Bandaisan 　　　 磐梯山 1819m difficulty~1　scenery~ 2
climbed twice

Bandaisan erupted back in 1888 killing hundreds of people and changing the landscape into what it is today. It also formed the amazing 5 colour ponds around this area. The first time I climbed Bandaisan with Haruna, we (without knowing) took the longest route. This route started at an onsen (hot spring) and winded up through overgrown bush at some parts the track was impossible to see. We eventually climbed up into a crater about 5 acres in size. From there we pushed on up higher seeing a few deer on the way to the summit, in total taking about 6hrs.
2nd time climbing was with good mate JB. This time we took the regular route, this route takes around 4 hours to summit. About half way up JB starts to doubt his victory over the mountain but pushes on like a trooper none the less. Unfortunatly on this day there were hundreds of school kids out for the climb also, this made for quite an unplesant and noisy summit experience although the weather was great so we had fantastic 360 degree views. Chatted with Haruna back down the bottom somwhere via walkie-talkie for a bit. After eatting a great well desirved lunch we headed back down. JB got wicked sun burnt and Haruna left our good Sigg water bottle at the car park. Well done.