Another Day in the Mountains

The slow ritual of packing.

Thursday night. Raingear. Torch. Cooker. Cup. Tea. Sun protection. Sunglasses. Map of Tanzawa. Photocopies of trail descriptions. Two water bottles. Old Uniqlo fleece. Spats. Hiking pole. Rucksack cover. Electronic dictionary. Pens. Music. Insect repellent. The camera and the hat. Old friends. The pleasure of unrushed, loving preparation. Extensions of the self. The plan becoming real.

The smile of the weather god.

Saturday morning on the Odakyu Line again. My Odakyu Line. Not a crowded weekday commuter hell. A route to happiness. Just after 6am. Youngsters, still well behaved, going home from the night before. Oldsters going to the work, others to the mountains. Sunshine coming in the train windows. Most getting off at Sagamiono, leaving the train and the ones that are left to go on to the mountains. A glance outside. Sun alone is not enough. The skies must be cloudless, too. And they are.

Putting in the hours

At the Okura bus terminus groups of lively old folks are doing stretching exercises. At any given time, Okura must have the highest population density of middle-aged and elderly stretchers in the world. To the mountain. Idiot's ridge. The steps. Quick Tanzawa rising. Already the surrounding urban world in view. Beyond the forest layer. Neverending steps. The engine of the body beginning to purr. Water. Chocolate. Sunglasses. Photos. A stream of friendly hellos, and the ones who say nothing. The spirits rising with the sun. Fuji suddenly appearing. Putting in the hours. Doing the work.

The quiet exhilaration of the peak

And then the work is done. The peak. Fuji to the South, majestic. Old men setting up tripods. Monks chanting sutras. Another bustling mountain hut. Hikers cooking up lunch. Photos, the inner happiness of a small but uncompromised achievement, and the hunger of a farmer coming in at lunchtime from the fields.

Ruling the world

A kingdom below you, stretching out before your eyes. A belly full. Energy levels restored. A camera half-full of new memories. Exercising the body and the mind. No computer screens or soulless offices anywhere. A return to your proper position in the healing, revitalizing and benign dominion of the much maligned sun. Memories of childhood, when you ruled the world.

The first signs of decline

Back into the forest layer. A darkening and cooling of the world. The first strains on the legs. Twinges of pain from old injuries. A mind beginning to wander. First lapses in concentration. The waning time. A time to avoid mistakes.

Enough

Late afternoon. Body tired. Forests no longer inspiring. Hunger back again. The thought that comes to me every time: "I can't wait to get off this fucking mountain."

The satisfaction of return to the place you wanted to leave

At the Okura bus terminal, they're stretching again. Satisfaction and winding down. The end of another day in the mountains. The bus ride out, pleasant as ever. A time for choosing your music. The happiness of going home.

Posted by Setsunai at April 26, 2005 11:30 AM | TrackBack