Mt Daibosatsu (大菩薩嶺)
Mt Daibosatsu (大菩薩嶺, Daibosatsu-rei) is a Hundred Famous Mountain with stunning views of Mt Fuji. Its short course also makes it a great daytrip from Tokyo for beginner hikers. With an elevation of only 2056m it can be climbed for more months in the year without snow as well.
I climbed it in November of 2022, and took the loop course which will only take you 3 - 4 hours. You can go in either direction, and since the hikers ahead of me went counter-clockwise I opted to do the same.
About an hour after beginning my hike I reached Daibosatsu-toge (大菩薩峠). On that day I could see what looked like a sea of clouds covering the town below. By this point I was taking a lot of photos.
… but little did I know, all I had to do was head a little further along and then you get to see the iconic Mt Fuji with the Kamihikawa Dam in the foreground.
This area wasn’t as crowded as the peak itself was, and so it was a great spot to take a quiet snack break while you soak in the view of Mt Fuji.
Beyond that is some comfortable hiking along the ridge before you finally reach the peak of Mt Daibosatsu. With no tree coverage I could imagine this being pretty hot if you went in the peak of summer, but it was enjoyable in the autumn weather.
Finally you begin the descent, and this portion was probably the only annoying bit, as you had to navigate your way around a lot of rocks.
In terms of which way you want to walk this course, I guess it’s a matter of personal preference. Either you finish off with these rocks or get them out of the way at the start of your hike - but I was happy with doing it at the end rather than at the beginning!
I sped through this hike in under 3 hours and had a lot of time to spare after I was finished, so I got some soba from a store near the bus stop.
Since this was my second ever solo hike, I still had a lot of nerves going into it, hence why I opted for the shortest possible course. Daibosatsu-rei is definitely a mountain I want to visit again, but next time with a longer course!
If you’re looking to see Mt Fuji I also recommend climbing outside of summer since your chances of seeing it increase in the colder months.
Hiking course details
| Date climbed | Length | Course time |
|---|---|---|
| 2022-11-02 | 7.5km | 3h45m (the expected time for an average hiker without breaks) |
If you want to try another course, there are longer trails that have you start and finish at different bus stops.
There are toilets available at the trailhead.
Public transport access with example schedule
Here is the 2023 bus schedule.
| Time | Location | Transport | Cost | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 06:01 | 東京（とうきょう） | Train | 1980 | |
| 08:03 | 甲斐大和 (かいやまと) | |||
| 08:10 | 甲斐大和 | Bus | 1020 | |
| 08:51 | 上日川峠 (かみひかわとうげ) |
The shuttle bus was cash only so make sure to bring small notes + loose change.
15:45 is the last bus back, so depending on your speed and how long you rest at the summit you may be able to get one of the earlier buses.
| Time | Location | Transport | Cost | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15:45 | 上日川峠 | Bus | 1980 | |
| 16:30 | 甲斐大和 | |||
| 16:42 | 甲斐大和 | Train | 1020 | |
| 18:44 | 東京 | |||
| Trip total: | 6000 |
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