(蝶ヶ岳) Chougatake Hike

 

This is an "incidental" mountain for me, and I just plan to do it because of Mt. Jonen. Hence, the more comprehensive post (and options) are in that post, but here's a straightforward simple post if you plan to do this hike ala carte. 

Budget: JPY11,860 (~USD112)

• JPY4,820. Two days' worth allocated with Seishun 18 ticket. (if from Tokyo)
• JPY6,040. Taxi share, assuming 2 people. (JPY12,080/2 people)
• JPY6,040. Taxi, Hotaka Station to Mimata.
• JPY6,040. Taxi, Mimata to Hotaka Station. 
• JPY1,000. Tent fee. 

Hike Date / Difficulty (Elevation: 2,677m / 8,783ft) 

• Target 2020
• Difficulty: 3 out of 5. 
• Route below is around 11.0 kilometers, with an elevation change of ▲1,534m/ ▽1,534m
• PDF Map Link

When to Go

Probably throughout the year, but the official hiking season is around April to late October. 

Special Notes

• Nearby hikes: 
• Mt. Jonen (常念岳). They share a trailhead, and doing this mountain just adds 4ish hours (~5kms, ~500m elev gain)

• Mountain huts.
• Paid: Chougatake Hut (蝶ヶ岳ヒュッテ) . Near Chougatake Summit. It's JPY7,500 without meals, reservation via call: 090-1056-3455. Tents at JPY1,000 per person, no reservations needed. It is open until mid-October. 
• ???Free: 横尾避難小屋 is 3 hours away (3.4kms, 1,110m descent) from Chougatake Hut, which is really an entire hike on its own. But I'm just putting this out here. 

• Trailheads. No public transportation really, but if you think about it, most buses are JPY1,000~JPY2,000 per head, and some require ropeways too that are at least JPY1,000 one way. Bottom line - consider taxis. 
• Mimata (三股).  No public transportation. Taxi from Hotaka Station (穂高駅) is about 30 minutes, JPY6,040. (source)

• Access. 
• Train. The earliest train to Hotaka Station (Toyoshina Station is about two stations away from Hotaka Station). From here on, taxi is the only way. 
• Bullet train. JPY10,930, 214 minutes, earliest will get here at 09:50am. 
• Local trains. JPY4,210, 322 minutes, earliest will get here at 10:21am (Seishun 18 ticket can be used, in which case it'll be JPY2,410 one way).
• Taxi. A company provides taxi shuttles, website here. Going from the train station to the trailhead probably is not that big a problem, but finding a taxi from the trailhead back to the bus stop might not be that easy, so consider reserving (via phonecall: 0263-82-3113)

Taxi fee table - regular taxi (普通車) vs "jumbo taxi" (ジャンボタクシー)

Itinerary

Saturday

• 04:49am. Train, Iidabashi Station (near Tokyo Station) to Hotaka Station.
• 10:15am. ETA: Toyoshina Station (豊科駅).
• 10:30am. Taxi, Toyoshina Station (豊科駅) to Mimata (三股) trailhead.
• 11:00am. Start hike. 
• 04:05pm. ETA: Summit, Chougatake. Camp/stay in mountain hut.

Sunday

• 05:00am. Start hike. 
• 08:30pm. ETA: Back to Mimata (三股) trailhead.