A crowd-control gate was installed halfway up Japan’s Mount Fuji on Monday ahead of the July 1 start of this year’s climbing season, but the governor of Yamanashi, one.
A crowd-control gate was installed halfway up Japan’s Mount Fuji on Monday ahead of the July 1 start of this year’s climbing season, but the governor of Yamanashi, one of the two prefectures that are home to the mountain, said additional measures are needed to control overcrowding on its lower slopes. The gate was completed as part of a new set of rules that Yamanashi is introducing this year to address growing safety, environmental, and overcrowding problems on the mountain, reports the AP.
The newly installed gate will be closed between 4pm and 3am local time to lock out those who haven’t booked an overnight stay at a hut along the Yoshida Trail, which is used by most climbers, mainly to stop “bullet climbing”, or rushing to the summit without adequate rest, considered a major safety risk.
