“I Want to Share the Appeal of Untamed Mountains” – Interview with Hokkaido Adventure Travel Guide Hideki Kondo

Based at the foot of Mount Yotei—the iconic, cone-shaped peak overlooking the Niseko region of Hokkaido—Hideki Kondo splits his time between guiding people through the mountains and running a mountain lodge. Although he was born and raised in Tokyo, Kondo has devoted his life to the high country. How did someone with an urban upbringing come to dedicate himself so entirely to the mountains of Hokkaido? In this interview, we trace the path of his life so far and explore his daily work, sharing not only the beauty and allure of Hokkaido’s wild mountains, but also their unforgiving, sometimes harsh realities.

A Guide Who Knows Mount Yotei Inside and Out

Rising 1,898 meters above the plains of southwestern Hokkaido, Mount Yotei dominates the landscape around the resort area of Niseko. Its almost perfectly symmetrical cone closely resembles Japan’s highest and most iconic peak, Mount Fuji, earning it the nickname Ezo Fuji—”Ezo” being an old name for Hokkaido, Japan’s northernmost main island. Beyond its striking appearance, Mount Yotei holds a special place in Japan’s mountaineering culture. It was selected by writer and mountaineer Kyuya Fukada for his influential book “One Hundred Famous Japanese Mountains,” a work that has become something of a bible for Japanese climbers. In summer, the slopes of Mount Yotei are carpeted with a remarkable variety of alpine flowers, attracting hikers from across Japan and around the world.

On the western foot of the mountain, near one of the main trailheads, stands Ezofuji Hut. This welcoming mountain lodge offers a meeting point and place of rest for climbers, as well as for those enjoying other activities in the area, such as fishing and cycling. Ezofuji Hut is run by Hideki Kondo, a mountain guide who knows Mount Yotei intimately.

Kondo has spent nearly 30 years as the caretaker of the shelter hut just below the summit of Mount Yotei. There, he has supported countless climbers—sharing up-to-date route and weather information, assisting with emergencies, and taking part in rescue operations. In recent years, he has shifted his focus to guiding, leading trips on Mount Yotei and throughout the nearby Niseko mountain range, a region known internationally for its deep powder snow and stunning alpine scenery.

“In both the mountain lodge and the shelter hut, visitors kept asking me to guide them in the mountains,” Kondo recalls. “So I decided to take it seriously and earn my certification. The mountains in Hokkaido are wild and truly wonderful, and I want to keep improving my skills so I can share (their appeal) with others.”

Kondo is now a Stage II mountain guide certified by the Japan Mountain Guides Association, and in 2025 he also earned recognition as an Activity Guide specializing in mountain climbing under the Hokkaido Adventure Travel Guide Certification System.

Kondo may now be the very image of a “mountain man,” but he is originally from Tokyo. How did someone from Japan’s largest city come to devote his life to remote huts and rugged peaks in Hokkaido? His story is worth exploring.

Interested in the World of Mountains through Skiing in Niseko and Studying in Switzerland

Kondo first set foot in Hokkaido when he entered university. As a child, he loved animals and dreamed of becoming a veterinarian. With that goal in mind, he applied to the veterinary faculty of a university in Hokkaido, but failed the entrance exam. Undeterred, he turned to his other ambition—becoming a teacher—and enrolled instead in the university’s dairy science faculty, where he could earn a teaching license.

“I’d always had this vague longing for Hokkaido’s great outdoors,” Kondo recalls. While there, he discovered skiing in Niseko. The powerful presence of the mountains captivated him. During his university years, Kondo took a leave of absence to study in Grindelwald, Switzerland. The village, nestled at the base of the Eiger—one of the country’s best-known peaks—offered him an entirely new way of life. He stayed with a local family who ran a mountain hut.

“My host mother managed the hut, and my host father made cheese,” Kondo says. “Living with them, I helped out with all kinds of mountain-related work and got to see how people there built their lives around the mountains.” Among the guests at the hut was a Japanese mountain guide, and Kondo found himself deep in conversation with the professional. “Through those encounters”—with the host family, with the guide, and with everyone connected to the mountains there—”my admiration for the mountains kept growing stronger,” he recalls.

After graduating from university, Kondo hoped to stay in Hokkaido, but job opportunities were scarce at the time. He accepted a temporary teaching position at a high school in Mie Prefecture, western Japan. Even then, he could not forget the life he loved in Hokkaido, and before long he returned to the Niseko area. While considering his future, he learned that a lodge near a local ski resort was up for sale—and decided to take it over. Together with his wife, Mami, whom he met in Niseko, Kondo ran the lodge for more than 20 years.

