterwards, I climbed to the top of the neighbouring 12-meter-high observation tower for a better view of the town, and also dropped by Hie Shrine with its towering cedars and votive tablet “ema” vending machine. It was a short bus ride back to Shuzenji station where I boarded the Sunzu line for Mishma; there I caught the shinkansen for the 40-minute ride back to Tokyo station.

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