Mt.Haruna hill climbing(C-21)⭐⭐ ‘25.17th,Aug
This route C-21 is in Area-C, “Kanto". See Area-C map/See Japan map
Sight & Entertainment ⭐⭐⭐
Food & Drinks N/A
Easiness ⭐⭐⭐
Road condition ⭐⭐ *Slippery from No.7 – 8 section
Safety ⭐⭐⭐
1 week summer vacation was about to finish. In this summer, I planned a few cycling trips but all were canceled due to bad weather. So what I could do in this vacation was just this one day hill climbing to Mt.Haruna, relatively near Tokyo.
I took the first Shinkansen from Tokyo station and reached Shibukawa station at AM7:37 via Takasaki station which the Shinkansen stopped at(pic.1). The weather forecast said it would be fine but the top of Mt.Haruna seemed shrouded in the thick cloud and temperature down the mounatin was already around 30C.
Toward the mountain, only up hill road continued from the start. After 30min ride, I wanted to stop under a shade(pic.2). After 20min climbing, I reached Ikaho hot spring town(pic.3), very famous hot spring in Tokyo suburb area. After this town, gradually the road came into mountain area(pic.4).
After 30min hill climbing from Ikaho town along the meandering mountain route, I reached an observatory from which I could see East side mountains like Mt.Akagi(pic.5).
From this observatory(pic.5-2) to hill top, it took 15min. Finally I came to the hill top, outer rim of caldera and a long straight down hill to caldera, Melody line appeared(pic.6).
There seemed some resort hotels in this caldera, so I met many cyclists rounding the caldera road. Honestly I wanted to go back to home early in the afternoon, when I found a good picture point for Mt.Haruna with its lake(pic.7), I ended rounding. Then entered prefectural R-28 to go down to Takasaki city.
The R-28 was very steep, slippery, narrow and rough(pic.8), so I could not speed up. It lasted for 10km until I found a housings. Then I dropped in the old castle ruin, Minowa castle(pic.9). This castle was constructed 500years back and now the main halls were already destroyed. This area has been a transportation hub which every big lord in this reasion coveted. So the castle footprint was very big and well designed by which it was selected one of the best 100 castles in Japan.
Even after the castle, the down hill continued to Takasaki station. The temperature became extremely high…
<Transporation info>
From Tokyo to Shibukawa station: AM6:08 Toki No.301 → AM6:57 Takasaki station. AM7:11 JR Joetsu line →AM7:37 Shibukawa station. \4,820-
<Connected routes>
C-20: Mt.Tanigawa hill climbing
E-11: Usui hill down hill