CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
239 km from Fujikawaguchiko to Fujikawaguchiko, about 5 h 28 of riding. On the way it passes Lake Yamanakako, Fujisan, Fuji Sengen-jinja Shrine and Suyama Sengen-jinja Shrine. The stored terrain estimate reaches about 1,050 m; a measured road-elevation profile is not available.
Slow enough to look. The surface follows the shoreline, so the corners arrive where the water decided, not where an engineer did. Water arrives beside the road and stays for 21 km. The line follows the shore because there is nowhere else for it to go.
Mount Fuji was never meant to be seen only from a distance, and the shrines at its foot are where the older idea of the mountain as a god survives. The Kawaguchi Asama-jinja sits among tall old cedars on the north side, near Lake Kawaguchi, one of the five lakes that ring the mountain's northern foot, and it is one of the shrines that were used by pilgrims before they began the climb. The deity honoured at the Asama shrines is Konohanasakuya-hime, the princess of the blossoming trees, who is linked with the mountain and its volcanic fire.
Read the complete Kawaguchi Asama-jinja Shrine write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Kawaguchi Asama-jinja Shrine is where the day begins. Next is Lake Yamanakako.
Yamanakako is the largest and highest of the Fuji Five Lakes, lying at nearly a thousand metres at the eastern foot of Mount Fuji, and on a clear winter morning, with the snow cone of the mountain mirrored in still water, it delivers the view that sells a million postcards. The lake was formed when lava flows from Fuji dammed the valley, and it is shallow, with reed beds, swans and boating piers along the shore. In summer it is a cool escape from the heat of Tokyo, busy with families, rowing boats and lakeside cafés; in winter the crowds thin and the mountain is at its most impressive.
Read the complete Lake Yamanakako write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Lake Yamanakako comes up about 19 km into the recorded legs. Next is Fujisan.
At 3,776 metres, Mount Fuji is the highest mountain in Japan, and its almost perfectly symmetrical cone has been a sacred symbol and an artistic inspiration for centuries. UNESCO listed Fujisan in 2013 as a cultural site, a place of worship and source of artistic inspiration, rather than for its natural beauty alone, recognising the shrines, pilgrim trails, lakes and springs around the mountain, and the woodblock prints of Hokusai and Hiroshige that made its image famous around the world.
Read the complete Fujisan write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
about 67 km into the recorded legs you reach Fujisan. Next is Fuji Sengen-jinja Shrine.
On the eastern side of Mount Fuji, in the village of Subashiri, a shrine has stood at the start of the pilgrims' path for more than a thousand years. The Fuji Sengen shrine, often called Higashiguchi Hongū, the eastern main shrine, marks the beginning of the Subashiri trail to the summit, and pilgrims traditionally prayed here before starting their climb. The shrine is set in a forest of tall cedars and old trees, with a red gate, wooden halls and a quiet, spiritual atmosphere, and it is one of the components of the Fujisan UNESCO site, recognised as part of the mountain's cultural and religious landscape.
Read the complete Fuji Sengen-jinja Shrine write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Fuji Sengen-jinja Shrine, about halfway. Next is Suyama Sengen-jinja Shrine.
On the southern flank of Mount Fuji, above the town of Susono, a quiet shrine stands among tall cedar trees at the start of one of the oldest climbing routes on the mountain. The Suyama Sengen-jinja is dedicated to the goddess of Fuji and marks the beginning of the Suyama trail, used by pilgrims for centuries before falling into disuse in the twentieth century and being partly revived in recent years. It is one of the component sites of Fujisan, Sacred Place and Source of Artistic Inspiration, listed by UNESCO in 2013.
Read the complete Suyama Sengen-jinja Shrine write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Suyama Sengen-jinja Shrine sits at 74 km, about halfway. Next is back through Fuji Sengen-jinja Shrine.
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Fuji Sengen-jinja Shrine write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
back through Fuji Sengen-jinja Shrine comes up about 138 km into the recorded legs. Next is back through Fujisan.
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Fujisan write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
about 172 km into the recorded legs you reach back through Fujisan. Next is back through Lake Yamanakako.
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Lake Yamanakako write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
back through Lake Yamanakako, late in the day. Next is Kawaguchi Asama-jinja Shrine.
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Kawaguchi Asama-jinja Shrine write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
The route ends here after 239 km.
Kawaguchi Asama-jinja Shrine → Lake Yamanakako is 19 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Lake Yamanakako → Fujisan is 48 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Fujisan → Fuji Sengen-jinja Shrine is 35 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Fuji Sengen-jinja Shrine → Suyama Sengen-jinja Shrine is 18 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Suyama Sengen-jinja Shrine → back through Fuji Sengen-jinja Shrine is 18 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Fuji Sengen-jinja Shrine → back through Fujisan is 34 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Fujisan → back through Lake Yamanakako is 49 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Lake Yamanakako → Kawaguchi Asama-jinja Shrine is 18 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.