After descending the Panorama-Dai lookout, we hopped onto the loop bus that brought us to what looks like a main stretch of Lake Yamanaka with numerous restaurants and activities centered around and at the lake. The lake is apparently the shallowest of the five lakes in the region surrounding Mt. Fuji.
To be honest, I didn’t really know what we could expect to do at the lake, and would had been contend to just enjoy the scenery with the mountain looming over the water body. As things turned out, one thing made a singular huge difference and this afternoon became the most fun the kids have done this trip so far: the several dozen wild swan, many ducks, and hordes of carp that inhabit the lake.
We rented a pedal boat for four, and with leg power, sailed to the middle of the lake and had a grand time feeding the swans. The calmness of the waters also made it possible to do a number of low-angle and very close-up shots of the beautiful swans. Still, while the lake’s natural inhabitants been conditioned to follow the pedal boats and approach humans, they are still wild animals and can attack if they feel threatened, so it was all looking and admiring but no touching.
This was a lovely couple of hours we spent in the area that was relatively sparse of tourist hordes. Highly recommended for a visit!