In anticipation of the 2013 nomination of Mount Fuji, I had been looking for an “easy way” to see this site without having to climb the mountain itself. From the limited information available on the UNESCO website, I gathered that the shrines Fujisan Hongû Sengen Taisha (in Fujinomiya) and Kitaguchi Hongû Fuji Sengen Jinja (in Fujiyoshida) are the most tangible parts.

I was arriving in the area from the south, and then Fujinomiya is the most obvious choice. Fortunately, I had copied down from Wikitravel the information about how to get to the shrine – although it is within a 10-minute walk from the train station, there’s no signage. While getting there, I was looking and looking to see if I could see Mt. Fuji. But it stayed hidden behind the clouds. I thought I had seen a glimpse of a snowcovered peak from the train, but that could have been clouded as well. It is difficult trying to see something that should be there somewhere but is not visible at all. I even became unsure about in which direction I had to look.

So I had to console myself by visiting the shrine, which was erected here already in the 9th century. It is dedicated to the spirit (kami) Konohanasakuya-hime, who is believed to keep Fuji from erupting. It was a place where pilgrims came to purify themselves in water before starting the climb. Compared to the many other Shinto shrines that I have visited the last week, this is a rather small and quiet place. There’s not a lot “to see”, except for the main shrine and the Wakutama pond (where you can buy a bottle of water from the sacred mountain for 200 Yen).