It’s finally that time of year: Mount Fuji’s iconic silhouette has officially been crowned in white. The Kofu Local Meteorological Observatory announced on October 23 that it observed the season’s first snowcap on Japan’s highest peak.
While it arrived 21 days later than the average year, the pristine white dusting was still a welcome sight, arriving 15 days earlier than last year’s record-late date in November, since observations began in 1894.
An official from the observatory visually confirmed the snow covering Mount Fuji’s peak around 6 a.m. today. The city of Fujiyoshida in Yamanashi Prefecture, located at the foot of the mountain, also made its own declaration of the first snow of the season on the same day. In the nearby village of Yamanakako, tourists enjoyed taking photographs of the wintry sight.
A Relieving Sight After Last Year’s Delay
The announcement was met with relief, following last year’s historically late first snowcap on November 7, 2024. The record-breaking absence of snow on Mount Fuji arrived after Japan’s hottest summer for two consecutive years. Typically, Mount Fuji begins to see its first flakes in early October.
About Mount Fuji
As the highest peak in Japan, Mount Fuji is an active stratovolcano and one of Japan’s national symbols. Straddling the border between Shizuoka and Yamanashi prefectures, its graceful, symmetrical cone has been revered for centuries as a sacred mountain. A designated UNESCO World Heritage site, the mountain has also been a source of artistic inspiration, notably in the woodblock prints of Hokusai and Hiroshige. Its annual snowcap remains a poetic marker of the changing seasons in Japan.
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Updated On October 24, 2025
