Shirane Sanzan

Shirane Sanzan, the Three White-Topped Mountains, forms a high ridge in the Southern Alps. Mt. Kitadake at 3,193 meters is Japan's second tallest peak, followed closely by Mt. Ainodake at 3,190 meters and Mt. Notoridake above 3,000 meters. Notoridake is named for a bird-shaped snow patch on its eastern slope that lingers after the spring thaw, a signal farmers traditionally read as the moment to start planting rice. Ainodake has two cirques carved into its flanks, and its broad flat summit suggests the original peak once stood considerably higher before collapsing. Hiking the full traverse from Hirogawara to Narada takes a hard two days or a more comfortable three.