robert j. mang cycling/travel

I’ve done some great climbs over the years: Alp d’Huez, Tourmalet, Stelvio, incredible passes on the Tibetan Plateau… and Fuji competes with the best of them. A 22 mile climb, 7220 feet of gain, an unrelenting 8 to 10% grade the entire way, with a few 12% spots just to make sure I didn’t get lazy.  I swear to God, went it did occasionally hit 5% for short while, it felt like a relief.  3.5 hrs up, and 50 minutes down. 

This was my first sighting of Fuji-san when cycling to Fujinomiya the day before. 

And this is what I saw for the first two hours riding up the mountain. Fortunately I have two very bright blinking rear lights so I wasn’t worried about people not seeing me. 

 Then the mountain came into sight. 

But, when I got to the top, the mountain kept ducking behind the fog once again. It was difficult to coordinate the timing when Fuji-san was visible, I was near the sign, my bike was near the sign, and I was able to find somebody to take a picture. This will have to do. 

~ by Robert on October 4, 2014.

Posted in Cycling Japan, Japan, Travels
Tags: cycling, Cycling Japan, touring