Mt. Bōnoore

Arriving at the summit of Mt. Bonoore from Mt. Nagaomaru, I took a short reprieve under the gazebo. It was a sight for sore eyes to see man-made structures again because that meant the trail might be a bit more maintained than the ones I did before. With much more motivation that I was going to make it on time, I started my descent. Seeing other people was also a good sign, I was happy to know that I wasn't alone and that other people were still hiking at this time. I really wanted to catch the onsen at the end to wind down so I upped my pace until I reached this epic scenery of waterfalls and the main river that led to the dam's reservoir. Navigating through this slippery environment was really challenging and fun at the same time. The energy here was really powerful but I had my wits about me and easily passed through a lot of people as I hurriedly made my way down taking paths that people would not normally take, I was really one with the mountain until I wasn't when I slipped and fell on my back. My left leg was also reaching its limit and every step had a tinge of pain it but I was already so close. Upon reaching what I thought was the end, I breathed out a sigh of relief as I started to make my way up a concrete road. After a couple of meters I checked and realized I took a wrong turn and had to go back down again to where I started and realized that the hike was far from over.

Continuing from where I left off and still following the river for another hour or so, I finally reached the end of an arduous journey. The final view was Arima Dam in all its splendor. I was half-walking and half-limping as I made my way back to Sawarabi no Yu for my much awaited and much needed onsen. I made my way into the camp and finallly made it just in time before they were closing. I got to take an amazing dip which was the perfect way to end a hike like that. I almost couldn't stand up afterwards and my left leg had truly given out and reacted in pain when I put pressure on it. I got on the bus heading back to town and on to a train back to Tokyo. It was really challenging with my leg acting up but I still got back and ate at Fuji Soba before finally taking a much needed rest, thankful that I made it back in one piece and proud that I was able to conquer such a hike.Read more