Karasawa Cirque Trail I The Best Autumn hike in Kamikochi Japan
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- Опубликовано: 5 сен 2024
- Karasawa Cirque trail, located in Kamikochi region in Nagano, is a 32-kilometer long with a total of 800 meters elevation gain. The geography term “cirque” means a crescent-shaped or bowl-shaped valley, with steep sides, formed by glacial erosion. Karasawa Cirque is one of the most gorgeous spots in Kamikochi for Koyo (autumn leaves) viewing, located at an altitude of 2,300m above sea level.
The best time to see autumn leaves around the Karasawa area is usually from late September to early October. It is also an important base for climbing to the peaks of Hotaka Mountain.
Our hiking itinerary is as below :-
Day1: Kamikochi Kappa-bashi Bridge - Tokusawa - Yokoo Sanso - Karasawa Cirque
Whatever hiking plan you make, ensure that you are able to reach the mountain lodge or campsite at around 2-3PM (or the latest at 4PM). Karasawa Hutte and Karasawa-koya are the most popular ones for those going to Karasawa Cirque, owing to its location and superb views. During the ‘Koyo’ season, it is so crowded that you might have to share one futon (bed) with other two strangers. Reservation is available 1 month prior (by phone only).
Anyone going further than the flat area of Kamikochi needs to summit a trekking itinerary. The mailbox is located at the entrance of Kamikochi Information Center, next to the toilets. There are forms for filling provided at the post. But our advice is to download the form online and fill it out beforehand for a smoother process.
From Kappa bridge to Yokoo Sanso, it is about 10 km long and it takes about 3 hours. This section is mostly a flat area with gentle slopes, making it the perfect warm up before the real hike.
Finally, after about 6 hours of hiking, we have now reached the Karasawa Cirque! The sceneries before our eyes are just a big wow factor! The Hotaka mountain range looks so close to us (although you need another 4 hours hike to reach Mt. Oku-Hotaka, the highest peak of Hotaka Mountain).
Very beautiful and informative video. Your style is nice
@@02GreekIslands Thanks for the comment. Motivates me to create more quality video
Subscribed! Great Video. I am definitely thinking of this hike.
@@explainedshow thanks.. Really worth it especially during the autumn season
chill and beautiful..and can smell the fresh air
Worth going. Even if you dont hike Kamikochi alone is good enough.. Will publish a video on this place soon
beautiful hike....looking forward to seing your next part of the video as I am also thinking of going to mt. hotaka
Hi, May I know which date of October did you do this hike?
we were there early Oct. The autumn leaf is at their peak in the middle of the climb. At Kamikochi the autumn leaf is best at mid Oct.
Many thanks for your sharing. I've been to Japan many times, but never know about Karasawa Trail. Will check and go for it next time!
awesome! if i may ask, when did you climb to karasawa cirque?
@@MissTitaC we were there around end if Sep last year. Have to time it to concide wth the peak of autumn leaf. Going there again this coming sept
@@crewexplorer planning to hike there early october. great help!
@@MissTitaC there could be snow even end sept. If you intend to climb further to hotaka peak then make sure you bring along snow spikes. If only to karasawa then no need
@@crewexplorer ohhh. i won't climb further. i intend to stay in karasawa only. thanks much for this info.
hi, may i ask if it’s possible to complete round trip within a day? thanks
Wow, such a beautiful hiking trail. The color of autumn foliage is awesome. Is it difficult to go up all the way from the bridge to the hut?
The 3 hours climb from the bridge to the hut is quite tough. It is not very steep but it is constantly climbing. If you are worried about the challenge, suggest to stay in Yokoo hut instead of kamikochi
Thanks for your great sharing. It really give us motivation to do the same trip in future. I am just curious, it seem we can wild camp without needing to mandatory stay at the hostel. Right?
Yes we can camp there without any permits. There are also toilet facilities for camper but may need to pay a bit to use them. I forgot the price. The place is really surreal. Worth going there