鍋割り山 Nabewari Mountain - Part 1

Recently, my hiking partner and I piled into the car and drove to the Tanzawa mountain range at five in the morning. We arrived at our destination, the base of Nabeawari mountain by 6:30 am.

Nabewariyama is 1,277.5 meters high. The climb is very steep (see a fellow hiker's GPS profile of the mountain HERE.)
Our trek for the day would take approximately 10 hours and cover 17 km round trip.

Map showing the route:

• From the start, to the first mountain, Nabewariyama (labeled "1" on the map above), is approximately 3.5 hours one way. 
• From the summit of Nabewariyama, to the next mountain, Tonodake (labeled "2"), is 1 hour, one way. 
• At each summit, we allowed 20 ~ 30 minutes of rest time. 

This hike is quite easy for the first 40 minutes; we only had to hike along a gravel road. Signs mark the route every kilometer or so; as long as you can read the kanji, you will never get lost.

The gravel road:

The first signpost leading the way:

Nabewariyama is shown on the bottom sign, pointing left.

I divided this mountain into three stages:

Section 1) "water + sound", due to numerous waterfalls you will pass.
Section 2) "森 (mori = forest)" as you hike through huge, towering pine trees, and finally,
Section 3) "HARD", as it is the most difficult, very steep and a bit dangerous in rainy or wet weather.

In the first section, you hear the sound of falling water constantly, due to many waterfalls. In spring, after the winter snow melts, these waterfalls are bound to be even more beautiful.

One hidden waterfall:

After climbing for 10 minutes more, we came across this stone bust, showing one of the pioneers of trekking in Japan. Next to the statue was a wooden board explaining more in Japanese. Some previous hikers left their walking sticks, waiting to be passed on to other hikers.

Hiking sticks waiting to assist climbers:

As mentioned earlier, the lowest section of the mountain features the theme of "water". We passed many waterfalls, each varying in size, but all powerful in sound. This section is perhaps the most beautiful of the entire climb and can be rated very easy. Families with small children can easily hike this route and enjoy the sound of water falling.

Another waterfall...

...and another:

The gravel road soon ended at a river crossing. Before crossing, one can find this small house:

It's an information box. Hikers are encouraged to write their name, the members of the their hiking party, the date and time they begin their hike. I've never seen any cards inside and it's not mandatory to submit this information. These cards are mainly for police or emergency services if there is an accident.

Next to the mini-house, was this signpost (see above), which I would call the actual start of the hike to Nabewariyama. It's 3.6 km, which doesn't seem so far, but is deceiving. The trail is very steep, narrow and can be dangerous in wet weather. There are no rest areas until reaching the summit. It should be climbed by people with some previous experience and those who are in very good physical condition. Trust me, it's tough.

Check back again tomorrow to see more from Nabewariyama. ^_^

How to get there: 
Time Out Tokyo has a short article explaining how to get to Mt. Nabewari. Click this LINK to see.
If you go by car, arrive early. As soon as we started our hike at 6:50am, four cars pulled into the small parking area, and it became full. 

Waterproof hiking shoes are a must due to many river crossings. 

A fellow blogger, Japantrekker, also wrote a good post about this hike. You can read about his hike HERE.