REPORT

In the middle of the recent September three-day weekend, I spent the day hiking up to the Hakuba Oike alpine lake. Emerging from above the clouds around the Ginreisui water source, I found myself suddently thrust into a world of autumn, with the leaves of nanakamado (Japanese rowan), tsutsuji (azalea), and kaede (maple) starting to turn, and the low-lying grasses and bushes at their colorful peak. With the large number of hikers out for the weekend, I observed people going up giving way to those coming down, and vice versa, in those areas where the route narrows on the rocky eastern slope of Mt. Hakuba Norikura (pictured).
[Hiking Route to Hakuba Oike・Eastern Slope of Mt. Hakuba Norikura]

On the final portion of the climb up the eastern slope, all of the remaining snow had melted away, and the surface is now entirely clad in boulders (pictured). The outer surface of the rocks was surprisingly cool, and during a short break I was able to cool off by resting against them. I also noticed that a number of the nanakamado at the base of the eastern slope had seeming lost their leaves before they had turned color, possibly because of the limited rainfall this summer.
[Hiking Route to Hakuba Oike・Eastern Slope of Mt. Hakuba Norikura]

I was able to see the ridgeline of the Ushiro-Tateyama Mountain Range from near the summit of Mt. Hakuba Norikura (pictured) despite the occasional cloud coverage. I spoke with a group of three people from Fukuoka and Aichi prefectures who were taking a commemorative photo at the summit cairn, who told me, “We were worried about the weather when we started climbing, and we certainly didn’t expect it to be this good when we got up here! Today we’re planning on going all the way up to Mt. Shirouma.”
[Hiking Route to Hakuba Oike・Mt. Hakuba Norikura]

Ultimately I arrived at the Hakuba Oike mountain hut around lunch time, some 4 hours after departing from the Tsugaike Visitor Center. It was there that I noticed a lot of people taking long breaks near the tent sites and on the shore of Hakuba Oike, where the autumn colors had begun to transform the landscape. I myself joined them, and enjoyed a rice ball complimented by the aroma of cup noodles carried in my direction by the wind.
[Hakuba Oike]https://www.hakuba-sanso.co.jp/language/hakubadayori_en.pdf

　
[Tsugaike Nature Park Opening Information]
＊Business Period … 6/3 (Sat.) 6/4（San.）to 10/22/2023 (Sun.)
＊Business Hours … Tsugaike Ropeway 8/28 – 9/1 8:00-、9/2 & 9/3 & 9/9 & 9/10 & 9/16 – 9/18 & 9/23 & 9/24 & 9/30 7:00-
＊Fees … Round trip use of the Panorama Way (gondola & ropeway) + Nature Park entrance / Adults JPY3,700, Children JPY2,100 → Adult Advance Discount Tickets JPY3,300, Children JPY1,850! (Advance Discount Tickets are usable as-is! Proceed directly to the gondola for immediate boarding.)

[Hakuba Tsugaike WOW! Opening Information]
＊Business Period … 6/10 (Sat.) to 10/22/2023 (Sun.)
＊Business Hours …9:00－16:00 (Last entrance 15:00)
＊Fees … Tobidasu (One Time) JPY1,000 / Fumidasu (One Time) JPY800 / Kabedasu (One Time) JPY500 / Amidasu (60 min.) JPY1,600 / Kogidasu (One Time) JPY2,000 / Pochadas (90 min.) JPY2,800 Children JPY2,500 / Tent sauna (90 min.) JPY1,200
　
[TSUGAIKE Outdoor Village]
＊Business Period … 6/10 (Sat.)－10/22/2023(Sun.)
＊Facilities … GLAMPING FIELD TSUGAIKE, LANTERN CAMPING FIELD TSUGAIKE, Hakuba Tsugaike WOW!, Tsugaike Ropeway, Dog Run, Tsugaike Golf Center
　
＊Tsugaike Nature Park & WOW! will be reported 1－2 times a week
＊Click here to purchase photos found in this report
　　
reported by Snownavi