Mount Fuji, Japan
Lake Ashi (Cruise)
This was a 15-minute cruise on Lake Ashi, from Kojiri to Hakone-en. The lake is known for its views of Mount Fuji and Hakone Shrine. However, it was really foggy and chilly windy when we took the cruise. We were practically freezing while on the top deck of the Motorcoach with a lot of tiny droplets exploding on our faces but we did not care. We just loved what our eyes were feasting on and we could not just get enough.
Because of the hazy atmosphere and the thick fog that lazily settled on the mountains, we could not see Mount Fuji anymore behind us, which should have been visible around 30 kilometers northwest (the direction where the Motorcoach departed).
This crater lake was said to have been formed by a powerful volcanic eruption nearly 3,000 years ago. This was our second crater lake after visiting Lake Chuzenji the day before. In fact, this was our second set of Lake-Mountain combos (with Lake Chuzenji and Mount Nantai as the first set).
Though we were not able to see Mount Fuji from the lake, the Hakone Shrine was visible especially its Torii gate. It was, I believe, high tide when we went because we did not see the base of the gate as I have seen in some photos from Google.
A small town was waiting for us at the end of the cruise. It houses the base station of the Hakone Komagatake Ropeway, which brings people to the peak of Mount Komagatake with a full hope that the skies will be clear.
