Fuji San Kicked My Ass

Don't be fooled by its picture perfect beauty - Fuji-san is an EVIL MOUNTAIN, and no human should ever attempt to climb it. Unless they enjoy pure torture!

I am going to open a new station on Mt. Fuji, which will be located shortly after the 6th station (the 5th station is the starting point for most climbers). My station will be called TURN BACK NOW. It will give all the stamps on your climbing stick, so you can tell people you reached the top, and we will also superimpose your face into a photo from the top. There will be a loudspeaker system so you can heckle all the fools who decided to keep climbing, and video feeds of them as they suffer and trudge along. There will also be a full bar and a onsen (Japanese public bath.) Once my station opens, no one will bother to climb Fuji anymore, which is a good thing! Trust me!

Ok, so it wasn't all bad...once my leg muscles have recovered enough to the point where I can sit down on the toilet and stand up again without needing to use my arms for support, and walk up and down stairs without experiencing severe pain, I will likely have some perspective and be able to remember the good points of the climb. Watching the sunrise over the horizon from 3500 meters up almost made me cry...that alone probably made it worth it...almost.

I will write about the whole experience and post photos soon...