ABOUT THE ADVENTURE
Tsurumidake Volcano
Tsurumidake is an active volcano with several trails to summit in the Yufuin area of the Oita prefecture in Japan. There are two trailheads: the Tsurumidake West Trailhead and the Yufudake Main Trailhead at the Hatanodai bus stop in Beppu. The main trailhead is most frequently taken. The West trailhead, on the other hand, is rarely taken and much less defined, offering access to the road between Tsurumidake and Yufudake. It takes approximately 2 hours to summit. The top of the volcano has a park and a ropeway which can be taken up / down the volcano for ¥1,200. Because Tsurumidake and its neighboring volcano are active volcanoes, it is important to check Japan's geological forecast in addition to the normal weather forecast before attempting.
Climbing Tsurumidake's West Trail
Tsurumidake's West Trail is a difficult feat to conquer, with loosely defined markers and very few travelers taking this route. It is not uncommon to be the only person taking this trail up, as it offers a steep ascent up (what I am considering to be) a channel used to route lava on explosion. The trailhead starts up a road from which splits off from the road between Tsurumidake and its neighbor Yufudake. At the road's end you will find a dam-like structure. This is what might be considered the channel for lava flow and a very obvious wide path of loose rocks ascends from the dam. The marked path will take you up the channel, which is very steep and contains loose rocks. In foggy conditions, it may be more difficult to find the trail. When in doubt, follow the channel. I do not recommend taking this route alone or if you don't have lots of previous hiking experience on 45-60 degree inclines. Cell service on this route is poor and one misstep can lead to injury (or death 😱💀!).
Yufuin to Beppu by Climbing Yufudake and Tsurumidake
This route up Tsurumidake was the hardest hike I've completed to date. I had just gotten down from Yufudake and was already exhausted from the long West Yufudake trail and the steep East Yufudake trail descent. Tsurumidake nearly took me out, as I immediately got lost on the lava channel right off of the trailhead. Although I attempted to follow the outlined path on AllTrails, I ended up on a mud cliffs edge, sliding and nearly falling into the channel. Little did I know that you are actually supposed to take the channel up to the top. It was a near-death or near-injury experience and being so far from reachable people, I sobered up to the fact that this was a dangerous climb very fast. There was nobody else on the west face of the mountain, making it much riskier. My key takeaway is that, if you are going to do a dangerous climb like this one, make sure that you let your loved ones know your location and an estimated time of arrival for the case of an emergency. I swear I caused long-term rock slides on that "trail", as I could hear rocks crashing below me even as I ascended up the channel. When I made it to the top, I was so relieved!! People will say that climbing Yufudake is hard, but I would say that Tsurumidake is far harder! Definitely an accomplishment for the books!
