Together into the Wild. I guess we asked for this.
After all the closed mountains. We finally started this part walking towards the mountains of Daisetsuzan. From Bukabira we followed a nice forest hiking path. It started raining. The first time while hiking, until now we have been really lucky with the weather. But we do not mind the rain, we know the plants need it, and we will dry up again. By the end of the day we had reached our first campsite. We could have continued, but there was no reason to rush. Roel even ended up chatting with a motorcyclist while I enjoyed the quiet surroundings. It was a calm start, unaware of what the coming days would bring.
The following morning we discovered a shortcut that saved us several kilometres of road walking. Every step took us closer to the mountains. The signs of wildlife appeared just as quickly. Bear droppings were scattered along the road and when we arrived at the trailhead at the parking area we found a wooden information board that had clearly been chewed apart by bears. We wanted to camp there but it suddenly didn’t feel like a great idea. Instead of stopping, we decided to climb the first mountain and go to a designated campsite at the top. We knew it would be a long day when we continued.
The forest was beautiful, but our backpacks reminded us that we were carrying food for an entire week. Every step became heavier. Since Roel carries al the food in the bearbag we shifted some stuff to my bag. Slowly we remained climbing. Finally on the top we couldn’t stay long, the wind was cold and it started raining. When we finally arrived at the place of the campsite on the map, it was already getting darker. We were walking on a ridge, looking around, searching for anything that looked like a place to put the tent. We were exhausted, we were out of water and we had no idea where we would spend the night. After searching for a while we found a windy spot on top of the ridge. It wasn’t much, but it would have to do. Roel walked back down across a steep snow slope to collect water from a pond below, only to discover that the actual campsite had been hidden there all along. If only we had known earlier. Too tired to cook, we settled for a handful of nuts before crawling into the tent. Sleep never came. The wind shook the tent so violently that even our sleeping mats moved across the ground. Pegs pulled loose during the night and every loud gust made us wonder whether the tent would still be standing by morning.but every time we are feeling down like this, nature makes up for it. When daylight finally arrived, the mountains greeted us with one of the most beautiful mornings. Clouds filled the valleys below while the surrounding peaks slowly emerged into the sunlight. Despite barely sleeping, it was impossible not to stop and admire the view. The difficult start quickly faded into the background.
We hiked further and enjoyed being in the mountains. On the top of Ishikaridake we looked around and as far as we could see, there were mountains. Even the ones we past weeks ago. The visibility was extremely good. We heard stories about people only walking in the mist. But we had days of sun, clear skies and amazing views!
It even got better when Roel suddenly stopped walking. “I heard something.” We hear another low growl. A few steps later we spotted two Ezo brown bears. One, darker than the other, growled again before both quietly moved towards the bushes. Instead of approaching us, they hid themselves, occasionally sticking their heads out to see whether we were leaving. It was a surprising and funny sight. We waited but they stayed in the bushes, waiting for us to leave. So we did.
Not much later we spotted another bear. This one hadn’t noticed us at first, but after he did, he calmly wandered across the slope, digging for food and eating patches of snow. We were lucky enough to watch its behavior for several minutes before it slowly disappeared over the ridge.
We were still excited about the three bears, when we spotted a fourth bear. This one was quicker, as soon as he realized we were there, he sprinted into the bushes. We have seen 9 bears total on Hokkaido.
The mountains continued to amaze us. High ridges stretched endlessly across the landscape, with breathtaking views in every direction. But eventually the trail descended into something completely different.
Bamboo or Sasa. At first it reached our knees. Then our shoulders. Eventually it towered above our heads. There was still a trail somewhere beneath it, but every step required us to push with all our strength through dense sasa. It felt less like hiking and more like swimming through vegetation. The plants pushed back just as hard as we pushed forward. Then we noticed fresh bear tracks in the mud. After seeing four bears earlier that day, hiking through dense bamboo where visibility was almost zero felt even worse. We called out regularly, hoping to avoid surprising another bear. The hours passed painfully slowly. Our water ran out. Fatigue from the previous day caught up with us and neither of us had recovered from the sleepless night. Every muscle hurt and the bamboo and trees leave bruises on our legs.
Then things became even more complicated. At an unclear junction the trail disappeared. We searched back and forth several times before realising that both safety clips of our bear spray had somehow come loose. We were shocked, we could have sprayed ourselves. We put away the walking poles. And both held our spray while putting our thumb under so it couldn’t go off. Meanwhile Roel had become dehydrated and could barely think clearly anymore. We found a muddy puddle and he filtered some water. He briefly considered staying where we were, but camping in the middle of dense bamboo, surrounded by fresh bear signs didn’t feel like an option. So I said we would keep going.
