The mountain weather forecast is still rating tomorrow’s weather as “c” for “unclimbable”. But, since I have a RailPass, I decide to go ahead anyway. After all, Ishizuchi-san is one of the vaunted Hundred Mountains. And it's the highest mountain in Shikoku....
When the train drops me at Iyo-Saijō, it’s difficult to be optimistic: a strong, cold northerly is driving the clouds against the snow-dusted peaks. Ishizuchi-san hides its head in the murk. It all looks rather grim.
I repair to the hotel, which probably saw its heyday in the mid-Shōwa era. The automatic door needs to be pushed aside by hand. In the room, a contemporaneous beer ad does its best to cover a large crack in a structural wall. But, since we booked for two, there’s plenty of space to strew my kit about …
