Tateshina with old friends, October 26

Every year at the end of October, my mountain‑climbing friends hold a reunion. I don’t attend every time, but this year I felt I needed to go because I had been feeling depressed since late summer.

About twenty years ago, more than forty people from all over Japan gathered at the Mawarime‑daira campsite at the foot of Mt. Kinpu. But this year, fewer than ten people joined. The reunion was held at Lodge Motive in the Pilatus Pension Village in the Tateshina Highlands.

The beautiful autumn colors and long conversations with old friends truly lifted my spirits.

 

Lake Shirakaba

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