Eventually we forced ourselves through the thickest vegetation we’d ever encountered. Somewhere in the struggle we even lost our empty water bottles without noticing. Just as the last daylight started fading we arrived at a boardwalk. We could finally walk again. A little later we reached Numahara Pond. A rewarding campsite with views of the mountain tops half covered in snow. The first thing we did was drink a lot. After that we pitched the tent and cooked in the dark, while the deer inspected our campsite. A familiar part of our hiking days. Completely exhausted, we finally crawled into our sleeping bags, relieved and content that this extraordinary day had come to an end.
The next morning felt completely different. As we woke up after a good night’s sleep, the sun was already shining over the tent and mountains once again. Before packing up, I tried to think of a solution for our bear spray. After losing the safety clips the previous day, we had spent hours carefully carrying the canisters in our hands. Looking through my pack, I grabbed a few small pieces of towel, wedged them underneath the trigger and secured everything with a hair tie. It wasn’t pretty, but it worked perfectly and gave us some peace of mind for the rest of the hike.
Another surprise was waiting for us in the tent. A bright yellow dragonfly was emerging from its shell on the inside of the rainfly. His timing was perfect. Just out of its shell, Roel could safely put it in a better place in the bushes so we could take back our tent.
The trail began with peaceful boardwalks through the marshland around Numahara Pond before leading us back into the bamboo. Fortunately, this section was nowhere near as dense as the day before. Soon the landscape changed once again. Snowfields, dwarf pines, melting streams and patches of bamboo alternated throughout the day. The first steep snow slope looked intimidating, and I mentally prepared myself before taking the first step. But I noticed I am improving compared to the first snowy hills a few years ago. Still concentrated and a bit tensed in the muscles, but making progress. Along the way we spotted several mountain hares running over the snow. Another quietly sat eating flowers, completely unbothered by our presence. Moments like these made us stop and simply enjoy being there.
By early afternoon we reached a mountain hut. For the first time in several days we had time to relax instead of immediately searching for a campsite. One of the best parts of hiking in the mountains is meeting other hikers. We spent the afternoon talking with a couple from Osaka who return to Hokkaido whenever they can. They shared stories about the mountains, while we exchanged experiences from our journey. They admitted they were quite afraid of the bears. They handed us a pack of Japanese udon noodles with a delicious Japanese sauce. We cooked them at our campsite the next evening, and after another long day on the trail they tasted amazing. Later that afternoon a younger hiker arrived with her uncle. He had lost his bear spray somewhere along the trail, only to discover that the couple from Osaka had found it and carried it to the hut. The relief on their faces said everything.
That evening we slept in the loft of the hut. The next morning another snow-covered slope awaited us. We slowly zigzagged up the mountain. Higher up, the trail changed into fields of boulders. It reminded us of hiking in Norway. Between the rocks we could hear the calls of pikas. Frustrated that they wouldn’t show their sweet faces. The scenery was breathtaking, but mentally and physically I was exhausted. The previous days had taken more out of me than I realised. I constantly expected another difficult obstacle to appear. Every patch of dense vegetation made me tense, it sometimes became difficult to fully enjoy the landscape. Whenever we reached an open ridge, the endless mountain views helped me feel lighter again and Roel was excited about the terrain and experiences. And as an extra reward we actually saw a pika sitting on the rocks.
Feeling a bit charged again we continued. Unfortunately, the bamboo returned, combined with dwarf pines. Not Roel’s favorite, because of his length and needing to bend all the time. We met an Australian hiker who had clearly been battling the same conditions. He warned us that the next mountain was still covered in steep snow and ice. It wasn’t exactly the encouragement I needed. On the trail, we kept finding things that other hikers had lost in their struggle. A lighter. A toothbrush. A rain cover. Even a water filter beside the trail. We debated whether to take it with us. Would we be helping the owner if we carried it forward, or preventing them from finding it if they turned back? In the end, we left it where it was.
By the time we reached a small flat piece of ground in the middle of the bamboo. Thick mist had completely hidden the mountain we would climb the following morning. Sometimes not knowing what’s ahead is easier than imagining the worst. Morning proved that once again. The mountain wasn’t nearly as snow-covered as I had expected. It often seems worse in my imagination than it actually is. We started climbing steadily. This time it was Roel who felt more nervous about the risk of sliding down steep and long. It was another demanding day hiking. I felt tired and was just putting one foot after the other. Roel was really excited when we catched the first views of the active Mt Tokachi. We planned to go over it but just a few weeks ago the activity level was increased, so within a radius of 1,5 km all the hiking paths around the crater were closed. The view was exceptional, big plumes coming out of the landscape at multiple places. While we had a lot of vegetation this hike, this landscape was harsh and raw, and the vegetation didn’t seem to grow here.
We hiked the last km’s and arrived at a campsite with Onsen. We both went our separate way to enjoy the hot springs. The warmth on my muscles and closing my eyes to just be in that moment, for a minute not thinking about the next day of hiking.
