Luxurious moments in Tokyo and Hachijojima. A 2-day/1-night trip with former islanders.

After landing at Hachijojima Airport, we immediately headed for Hachijo-fuji . Hachijojima's highest peak at 854 meters above sea level, located on the western side of the gourd-shaped island.

. it's a symbol of the island, but this is actually the first time I've climbed it. People in Hachijo don't climb it either, because it is something that is taken for granted. But I still have a picture of my parents when they climbed the mountain, and I wanted to climb it someday. But the weather was too unfortunate today (laughs).

Yes, it was a bad day, with a thick mist covering the area as soon as we arrived at the trailhead, and even raining at times. Surrounded by trees and with little wind, the trail was like a steam sauna. When I think about it, we are always in this kind of weather, and we are lucky if it is sunny. This is one of the charms of Hachijojima," he replied with a smile, and with the reporters by his side, he strode up the 1,280 steps at a brisk pace.

Hoping for clear skies, we followed the well-maintained path to the summit. . The humidity is many times higher than on the plains. It was muffling. We must not let our guard down just because it is a low mountain, and carrying water is a must.

On the way, I turned over a large rock to see if there were any insects, approached a wild flower to smell its fragrance, and even if a large insect perched on my T-shirt, I did not brush it off but held it close to my face to observe it. The unique ecology of Hachijo-jima is a unique place. The unique ecosystem of Hachijo-jima is Tokyo, but not Tokyo. A little bit of an exotic jungle.

After about 40 minutes, we reached the summit and were enveloped in a strong wind that threatened to blow us off the mountain. KOZAKANA-kun muttered unintentionally, "You should be able to see the whole of Hachijojima from here..."

Originally, it is said that one can look down on Zukon and Hachijojima from here. In addition, the summit of Hachijo-fuji, which is shaped like a mortar with the crater at its center, is a popular tourist spot called "Ohachi-meguri," which can be circled in one hour. This bowl, according to one theory, is the same as the summit of the movie "Kimi no na wa . The scene where they call each other's names at the top of the mountain is said to be the setting of the scene in the movie "Kimi no na wa.

I brought a lunch of Hachijojima's gourmet island sushi, which I took out from Restaurant Akakocco in the airport. It is also KOZAKANA's favorite food.

The main ingredients for island sushi are kampachi, kinme, and striped horse mackerel, but this time it's kampachi. I myself like kampachi best.

Shimazushi is made by marinating the ingredients like pickled tuna and using mustard instead of wasabi. Most izakaya (Japanese-style pubs) serve this type of sushi, and some restaurants specialize in it, but KOZAKANA's favorite is the island sushi made by his grandfather who lives on Hachijojima Island. His favorite sushi is made by his grandfather on Hachijojima Island, and is characterized by its long pickling time and strong flavor.

After we had finished our meal and descended the mountain, we stopped at Fureai Ranch, which was just on the way back to the center of the mountain. As we descended to the top of the mountain, the weather changed drastically from the summit, and we began to see some clear skies. Hachijo-jima Island seems to have fast-moving clouds and changeable weather.

From the observation deck, which is reached by passing through the middle of grazing cattle, one can see the entire island as well as the summit. Furthermore, you can see airplanes taking off and landing at the airfield in the hollow of the gourd, which is also quite a view. It might be a good idea to check the flight timetable before you visit.