Yotei-zan to Sapporo

3:15am came much to early. Actually, 3:15am is ALWAYS early. At home I'm even just getting to bed then! But there was lots of noise above me and I got up and ready. Slower than the Japanese, and they were ahead of me on the trail, but when I stepped out into the pre-dawn, it was all worth it. I looked down at the top of the clouds. I could see far, far over the horizon. It was spectacular, and only got better as I turned to follow the trail towards the sunrise. At first it was fairly steady, then it was all up hill again between trees and bushes, over rocks and roots. But I had no trouble, and all around me I was alone on top of the world. Mist would blow past me, so thick and sudden like it had physical form. The light slowly changed, and as I came over the ridge, I was looking down into a giant crater. I followed the trail still higher, saw red light above me, and as I came over the crest I was bathed in sunlight. The sunrise itself was ordinary, but what it did to everything around was amazing. Looking behind me, I could see the sharp, distinctive shadow of the mountain spread out below me, and still, we were on the top of the world.

I said hello the the Japanese hikers, they were curious what I was doing there, I explained how I was travelling around in August and Yotei-san was close to Otaru, then I headed down slope to do part of the crater curcuit. When I arrived at the other side, the clouds there were even thicker, and the wind even harsher. I took my pictures then headed towards the same trail down. It was just the same as going up, abusive and unrelenting. But I stopped and rested, had lots of time that day with such an early start, passed hikers coming up, always with a friendly konnichiwa. I had not brought enough food with me, and ate a lot of my high-energy snacks on the way up, so I was pretty exhausted. I had to be extra careful not to make mistakes, but still, I was so worn out by the end, that the only time I slipped in the mud and fell on my pack was on the last stretch of almost flat trail.

Back at camp, most of the botany training group had gone to the lake to swim. They were leaving that afternoon and had spent the last two days exploring the area around camp, drawing, collecting, etc. They asked about the mountain, but nobody had to say much as we all knew how spectacular and challenging it was. My plan before staying at the hut had been to do a day hike up and down (so glad I didn't do that, don't think I would have made it actually), then get up early the next day and ride trains all day out to Akan National Park. But with change came the new plan to go only part way on a train that afternoon, stay a night in Sapporo, then continue east. It was a long ride anyway, and that made it slightly easier. As luck would have it, they were also headed to Sapporo and offered me a seat on the bus! Ya!

The group had a big farewell meeting, interesting to hear, as one thing Peter said that stuck in my mind was about nutrition. Nutrition for the body, but also nutrition for the sprit, and how nature is a guide in that. They wanted a big group picture, and since I was the odd one out, I was the photographer and took group shots with about a dozen different digital cameras.

We then loaded up the bus, man my pack is big, maybe I'm carrying too many socks? and away we went. I slept a little, not sure how long the ride was, but everything was smooth up until we were 10 minutes away and the bus driver rear-ended a van at a stop light. Not a big deal, but this being Japan, and a hired bus, we had to stop and wait for a policeman to come and make an accident report, then everyone on the bus had to write down their contact information before we could go.

Reaching Peter's hotel, there were many thanks and farewells exchanged all around, then I was walking through Sapporo on my way to the main train station and information center. I got a lot of stares along the way, carrying a big backpack through the streets, but I enjoyed the sights. It was a busy city, signs and lights everywhere, but also more spread out than a place like Osaka. With a large park in the middle, and the iconic Sapporo radio tower (which is dwarfed by buildings around it unless you're at the right angle). No problem finding the station and went to the information desk for help with trains. I'm using a special discounted ticket, the 'seishun juhachi kippu', which allows for unlimited train travel within a 24-hour period on certain trains, and I wasn't sure which ones to take to my destination. They were very helpful and figured everything out for tomorrow. I then stopped and had a big bowl of ramen, something I was craving on that mountain climb, then headed to my accomodations for the evening, the i-cafe.

Japan has been innovative in many areas, and differnt places to rest or spend the night is definately one of them. i-cafe is an internet cafe and manga-kissa (comic book salon), but its also 24-hours and has things like a shower, free drinks, snacks, food, private booths for computer usage/tv/video games, and sleeping. So right now I am sitting in a cubicle-like enclosure (with sliding door), a reclining chair, and a computer in front of me. I'm here for the night, updated this blog, and tomorrow I will be riding trains all day from 7am to 8pm, then camping lakeside in Akan National Park.

My only concern right now is my camera. I still have lots of space, but I forgot the cable to transfer images off onto my usb drive! So until I find a place with a SanDisk card reader (i-cafe had a reader but not the right type), photos can only stay on my camera.