Day 6: Tateyama (ii)
The weather forecast stated that it would rain, and boy, it did pour. We were really looking forward to explore the area, the rain dampened our moods a lot.
Pouring rain =((
Snow corridor view from the bus
We made it to Murodo in one piece, nothing too difficult as directions were very clear and there was shelther all the way. (The bus driver held an umbrella to cover the open area between the boarding curb and bus, impressive.)
Our accomodation for the night was
Mikurigaike Onsen.
There are 3 places you can stay at Murodo
1.
Hotel Tateyama
- Right on top of Murodo station.
2.
Mikurigaike Onsen
- 15mins walk from Murodo station
- Cheaper at around 9000-10000yen per night, excellent reviews
- The blog is very interesting as well, do check out the link on the official site.
3.
Raichousou (雷鳥荘)
- 30mins walk from Murodo station
- Around same price as Mikurigaike Onsen, excellent reviews but fewer reviews (perhaps due to its distance from the station)
*Raichou (雷鳥) is actually a bird named "rock ptarmigan". You can find them on Tateyama if you are lucky. Apparently, its feathers turns white during winter season, and will slowly turn into its original colour of spotted brown as the weather grows warmer.
Anyway, one important point to take note is, there are no proper pathways from Murodo Station to Mikurigaike Onsen or Raichousou when there is still snow, be prepared to hike up and down on slopes of snow.
When we reached Murodo Station, I asked a counter lady on how to get to the onsen. She mentioned nicely that I had to go to the third level of the station, exit there (only one exit), and take the marked parth (only one path) and walk for 15mins. Despite the rain, we happily walked to the exit. We were a little stunned by the endless slopes of snow in front of us but decided to give it a go anyway.
That was our first time walking on snow (it was more like ice...) and the pouring rain didn't help either. We barely walked 100m after 10mins, and the wind and rain were getting bigger with no one else in sight. We decided that to head back to the station and ask for help.
Another counter lady kindly advised us to call the onsen for a guide so we used to a public phone to call the onsen. Luckily we had the phone number noted down. The internet connection was rather weak inside the building.
The onsen staff were extremely nice. They even checked with us what we were wearing, and promised a guide who would reach in 30mins. We were very ill-prepared on hindsight, with only waterproof jackets, gloves and Timberland shoes that were not made to walk in deep snow.
While waiting for the guide, we went to send our postcards from the second highest postbox in Japan! (I am guessing that the highest is Mount Fuji.) There were a lot tourists as well, mostly Taiwanese tour groupds, doing the same thing.
The guide from onsen appeared 20mins later with waterproof parkas and pants, thick waterproof gloves and even visors. (And if I made add, he was a very good-looking guide.) He even offered to carry our hand lugguage for us! A lady happened to be heading towards the onsen too so the four of us set off.
My friend and I were really really slow but they were very nice and made sure that they were not wakling too far ahead. As we walked back to the station the next day, we still couldn't believe how we managed to make it to the onsen with all the rain, wind, slush and steep slopes. We were glad that we decided to call up, Given the terrible weather conditions, it would have been a dangerous walk for people who are not used to walking in snow. The hotel staff speaks some English so please don't hesitate to call them up if you aren't sure.
