Yotei-zan volcano tour

 From the cemetery, head along a forestry road for about 1200m; the road follows an obvious jaw-bone shape and in higher snow years you may want to cut the corner off. A small erosion-stop dam will appear on the Jinja-no-sawa creek. After crossing the creek and climbing a short way, the large Delta Slope (as it is called locally) will come into view. Progressing towards this slope, the route slowly gains altitude through well-spaced trees on lookers right – your egress route is back down this creek so remain aware of where your are oriented in relation to your tracks in.

Once at the three-gully intersection point at 530m, it’s tempting to head up the first main ridge, but the less obvious ridge further up to the lookers right is much more manageable on the climb. By this point views of Makkari Village below, as well as Lake Toya and Konbu-dake should be in view. By the 700m point, the trees should have spaced out even more. From this point up to around 1400m, there are views up the slope of what is called the Delta Slope – a roughly triangular wide open slope with sparsely spaced trees, at an angle of about 30 degrees. Perfect for skiing. The head-wall at the top of the Delta Slope does steepen significantly so be aware of overhead avalanche hazard if stability is a problem. Beyond around 1400m the snow typically deteriorates considerably, with icy conditions often requiring crampons. In the spring skiing months, it’s possible to get to the crater on skis, but it’s very steep – a whippet or similar is recommended for self-arrest.