乗鞍岳 - Norikura - 10/20/2024

NOTE: This blog article is posted out of order in the activity listing. GoDaddy websites apparently will not allow me to reorder this prior to my 2025 postings.

My Experience: Driving from Takasaki, I arrived in the late afternoon to heavy rain and cloud cover. I stayed at Guesthouse Akari in the Star Sky ゲストハウス 星空のあかり which is linked to a much older and unused lodge (with exception of the onsen, hot springs there). The stay was nice...the owner bought the building and designed it to be a comfortable and welcoming lodge with all the amenities needed for hikers. For only $50, I enjoyed it.

To be quite honest, for this trip from October to November, I did not have the time to devote to it nor hiking as I had wanted. I was at the end of working for a horrible company in the US software industry. That said, I had about half day devoted and caught the first bus up the mountain (which takes about 45 minutes) and makes several stops along the way. With exception of buses and taxi's, vehicles are not allowed up the mountain. Therefore, for future consideration, you could start hiking further down the mountain coming from both sides (Gifu and Nagano). The roads however are available for cyclists which makes me jealous since I don't currently have my road bike here.

My hike route is located here on AllTrails. As the description outlines, the hike is fairly easy. There is nothing technical about this hike however I did see some other western tourists where very flat footed converse or street sneaker type shoes (and they were slipping everywhere). https://www.alltrails.com/explore/recording/morning-hike-fd272fe-367

Hike route was about 6 KM and total moving time was less than 2.5 hours (not considering bus travel to and from the Norikura Kogen Tourist Information Center のりくら高原観光案内所.

If you consider bus + hike maybe plan for 4.5-6 hours (depends on how fast/long you hike and how much time you stay on top to

Demographics

Volcano No. - E63

Volcano name - Norikuradake

Geologic code - Q3m

Main activity period - Calabrian (second half of Early Pleistocene) - Holocene Activity period / recent activity ***From 1.3 Ma.

Latest eruption - ca. 500 yBP

Volcano type - Composite (compound) volcano, Lava dome

Representative rock type - Intermediate

Main rock type - Andesite, Dacite

Height above sea level - 3026 m (Kengamine)

Location (Prefecture) - GIFU, NAGANO - Latitude (WGS84)36.1064E. Longitude (WGS84)137.5533

Active volcano name by JMA - Norikuradake

Record of eruption & disaster - 3 confirmed Holocene eruptions

Additional comments - None

(Source - Geological Survey of Japan)

About

Mount Norikura (乗鞍岳, Norikura-dake) is an active volcano located on the borders of Gifu and Nagano prefectures in Japan. It is part of the Hida Mountains and is listed among the 100 Famous Japanese Mountains and the New 100 Famous Japanese Mountains. The mountain is located on the borders of Gifu and Nagano prefectures in Chūbu-Sangaku National Park. The Norikura Plateau borders the mountain on its northern side in Nagano Prefecture. The mountain, whose name means "riding saddle," received its name because its shape looks like a horse saddle. It is known for being the easiest to climb among the mountains in Japan that are above 3000-meters. Mount Kengamine (剣ヶ峰 Kengamine), one peak on the mountain, was formed in two eruptions 9,600 and 9,200 years ago. Mount Ebisu (恵比寿岳 Ebisu-dake), another peak, was formed during an eruption 2,000 years ago. Though the volcano has lost some of its eruptive power, volcanic gas is still escaping through the Yū River (湯川 Yū-gawa) and there are many onsen areas (hot springs spas) in the surrounding area. 

(Source: Wikipedia)

Geological Summary

Norikuradake volcano consists of an elongated group of small andesitic stratovolcanoes and craters arranged along a N-S line above a ridge crest in the southern part of the Northern Japan Alps. The 3026-m-high andesitic-to-dacitic volcano is the third highest in Japan and lies at the center of the Norikura volcanic zone extending from Yakedake on the north to Ontake on the south. Early eruptions occurred at both the northern and southern ends of the present-day volcano, forming stratovolcanoes that have been largely buried by later southward-migrating eruptions. It was active during the early Holocene, and the last eruption took place about 2000 years ago. 

(Source: Smithsonian Global Volcanism Program)