The Tale of a Loose Tooth

One down.

Nasu: Mt. Chausu

We took a two day trip to a mountainous area called Nasu to continue our trekking adventures. We were rained out the first day but still made the best of it.

We happened upon this odd little spot with tons of statues and a small rocky mountain that smelled horribly of sulfur but was still cool to see.

Racing towards the car after having had enough of the rotten egg smell.

At this point it had start to rain a bit hard and got quite cold. We stopped at a lookout area to take in a view but after opening the door the kids and I decided we would wait in the car while Naoto took in the view on a solo mission.

I think the wait in the car was way more fun.

After a break in the weather we took in some nature trails and crossed over this damn.

Dinner at the ryokan.

Showing just how Asian they really are with a feisty game of ping pong or as serious players like to call it table tennis.

Sparklers!

Breakfast.

Breakfast monkey.

On the rope way headed to our starting point of Mt. Nasudake (1, 684 meters high)

Clearly feeling great.

Ready to take on the challenge.

The mountaineers!

It was truly amazing. The rocks, the fog, the lush green to the left. Breathtaking views all around.

This mountain was no joke, but this little one was totally up for it.

You really felt like you were on another planet. 

While at the same time feeling bizarrely connected to it.

Naoto entering his mountain groove.

The higher we climbed the colder it got.

Of course none of us thought about that. 

Reaching the peak of Mt. Chausu (nearly 2000 meters high)

After you reached the peak you could select different courses to spiral your way around and back down to the starting point.

Steam spouted from various pockets as well as sulfur. Noah did not care for this at all.

He was amazing but is still a three-year-old so can only climb so high before he declares himself done. 

Sulfur hotspot to the left.

Wondering if we were still on Earth.

Journey completed. 

We did it! Three and half hours later we made it up and through the mountain. Glorious feeling for sure.

Nagatoro, Saitama

Continuing our outdoor adventures - this time starting out by boat.

This kid absolutely loved it and played comedian for the group.

The choppy parts were most definitely his favorite.

Although they were not nearly as hair-raising as Naoto made them out to be.

After the boat ride we took in a really pretty nature trail. It was great - lots of cool bugs for the boys to find and definitely way more mild than our previous excursion.

This little Bean did great- made it all the way up the mountain without any help.

Oddly, at the top of the mountain was something that advertised itself as a zoo. It housed sheep, goats, racoons (?) beetles, scrappy bunnies, and lots of smelly monkeys.