YAMANASHI, Jun 30 (News On Japan) –
The gates to Mt. Fuji are actually open for the climbing season, and guests are flocking to the mountain’s base.
Kengo Nishina, Announcer: “Tour buses are arriving one after another, and tourists are pouring in.”
Visitor from Yokohama: “There are so many foreign tourists, it’s really lively.”
Shopkeeper: “It’s exciting and a bit worrisome, knowing it’ll get busy.”
As the climbing paths to Mt. Fuji put together to open, guides will be seen shoveling snow close to the summit.
Guide Shoveling Snow: “There’s about three meters of snow here.”
This yr, nonetheless, there are noticeable modifications.
Announcer: “At the 5th station, there are now retractable gates. Next to them, there’s a sign saying, ‘Stop Bullet Climbing.'”
The largest change includes new climbing guidelines. This is footage from final yr, exhibiting lengthy strains of climbers, a lot of whom tried to achieve the summit in a single go, ignoring dangers. To handle over-tourism and the surge in bullet climbers, new rules are being launched this yr. A brand new entrance charge of two,000 yen will likely be carried out, and the variety of climbers will likely be capped at 4,000 per day. The gates will likely be closed from 4 PM to three AM the following day.
At the Safety Guidance Center past the gates, preparations are underway, with hopes excessive for a profitable season.
Masatoshi Haneda, Mt. Fuji Manager, Fujiyoshida City: “Last year, over 20% of climbers were unprepared. Around 30,000 people passed through during the closed gate hours. We expect the numbers during these hours to decrease this year.”
Already, the brand new rules are impacting the mountain huts on the eighth station.
Yoshikage Inoue, Taishikan Mountain Hut: “Reservations filled up much faster this year compared to last year.”
With a reservation, climbers can enter no matter gate closures or entry restrictions. This has led to huts being practically absolutely booked nicely upfront. While the opening of the climbing season is eagerly anticipated, Akimitsu Saito from the Fuji Five Lakes Office, who climbed Mt. Fuji for a survey this week, emphasised the necessity for warning.
Akimitsu Saito, Fuji Five Lakes Office: “As of the 26th, there’s still snow on the mountain. Rockfalls can occur at any time, and the risk increases with heavy rain during the rainy season.”
A physique discovered close to the summit was recognized as a person who went lacking earlier this month whereas climbing.
Source: ANN