Boarding Fuji by Glen Falting DISCUSS THIS FEATURE HERE

K2 climbing team in training and doing it tough

Oli near the end of the climb. We were almost on all fours by this stage as the wind, altitude and general exhaustion nearly combined to send us back down the mountain.

From about half way up the mountain, while we were following the path or climbing up the rocky outcrops we had to our left a seemingly endless expanse of untracked snow. Often, a quick glance to the left was all that was needed to revive our flagging spirits.

From the crater rim looking down to Yamanaka-Ko

From the crater rim looking down to Kawaguchi-Ko

The wind was coming from the other side of the mountain and pushing the cloud cover with it.  The result was that Mount Fuji was parting the cloud and keeping the air behind it clear – much like a ship’s bow pushing through waves.  

Base camp on the rim of the crater

Me, using our emergency communications equipment to let our wives know that we’re on our way down. Naturally enough, I couldn’t get a signal.