Hiking in North Kanto

Continuing on the quest to climb Japan's Top 100 Mountains list as well as dodge the heat in Tokyo and Kanagawa, I went up to North Kanto for a week and climbed five peaks: Mt. Nikko-Shirane, Mt. Hotaka, Mt. Tanigawa, Mt. Makihata, and Mt. Hiuchigatake.

This trip spanned from Gunma to Tochigi, then Niigata, and finally Fukushima. The distances as a crow flies for each hike, and even between trail heads and campgrounds, is relatively short, but the mountains are steep and the roads are curvy, so it takes a surprisingly long time to get anywhere... Which is just as well, because what's the rush? There's a lot to be discovered: campgrounds with no cell signal, bears, monkeys, foxes, good views, peace & quiet, cicadas, rain on the tent, wind. That's why I come up here.