Odawara & Hakone

by Brianin Japan, Kanagawaon Posted on

I had wanted to visit Hakone for quite some time now and this past three day weekend seemed like a good opportunity to go.  I had originally thought about taking my pack with me and camping over night next to the lake but I couldn’t make a reservation and didn’t want to chance showing up without one.  So, instead I did a day trip to Hakone, stopping by at Odawara along the way to see the castle there.  This was a very long day, leaving Yokohama around 0700 and not getting back home until about 2030…. not to mentioned it seemed like one continuous commute all day long, using everything from trains, buses, ropeways, railroads, cable cars, and a boat just to get around.  The weather wasn’t the greatest but the fog made for a unique scene I suppose..

Had to get breakfast somewhere so I stopped by the Mr. Donut in Odawara... the nice thing about Mr. Donut is that they give free coffee refills (at least one for sure, never stayed long enough to try a second). Many Japanese coffee shops serve tiny coffees for me and don't give refills...
Main entrance to Odawara Castle grounds
Leaning trees
I heard the castle very recently finished a renovation so everything was in very nice condition
Just an interesting cross section of the walls and whatnot...
They had a small monkey cage in the main open area below the castle for some reason... seemed random
View from the front
I didn't see a ramp for accessibility...
It is in the Top 10 for height... the main tower that is...
Again, everything was like new inside... not that many displays in English and only five floors if I remember correctly..
Views from the top of the castle
Very beginning of the hydrangea season
Just along a random building... reminded me of home
Odawara Station
Hakone freepass... it's not free but definitely the most economical way to travel around hakone... good for two days too which in hindsight it makes more sense to stay overnight. Covers pretty much all modes of transportation that I would use for the rest of the day.
Went from Odawara to Hakone Yumoto Station
On the first leg of the trip from Hakone Yumoto to Gora, the slow railway with switchbacks
I didn't expect such a new looking train
Before heading to Gora station, got off early to check out the Hakone Open Air museum
Didn't know much about the place except that some tours usually stop by as part of their itinerary. I like to look up tour group itineraries and then often just follow them on my own hehe
Most of it is as the name implies... all outdoor displays, mostly statues
They did have an indoor Picasso gallery which provided a slightly different look at the artist than most would usually see I suppose.
This is in some kind of acoustic tower near the Picasso gallery and hot water foot baths
After the open air museum, hopped back on the railway to Gora Station
One of the main attractions is Gora Park in the middle of the town...
When looking at maps for trip planning it's always easy to overlook elevation... for some reason I just did not anticipate Gora being on one big steep hill side... definitely not much of a walking town.
From the railway you're supposed to catch the cable car which travels straight up and down the hill
Catching the cable car to Sounzan station
Normally you can catch the Hakone Ropeway from Sounzan station through Owakudani to Togendai station at Lake Ashi, however due to volcanic activity the section from Sounzan to Owakudani was closed off. They provide a substitute shuttle bus instead that takes you to Ubako Station
From Ubako station you can take the ropeway either way, to Togendai or back to Owakudani, however if you go to Owakudani you have to just do a U-turn and go back down towards Togendai... they do not let you leave the station and roam around due to the air.
You can see the activity at Owakudani
On the way back down they say you're supposed to get one of the best views of Mt. Fuji (from Hakone at least) however on the day I went the air was too clouded to see it... it's barely visible.
Ropeway car with Lake Ashi in the background
Lunch at the Togendai Station restaurant before getting on the ferry (pirate ship)
The visibility was not great to start with and only got worse after departing
The other ship pulling in as we pulled away
Thick!
Looking back at the pier
Can't see very far at the far end
Decided to just walk to Hakone Shrine from Hakone-machi port
Along the road there was supposed to be some tree route that looked interesting
Found it!
Probably one of the more interesting places I encountered during the day, just me and nature
For size comparison hehe
Not too far away is Moto-Hakone... the ferry also stops here but I had time anyway
Made it to the shrine!
The very popular photo spot with the gate on the water
There's also a walking path along the lake shoreline... I'm not sure how far around it goes
Had to wait a while just to get a picture with nobody else in it
Headed back and found this for snack haha, baked potato with sausage and a whole lot of cheese hehe
I managed to catch one of the last buses back to Hakone-Yumoto from Moto-Hakone. I was stressing all day about getting on that last bus so after this I finally got to relax along the river. This is the same place where the big circle journey began earlier in the day.
Many onsen in this area, very relaxing environment
Back at the station
My completed Hakone Freepass at the end of the day haha... what a tiring commute

So in hindsight, it is probably better to just stay overnight (since the Hakone Free pass is good for at least 2 days anyway), take your time and enjoy the scenery, maybe go to an onsen, and soak it all in.  Good part is now I got the touristy things out of the way, I know where to go back to next time for more exploring and possibly camping.

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