今回は、富士五湖と忍野八海の合計6湖を目指しました。
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| ④Mokosu-ko（本栖湖） |
案の定、わたくしAceは遅刻ギリギリに新宿駅に滑り込み。いざ、目的地へ出発～。
初日5月1日（日）はあいにくの天気。
富士五湖、1つ目は本栖湖。あつあつのワカサギがおいしかったー。雨にぬれぬれ、スクーターをこぎこぎ、2つ目の精進湖に到着。バスの本数が少ないのが誤算・・・ついに日が暮れそうになったため、本日の旅はここまで。河口湖近くの宿泊地へ。Heroは3度もチャレンジしたが、毎回浴場は使用中。そんなときもある。
二日目、5月2日（月）は晴天。朝起きたら、目の前に富士山が！！
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| Wakasagi-nam nam! |
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| ⑤Shoji-ko（精進湖） |
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| Yattaaaaaa!!! |
はりきって、出発～。まずは河口湖。そしてその勢いで西湖へ。レトロなバスにのったり、果実入りのソフトクリームを食べたり。風穴をかすって氷穴を見学。係りのおじさんに「そんなの持ってたら歩けないよ」とおどかされ（？）、愛車とバッグをおいてゆく。実際、正しい判断。中では両手、両足を駆使。
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| ⑥Kawaguchi-ko（河口湖） |
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| ⑦Sai-ko（西湖） |
午後は反対側の、山中湖、忍野八海を目指す。お昼も食べずに移動移動・・・
途中、遅れているバスを待ちながら昼寝をしたり、Heroは本日３つ目のソフトクリームを食べたり。
山中湖といえば、白鳥。そして、あわただしく忍野八海へ。その甲斐あって、お蕎麦屋さんへ滑り込みセーフ。目の前に忍野八海の池をみながら今回の旅をふりかえりつつ乾杯。
予定通り6湖達成～。
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| ⑧Yamanaka-ko（山中湖） |
This time, we took our adventure to the Fuji Lakes area, in an attempt to "kill two birds with one stone." (Come on, it's FIVE lakes at a time. You can't beat that.)
We left Shinjuku a little past 9 am, and reached Kawaguchi-ko station in the afternoon. We had no idea how useful it will be when we bought a two-day railway/bus pass. (Please please buy a bus pass if you'll ever go kick-scooting in the Fuji Lakes area, because kick-scooter alone will NEVER get you anywhere.)
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| Akaike Bus Stop near Shoji-ko: Yes, you are expected to reach there without the crosswalk and in return the bus driver will make a brave stop on the corner. |
The weather forecast proved wrong, and we were scooting all afternoon in the cold, heavy rain. On top of that, the bus schedule was ridiculously disappointing. We kept checking the bus schedule along the way, because buses came but only once every hour or two to any given stop. Also, they were never on time and some even showed up more than half an hour later than they should have. "OK," I said to Ace, "I understand that we're not in Tokyo...but wtf!!"
We gave up after Motosu and Shoji Lakes, and took a shelter near Kawaguchi Lake for the night.
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| Chicken thigh by the Lake Kawaguchi |
The next day started off with a gorgeous view of the Mount Fuji from our guesthouse window, and the rest of the day went on very fruitfully: We conquered all Five Lakes (Motosu, Shoji, Sai, Kawaguchi, and Yamanaka Lakes), and even made it to the Ice Cave and Oshino-Hakkai Springs. We never missed soft cream shops, had a chicken thigh, and then ended our pilgrimage with a quality soba noodle and good booze by the beautiful Waku-ike Spring at Oshino-Hakkai. Ah, the sheer indulgence!
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| Naturally made ice pillars in Ice Cave |
Mount Fuji is not only the highest mountain in Japan, but is also considered one of the strongest spiritual energy spots in the country. Our kick-scooters are now blessed by the holy water from heaven amidst the holy mountain and vast Sea of Trees. I would say it was worth all the sores and irritation and heat and cold and every "aagh!" and "ugh!"
Most important of all, we managed to conquer five lakes AND a set of springs, which means we added six stars to our little flag, which in turn means we donated 6,000 yen through JustGiving (http://justgiving.jp/c/6345).
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| Nine stars and counting. |
Adventure continues!!
- Hero
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