As a rule, we prefer independent travel, but today, we opted for a private tour. We had an excellent day with our guide, Taka, from www.hokuroku-works.com. Taka was delightful company, and well informed, able to share with us so much more detail than we would have gathered by ourselves. He took us to some out of the way places that we would never have discovered.

Our excitement started even before he picked us up, with some fantastic views of Mount Fuji, Fuji-san, from the balcony of our accommodation.

Taka picked us up at 8:30, and we went first of all to a little spot by the side of Lake Kawaguchico, where we had another excellent view of Fuji-san, as well as the town of Kawaguchiko and the lake of the same name.

Our next stop was at a local shrine, Asama Jinja which was founded in 865 after a major eruption of Mt Fuji which changed the landscape forever. It was a lovely shrine surrounded by ancient Japanese Cedar trees, some of which are older than the shrine.

Qoonel+ is a glamping site run by a friend of Taka’s, which allowed us access to their terrace with fabulous views. We stopped for fresh peach juice and then walked to a nearby waterfall. The waterfall is associated with a Shinto shrine, but there’s also a tiny Buddha statue almost hidden in the waterfall. 

Koyodai  Observatory is an old resthouse with a rooftop terrace that provides 360 degree views of the surrounding hills and lakes. The access road is narrow, steep and winding, and I was glad not to be driving, but the effort was worthwhile.

Before the 865 volcano, 3 of the 5 lakes in this district were one huge lake. The lava flow from Fuji-san almost filled this lake, creating the 3 smaller lakes we see today, and a vast lava plain. Taka took us to see Ryugu Cave (Dragon Cave), formed by the lava flows cooling and solidifying. A shrine inside the cave honours the goddess of water – in Japanese mythology dragons are associated with water, and not fire. Set in a dense forest and surrounded by moss covered rocks it was a place of outstanding beauty and we all agreed it was our favourite stop of the day.

Ryugu Cave Entrance

We paused on the shores of Lake Saiko, and then a floral park on the shore of Lake Kawaguchiko to enjoy the scenery and some wildlife before getting dropped back at our accommodation.

I won’t blog about every meal, but food is an big part of the cultural experience. Tonight we ate at a restaurant recommended by Taka, called Amano. We had to remove our shoes, but fortunately there were chairs on the tatami mats, The speciality is eel, which was grilled, and we also had a pot of soup with chicken and cabbage. I have included the before and after photos of the eel.