Mount Fuji is an icon of Japan. At 3776 meters high, the stratovolcano towers over everything else to the west of Tokyo. Snow covered for much of the year, milder conditions allow for the official climbing season through July and August. During this time, thousands of hikers make the pilgrimage up the mountain up four main routes lined with mountain huts and facilities. During a visit to Japan on the 7th and 8th of August 2016, I climbed it with my friend Lee. We asceneded the Subashiri trail during the night to avoid others and arrive in time for the sunrise. It was a magical ascent in the dark and the view from the summit was astonishing. However, this was not one for lovers of solitude (there were even wi-fi facilities on the summit) and the unrelenting slog up and down was without any interesting ridges or challenging scrambles. Nevertheless, this was an incredible overnight experience.