Fuji is the city at the foot of the mountain, and the mountain dominates everything. On a clear winter morning, the great snow-capped cone rises straight up behind factory chimneys, rooftops and rice fields, so close and so huge that it seems painted on the sky. The city itself spreads across the coastal plain on Suruga Bay, where the fast, wide Fuji River meets the sea, and it is an industrial place, long known for its paper mills fed by the abundant water that flows from the mountain.
The water is the key to the region. Snow and rain soak into the porous volcanic rock of Mount Fuji and re-emerge years later as cold, clear springs that feed the rivers and the factories. Next door, in Fujinomiya, the Fujisan Hongū Sengen Taisha, the head shrine of the mountain's sacred tradition, sits beside a spring pool that fills with this water, and pilgrims once began their climb there. Fujinomiya is also famous for its own chewy style of yakisoba, and the fishing port at Tagonoura is known for shirasu, tiny whitebait served raw or boiled over rice.
The riding begins once you leave the plain. Route 139 climbs north from Fujinomiya across the Asagiri plateau, through dairy farms and grasslands with the mountain looming over them, past the Shiraito Falls, where water pours from the rock in a curtain of white threads. The road continues to Lake Motosu and the Fuji Five Lakes, where routes around the lakes lead to the Misaka Pass and the view-filled roads above Lake Yamanaka. The climb is gentle and well surfaced, with long sweepers and good sightlines.
Timing is everything for the view. Fuji is often hidden in cloud or haze, especially in summer, and the best chances are in the early morning and from late autumn to early spring, when the air is cold and clear. Winter brings frost and occasional snow on higher roads, so check conditions. The coastal plain is busy with lorries, and the Tomei and Shin-Tomei expressways run through the city, convenient but tolled.
Fuji has fuel, convenience stores and restaurants everywhere, though petrol stations in the mountains are fewer and some close early in the evening, so fill up in the city before you climb. Remember that Japan drives on the left, and that the mountain roads can be busy with tourists on weekends and holidays.