88 — Hodaka-dake 3190 m

23 July 2023

Start point: Kamikochi

End point: Shinhotaka hiking parking lot

Distance covered: 26.4 km

Time: 7h 46

Vertical gain/descent: 2115 m

Weather & visibility: sunny & clear

Good for: camping with a view, holy mountain vibes

Not having the car allowed me to take a bus into Kamikochi after spending the night in my favorite Nagano city, Matsumoto. Kamikochi is a great starting point to make it up on the Hodaka massif to tick off its highest peak Oku-Hodaka. At first, I was passing people in heels and dresses, but soon enough, all this was behind me. On route, there was the Nishihotakadake peak, for which I left my bag at the intersection and journeyed together with the nicest Japanese man that I kept on meeting at the Hodake hut and at Karasawadake the following day. The camping was excellent, as was the walk down to the Shinhotaka hiking parking lot the next day, although it was rough pathfinding at some points. This Shinhotaka hiking parking lot is one I have visited many times in my life as it is next to one of my favorite Japanese inns in the Kita Alps, simple, rustic, and in the mountains. At that gorgeous inn, I would wait for Gergana, who would come from Switzerland to hike Kasa-ga-dake with me.