Visit to Mt. Tsukuba: One of the closest touge to Tokyo

(Continued from Sakura Morning Cruise: Car Meet Report)

The Purple Mountain

After saying goodbye to Sodo Moto at Sakura Morning Cruise, Alf, Lele, two lovely guests from Tacoma, WA and myself headed to Mt. Tsukuba in Ibaraki Prefecture. It is about an hour's drive from Sakura Morning Cruise to Mt. Tsukuba using local roads.

Mt. Tsukuba is one of the more famous mountains in the Kanto region located about 100 kilometers northeast of Tokyo, and the 877m tall mountain is visible from east Tokyo. Initial D fans may have heard of Mt. Tsukuba as the location where Takumi battled "God Hand" Joshima. Yes, the mountain, the Fruits Line touge, and the Asahi Pass Observation Point parking area all exist.

Asahi Pass Observation Point

(Joshima's S2K?)

After a lunch at the Tsutsujigaoka Rest House (use the cable car to go to the summit if you can!), we headed to the Asahi Pass Observation Point parking area to see the authentic Japanese touge car culture. The parking area did not disappoint: there were 20 or more sports cars including various modern 86/BRZs, various generations of WRXs, Civic Type-Rs, Euros including a touge-spec GTI, and to top it all off, an AE86 with tofu livery and a blue S2K straight from the manga.

Real JDM Car Culture

It was interesting to see all the different types of cars at the parking area come and go. There was a young man in a BL5 Legacy hastily changing to tires brought to him by a friend. He explained to us that he hit a curb and burst his tires.

Two older gentlemen in a C7 'Vette and a Huracán STO showed up later. From the way the crowd greeted the two owners it was obvious that they were all regulars at the parking area. It was fascinating how the diverse the crowd was: both male and female, youngest owner was probably in his 20s while the oldest was perhaps in his late 60s.

Another thing that struck me was how considerate the drivers were. We encountered several cars during our drive to the parking area, but there wasn't any aggressive overtaking, tailgating or dangerous driving. The drivers noticed our non-local license plates, identified that we were visitors and backed off.

This is the real JDM car culture: people of many backgrounds and age groups driving different cars, all united by a love of cars and respect for the road and fellow drivers. I am so honored to be a part of this culture, and I hope to show you more.

Tips

• The Mt. Tsukuba touge can have snow or ice in winter, and the Fruits Line can be closed.
• Some sections are closed to motorcycles.
• Some sections have aggressive speed bumps that can destroy a suspension if driven over too fast.
• If you see a faster car approaching from behind, find a straight stretch of road, turn your hazards on and yield to them.

Would You Like to Discover the Real JDM Car Culture?

I am a professional tour guide born in Japan who has been driving in Japan for over 30 years. Have you already been to Daikoku Parking Area? Would you like to see more of the real car culture in Japan? I offer interpreted/guided tours to JDM car meets such as Sakura Morning Cruise and car enthusiast spots like Mt. Tsukuba. Contact me for tours!