The Mount Fuji of Hachijojima

What?
Hachijojima (八丈島) is one of the volcanic Izu Islands (伊豆諸島) located south of Tokyo (東京). The island is shaped like a bra well filled, with the beautiful conical Mount Hachijo-fuji (八丈富士) to the northwest and the bulkier Mount Mihara (三原山) to the southeast, and the small narrow slap of land in between dominated by the airport. Currently some 7000 people inhabit Hachijojima, having dwindled down from approximately 12000 in the late 60’s. Mount Nishi (西山 which means west) is 854 meters high and is much more known under the moniker Hachijo-fuji because its resemblance to the one and only Mount Fuji. Shape-wise the comparison might make some sense, but climbing Hachijo-fuji is much easier, and might I add, more impressive.
Where?
Despite its remote location, Hachijojima is part of bustling, urban Tokyo Prefecture (東京都). The island can only be reached either by ferry, or airplane from Haneda airport. I chose the latter for convenience and after landing immediately set out for the trailhead of Mt Hachijo-fuji. The path to the outer rim of the volcano crater is an easy 1200 steps climb.
URL
Tokyo Islands Natural Parks in Tokyo

The end of corona (fingers crossed) means that I must work during the more comfortable seasons of the year. Planning my trips gets a little trickier that way, and it is the reason why I undertook this far-flung journey during the rather unstable rainy season in June.
The rainy season here in Japan doesn’t mean that it rains a lot every day; it just means that there’s a 1 in 2 chance of rain, whether it’s a drag like in Belgium or a typhoon – that doesn’t really matter. I took the risk because hiking can be done in the rain and waterfalls tend to be easier to photograph with a little drab weather.

Boy, was I lucky with this first day.

The original plan was to arrive at noon in Hachijojima, go to the hotel and sleep away my hangover. But with this fantastic weather I needed to make the best of it and headed out immediately after landing for an amazing hike.
I say hike, but it never really gets tough. The path towards the top is made out of – admittedly badly maintained – stairs, and walking around the crater doesn’t involve much ups and downs. There was a very strong wind though - as can be expected from the highest point on an isolated island, and the path is very small and beautifully overgrown with lush greenery that a sure footing is not a luxury.

Looking back during the climb - perfect visibility!

It's like the end of an escalator - what will be there at the top?

Someone following the path along the rim.

The inhabited valley and Mt. Mihara on the other side.

Anyway, I was absolutely blown away, yes, partly by the wind, but mainly by the sheer beauty of this volcano. Walking here was an absolute delight and I kept on stopping to take even more pictures that all fail miserably to portray the mountain’s beauty. Generally, I had fantastic views, apart from when I wanted to take a closer look at the nearby uninhabited Hachijokojima Island which was shrouded in grey clouds for most of the time. But even then, weather changes so fast here that after a while the clouds had passed and the mountainous island became visible again.
After circling the outer rim, I briefly ran down into the crater to visit a small shrine. It was just like entering Jurassic Park. Apart from the dinosaurs, that is.
Also here, there are some amazing views of the crater’s walls. I think it’s possible to explore more of the inside of the crater, however I didn’t really see any clear paths so I just called it a very satisfactory day and headed back to the airport.

Some shopping and a shower later I was in my hotel room snoozing away, hoping for the weather to continue to smile down at me.