青年小屋

Mountain hut at 2,380m in the saddle between Amigasayama and Gongendake, at the southern end of the Yatsugatake range. Mount Fuji stands out to the south-east and the Northern Alps to the west; it is about four hours from Kannondaira (1,560m) over Amigasayama, or three and a half by the contouring path. A red lantern hangs by the door reading "the far-away drinking place", and the keeper stocks six junmai sakes, mostly from Kanto and further north. There is no piped water: meals, miso soup and coffee are all made with Otome-no-mizu, a spring four or five minutes away, carried up by the staff in 20-litre tanks. The food is all domestically sourced, and the rice — Rihoku-mai grown in the Kaikoma watershed — is cooked in that spring water. Hut stays are strictly by reservation; the campsite needs no booking and is signed for at the door. The campsite and winter hut remain usable during the winter closure.