Yesterday I hired a bike and rode around Lake Kawaguchi-ko, and Lake Saiko, two of the lakes in the ‘Fuji Five Lakes’ area just north of Mount Fuji. The ride was about 35 km, which I completed in about 6 hours - I took it real easy. The trip was mostly along sealed roads; About three quarters of Lake Kawaguchi-ko is surrounded by a foot path, so I took this to avoid the traffic. Being sunday, there wasn’t too much, but there was still a constant stream of cars throughout the day.

I think Kawaguchi-ko and Fuji-Yoshida are kind of weekend getaways for Tokyo residents. There was a ridiculous amount of traffic on saturday night. The views of the lakes, and of Mount Fuji, are breathtaking. I had to resist the urge to stop every 100 metres for another photo; Despite this, I still took heaps. The area is surrounded by mountains; it’d be a great place to come for a bushwalking trip. I ended the day with a trip on the Kawaguchiko cable car, which ascends to a viewpoint over Kawaguchi-ko, and of Mount Fuji.