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CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE

Lake Kawaguchiko and Suyama Sengen-jinja Shrine

Plan this ride

Recorded distance
99 km
Riding-time estimate
2 h 10
Journey
Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis

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.

Open this ride in CurveScout

Why this ride

From Fujikawaguchiko it runs 99 km to Fujikawaguchiko; allow about 2 h 10 of riding. The stops in between: Lake Yamanakako, Suyama Sengen-jinja Shrine and back through Lake Yamanakako. The stored terrain estimate reaches about 1,050 m; a measured road-elevation profile is not available. It strings together lakeside roads.

Scenic road chapters

Lake Kawaguchiko → Lake Yamanakako

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.

Chapter facts
Length
19 km

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

  1. 1. Lake Kawaguchiko

    You can ride around Kawaguchiko in a morning and spend the next three days waiting for Mount Fuji to come out of the cloud. That is the local joke, and it holds a grain of truth: the volcano, at 3,776 metres, makes its own weather, and the summit often hides until the cold, clear hours just after dawn, especially in winter. Lake Kawaguchiko is the most visited of the Fuji Five Lakes, sitting at about 830 metres on the north side of the mountain, in the town of Fujikawaguchiko, and the classic view is from the northern shore with the cone reflected in still water.

    Read the complete Lake Kawaguchiko write-up.

    Recorded stop-planning note

    May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

    Planning note

    Lake Kawaguchiko is where the day begins. Next is Lake Yamanakako.

  2. 2. 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.

    Recorded stop-planning note

    May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

    Planning note

    Lake Yamanakako comes up about 19 km into the recorded legs. Next is Suyama Sengen-jinja Shrine.

  3. 3. 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.

    Recorded stop-planning note

    May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

    Planning note

    about 50 km into the recorded legs you reach Suyama Sengen-jinja Shrine. Next is back through Lake Yamanakako.

  4. 4. back through Lake Yamanakako

    Return visit. Read the place description above.

    Read the complete Lake Yamanakako write-up.

    Recorded stop-planning note

    May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

    Planning note

    back through Lake Yamanakako, late in the day. Next is Lake Kawaguchiko.

  5. 5. Lake Kawaguchiko

    Return visit. Read the place description above.

    Read the complete Lake Kawaguchiko write-up.

    Recorded stop-planning note

    May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

    Planning note

    Back at Lake Kawaguchiko. That is the ride.

Leg by leg

Lake Kawaguchiko to Lake Yamanakako

Lake Kawaguchiko → Lake Yamanakako is 19 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.

Lake Yamanakako to Suyama Sengen-jinja Shrine

Lake Yamanakako → Suyama Sengen-jinja Shrine is 31 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.

Suyama Sengen-jinja Shrine to back through Lake Yamanakako

Suyama Sengen-jinja Shrine → back through Lake Yamanakako is 31 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.

back through Lake Yamanakako to Lake Kawaguchiko

back through Lake Yamanakako → Lake Kawaguchiko is 18 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.

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