アポイ岳 Apoi Dake

Mt. Apoi (810 meters) in the southern part of Hidaka, is in the Mt. Apoi Geopark. I have climbed it 3 times so far. Apoi is the southernmost peak of the Hidaka Mountain range and offers great views of the Pacific Ocean, the town of Samani, as well as a view of Cape Erimo if the air is clear enough. Mt. Apoi gets a lot of visitors and I've never felt alone on this mountain when the weather was good.

The trail begins behind the visitor center and after crossing a river the entrance to the forest trail is easily found. Keep your eyes peeled for squirrels, deer and other wildlife.





If you look really close there is a deer in the middle of this picture. Unlike deer in the wild these don't seem to be concerned with people so hikers can enjoy a longer than usual view of them.





Once you break out of the forest you will see an orange, brick shelter. From the shelter you will face one of the steeper sections of the climb.





After reaching the top of the short steep section there is a long relatively flat section





that continues until you reach the last steep section that leads to the peak. From the peak of Mt. Apoi you can see clear to the tip of Cape Erimo.

There is a lot of great information available for the Apoi Geo park at the address below. This is a very popular hike and well worth the effort it might take to get to the remote Samani region.





My friend here made it to the top! He is a pretty heavy smoker and doesn't exercise regularly, or so he says. He made it up in a pair of sneakers and was none the worse for wear, although he seemed to be doing some soul searching here and there.

http://www.apoi-geopark.jp/en/index.html

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Location:様似町 Samani, Hidaka, Hokkaido