Tsukuba-san Day Hike (18Sep2010)

Hiking

It was the first hike with my daughter. In other words, Tsukuba-san is the first mountain that she went up the peak by herself. The history of our ‘family hike’ had started since then.

Cable car and Ropeway

“Do you know these vehicles? Do you wanna ride them?” I asked my daughter while showing the photos of a cable car and a ropeway.

“Off course! I wanna ride the green one.”

I wondered if a two-year-old girl could walk a mountain path. But, I though she could because we planned to use a cable car and a ropeway. It was thought that the distance/time for walking was limited…

“Dad, it is not green one. I want to take the green one, not red one.”
Although it was not her expecting color, she was still looking forward to ride the cable car.

Tsukuba Sancho Station, a cable car station close to Nantai-san peak is on an open space called Miyukigahara. There were lots of tourists as well as hikers.

‘It is 300 meters to the Nantai-san peak’ according to a signboard. Although it was a very short distance but I still wonder if she could walk by herself until the peak.

It took only 15 minutes to the peak.

Do you think my daughter could walk whole the way? The answer is NO. I carried my daughter on my back but only less than 10 meters.

Then, we headed to the Nyotai-san peak. About my daughter?
“My feet hurt.”, she said.
So, I had to carry her almost all the way to the Nyotai-san peak.

Using the ropeway, it was a comfortable trip from Nyotai-san Station to Tsutsujigaoka Station.

“It is too easy as a hike?”
The answer is Yes and No, I think. It sure was an easy hike but it should have been. It was a successful hike because my daughter had interest in hiking mountains.
“I want to go mountain again”, she said after we came home.

Route & Time

Hike date: September 18, 2010
Members: Family (farther, mother and 2-year-old daughter)
Course time:
9:20 Miyawaki Station – 9:28 Tsukuba Sancho Station – 9:43 Nantai-san peak – 10:05 Tsukuba Sancho Station – 10:25 Nyotai-san peak – 10:55 Nyotai-san Station – 11:06 Tsutsujigaoka Station [1 hour and 46 minutes]

Access using public transportation

Links

Tsukuba Express
Kanto-tetsudo Bus
Tsukuba-san Cable Car & Ropeway

Valuable information
Discount coupon comes with Tsukuba Express train ticket and Tsukuba shuttle bus ticket (and cable car/ropeway tickets) is available at Tsukuba Express stations.

Area Information