It was the rainy season in Kamikochi, but it cleared up! My mountain hut debut at the dreamy Tokusawa-en | Day 1

On a weekend in late June, I spent 3 days and 2 nights staying at Tokusawa-en in Kamikochi and hiked all the way to Karasawa Cirque. Although it was the rainy season, I was blessed with good weather for all three days. In this article, I will share my thoughts on Kamikochi and the events of Day 1.

Why go to Kamikochi?

My first encounter with Kamikochi was seven years ago, during my first year as a working professional.
When I went to visit a friend living in Matsumoto, we happened to visit Kamikochi because we wanted to go somewhere a little further away.

I was amazed when I went.
The clear blue Azusa River, the sound of the murmuring stream, the refreshing air like natural air conditioning, and the magnificent mountains. I was exhausted because I had been drinking until late the night before, but it was so wonderful that the fatigue just blew away. It felt like I was absorbing nutrients that I could only get from this nature.

Since then, I have visited Kamikochi several times. Basically, I went on day-trip bus tours. I think it was on my third visit that I walked from Kappa Bridge to Tokusawa-en, and I was captivated by the comfort of the place and how stylish it was, which I wouldn't expect in the middle of the mountains, and I decided that I absolutely wanted to stay there someday.

My goal for 2025 is to stay in a mountain hut.

Time passed, and in the autumn of 2024, I got into mountain climbing and started climbing more frequently than before. When I thought about what I wanted to do in 2025, I started to want to stay in a mountain hut and climb further and higher. When I thought about where to stay, the first place that came to mind was Tokusawa-en in Kamikochi.

I suddenly thought of it in March and tried to make a reservation. As a mountain hut beginner, I wanted a private room, and it happened to be available on Sunday and Monday, so I booked it immediately. (The dates around other weekends were already almost fully booked.) I made the reservation for two nights by phone.
If I was going to stay at Tokusawa-en, I decided to make a round trip to Karasawa Cirque, which I had always been curious about.

Wait. The reservation date was right in the middle of the rainy season.

I made the reservation in March. The stay date I booked was in late June. I had completely forgotten when I made the reservation that late June is right in the middle of the rainy season. Moreover, when I looked into it carefully, it was heavy rain on the same day last year.

I spent the two weeks before my departure staring at the weather forecast every day, feeling happy and sad, wondering what the weather would be like this year. Then, about two days before, the probability of precipitation in all the weather forecasts started to drop, and it finally became a sunny forecast! Yay!
(*Mountain weather is changeable, so don't let your guard down.)

Off to Kamikochi!

I've talked passionately in the introduction. Finally, the 3-day, 2-night Kamikochi to Karasawa
Cirque trip, Day 1 begins.

There are various ways to get to Kamikochi, but I took the direct "Sawayaka Shinshu-go" bus from Shinjuku Busta to Kamikochi Bus Terminal. It was a bus trip of about 6 hours. There was an outlet for charging, so it was comfortable.
It departed at 7:15, and due to traffic, it arrived at 13:00, about an hour later than scheduled.

Day 1 Itinerary (Kappa Bridge - Myojin - Tokusawa)

Bought snacks at a souvenir shop near Kappa Bridge

When hiking, it's important to replenish nutrients so you don't run out of gas. If I'm going to replenish nutrients, I want to enjoy local specialties. So, as soon as I arrived, I bought yokan, rice crackers, nuts, and other things to eat as trail food at a souvenir shop. (The next day, the hike was so hard that I was saved by this salted yokan.) There is a place where you can get free water, so I gratefully took some water and started.

The journey to Tokusawaen

The route from Kappa Bridge via Myojin to Tokusawaen is about 5.5km and takes about 2 hours to walk. The path is basically flat and very easy to walk on. A child around 3 years old was walking with their father. There were also many foreign tourists.

While I was taking a break at Myojin Bridge, there was a man playing the guitar, and I was so healed by the harmony of the sound and the murmuring of the river. I understand the feeling of wanting to play. Although I've never played the guitar.

I am healed by the scenery even while walking. The Azusa River is always clear and blue whenever I see it.

We are supposed to arrive at Tokusawaen by around 16:00. At first, I was walking slowly, but I realized I was dawdling too much, and in the end, I walked fast and managed to arrive at Tokusawaen at 16:00. I woke up about 4 hours earlier than usual (I usually wake up late) and arrived after walking with a backpack for a 2-night, 3-day trip, so I felt a sense of accomplishment even though it was Day 1. Lol

Is this a mountain hut!? Finally at the long-awaited Tokusawaen

Finally, I arrived at Tokusawaen. The lobby has a nice scent. And antique interiors welcomed me. What is this place? It's too wonderful. By the way, Tokusawaen is the setting for Yasushi Inoue's novel "The Ice Wall" and is known as the "Inn of the Ice Wall."

Room introduction

A very wonderful room. It even has a terrace. This is my first time staying in a mountain hut, and since I have to walk for a long time from early the next morning, I want to get a good night's sleep. Moreover, I am a delicate person who can't sleep if I'm bothered by other people's snoring, so a private room is even better. So, although it was a high price for a mountain hut, I decided to cover the accommodation costs with my daily overtime pay. (I think I work in front of a computer every day so that I can pay for things like this)

In addition, there were toothbrushes, bath towels, towels, yukata, and even samples of Amino Vital, so everything was provided.

Dinner is too luxurious

Now, the long-awaited dinner. I'm starving.

Is this a mountain hut?? (Nth time) I think, with dishes of vegetables, fish, and meat from Shinshu served in wonderful vessels that make you feel the season.

Everything was delicious. I usually only have one bowl of white rice, but for the first time in a while, I polished off two. I'm over 30, but I might have been eating with the intensity of a middle schooler at a summer sports camp.

There was also soba, but I missed the chance to take a picture...

Lights out is at 9:00 PM

I took a bath and prepared for the next day. I went to bed at 9:30 PM that night. I usually work overtime at night and often don't get to sleep until after 1:00 AM, so I don't know how long it's been since I went to bed at 9:30 PM. Super healthy. The next day, I had to wake up at 5:00 AM. I was super worried about whether I'd be able to wake up.

For someone like me who stays cooped up and works on a computer all the time, I realized that it's good to have activities once in a while where you're forced to go to bed early at a mountain hut and move your body from early the next morning.

Well, in the next Day 2 article, I'll bring you the details of the round trip from Tokusawa to Karasawa Cirque and the second day of staying at Tokusawa-en. Was the person who used to wake up at 8:30 AM able to wake up at 5:00 AM and go hiking in the morning?