The hot summer continues in the Tokyo metropolitan area. The maximum daytime temperature easily hits 30 degrees Celsius every day. The only thing we can do is escape the city center and go somewhere cool on the weekend. I recently visited Mt. Mitake (929 meters above sea level) with my family for the first time in five years. Not only is it cool, but it's also famous for the unique Rengeshouma community. Rengeshouma is a perennial and indigenous plant in Japan. It grows in wet forests and has graceful purple-tinged white flowers in late summer. Its spherical buds are also unique and gorgeous.
To visit the Rengeshouma community, Mitake Tozan Railway is convenient. It's a funicular route opened in 1935. Along with Takao Tozan Railway, Mitake Tozan Railway is a Keio Group company. Connecting Takimoto (407.6 meters above sea level) and Mitakesan (831.0 meters above sea level), its route length is 1,107 meters. The height difference between the two stations is 423.6 meters. The gauge size is 1,049 millimeters. The maximum inclination of the route is 25 degrees.
Two vehicles are operated on the line. One car is the red-colored Mitake, while the other one is the green-colored Musashi (old names for Tokyo and Saitama Prefectures). Each car is 12-meters long and can accommodate 115 passengers. The seating capacity is 34 seats. The operating interval of the funicular is every 15 to 30 minutes depending on the congestion situation. The travel time between Takimoto and Mitakesan stations is 6 minutes.
Official information about Mitake Tozan Railway:
Official information about Mitake Tozan Railway (in Japanese) including promotion movies: