A Japanese father has been reprimanded by police after abandoning his seven-year-old son on Mount Fuji — Japan's highest peak, standing at 3,776 metres — to continue a summit climb with his older son. The incident occurred on Thursday morning on the Fujinomiya route, one of the mountain's main hiking trails, which begins at the fifth station and is accessible by public transport.

The family, from Nagoya, Japan's fourth-largest city, had set out on the ascent in the early hours of the morning. When the younger boy complained of exhaustion at an altitude of around 2,000 to 2,500 metres, his father gave him some snacks and a soft drink, told him to wait, and pressed on toward the summit with his elder son. In foggy and rainy conditions, a worker at a mountain hut near the sixth station found the child sitting alone on a bench at around 07:30 local time. The worker brought the boy inside and alerted police, who took him into protective custody. By the time officers reached the father by phone, he had climbed to between the seventh and eighth stations — roughly a three-hour hike above where he had left his son. Police ordered him to turn back immediately.

Father and son were reunited after the boy had spent approximately eight hours waiting alone. Police officers sharply criticised the father's decision. "Even if it means having to give up on climbing the mountain together, leaving a child behind is unacceptable," officers said, according to Japan Today. The father apologised, saying he had made "a rash decision" he deeply regretted. The child was unharmed. It remains unclear whether the father will face formal charges.

The case highlights the serious hazards that Mount Fuji's environment poses, even during the official summer climbing season. The mountain has its own unpredictable microclimate, with weather that can shift rapidly. Hypothermia is a genuine risk even in warmer months, and altitude sickness has claimed other victims on the same trails. Local police have used the incident to remind hikers to carefully assess the physical abilities and stamina of every member of their group before attempting the climb, and to adjust their pace accordingly.