Mami, incidentally, had also grown up in a mountain-loving family. Fittingly, the couple chose a trekking trip to Mount Everest, the world’s highest peak, for their honeymoon. The birth of their children later inspired a major life decision. Wanting to raise them in a rich natural environment, Kondo and Mami opened a mountain lodge in 2012 that would also serve as their family home. In contrast to Japan’s main island of Honshu, Hokkaido had very few privately operated mountain lodges at the time, making their venture a bold and pioneering move.

Kondo and his wife, Mami, trekking on Mount Everest (Courtesy of Kondo)

Mindful of Small Wonders and Safety First as a Guide

While the couple manages Ezofuji Hut, Kondo spends the summer climbing season working at the shelter high on the mountain, dedicating himself to guiding hikers at the same time.

He speaks fondly of Mount Yotei, his true home mountain. “It’s known as Ezo Fuji, but unlike the barren slopes of Mount Fuji, (Mount Yotei) is wonderfully lush, with many different flowers in bloom. It’s an ideal mountain for anyone who loves alpine plants. At the summit, you can even walk all the way around the crater,” he says.

Hikers come to Mount Yotei for many reasons: the spectacular summit views, the rich nature along the trails, and the overwhelming presence of an active volcano. Because Kondo knows Mount Yotei inside and out, he can design tours with routes and guiding styles tailored to each group’s interests and abilities. In Hokkaido, where there are almost no staffed lodges in the high mountains, a guide’s skills are put to an even greater test.

“In Japan’s Northern Alps, for example, there are many staffed lodges where, as long as you pay, you can get meals and drinks. But in Hokkaido, it’s often the guides themselves who provide those comforts,” he explains. “I make coffee and try to add small surprises for my guests,” he continues. “Having ‘nothing’ is actually one of the charms of Hokkaido’s mountains. How attractively that emptiness is conveyed depends on the guide’s abilities.”

At the same time, drawing on his extensive experience in mountain rescue and his work as a shelter hut caretaker, Kondo refuses to compromise on his core principle: safety comes first, no matter what.

“Mount Yotei has a high number of accidents, and rescue helicopters are dispatched here more often than almost anywhere else in Hokkaido. I’ve personally carried down climbers who lost their lives,” he says. “Of course I want people to understand how incredible these mountains are, but I also have a responsibility to show just how unforgiving they can be.”

Bringing the Magic of Mount Yotei and Niseko to the World

While we spoke, Kondo’s children were quietly studying for their school exams at Ezofuji Hut. Kondo himself was bent over a workbook—not a map or a trail guide, but an English textbook.

Niseko is now one of the world’s premier ski destinations, drawing visitors from across the globe. Kondo wants to be ready for them. His goal is to welcome more international guests and lead them safely through the mountains he knows so well.

“When overseas guests stay at the mountain lodge, we do our best to communicate in English,” he explains. “I also guide foreign visitors on tours. To share what makes these mountains special, I need to improve my English so I can explain everything in detail. I’ll keep studying.”

Kondo is also deeply involved in conserving the natural environment of Mount Yotei. In 2010, he founded a nature conservation group made up of fellow mountaineers, now known as the Mount Yotei Fan Club. Working in partnership with local authorities, the club maintains hiking trails, organizes cleanup projects and works to remove invasive species.

Kondo both works on Mount Yotei and lives at its base. It is fair to say that the mountain shapes every aspect of his life.

“I’ve been looking at this mountain for a long time, but its ever‑changing nature never gets boring. Nature is always in motion, never lazy. It’s amazing, isn’t it?” he says. “I love being involved with nature, so every moment I spend here is soothing for me.”

Alongside his family and visitors from across Japan and beyond, Kondo spends his days savoring and sharing the great outdoors.

Profile of Hideki Kondo

Hideki Kondo is an experienced mountain guide based in Hokkaido, northern Japan. He is certified as an Activity Guide for mountain climbing under the Hokkaido Adventure Travel Guide Certification System and is a Stage II certified mountain guide with the Japan Mountain Guides Association. He also serves as the caretaker of the Mount Yotei emergency shelter and is the owner of Ezofuji Hut, a mountain lodge in the Niseko area.

Kondo was born in Fussa, Tokyo, and moved to Hokkaido to attend Rakuno Gakuen University in Ebetsu. During his university years, he broadened his mountain and outdoor experience by studying in Grindelwald, Switzerland, a renowned alpine region.

After graduating, he worked as a high school teacher before returning to Hokkaido to run a lodge in the Niseko area, one of Japan’s best-known destinations for outdoor sports and skiing. Since 1999, he has been the caretaker of the Mount Yotei emergency shelter. In 2012, he founded Ezofuji Hut, further establishing himself as a central figure in the local mountain community.

In recent years, Kondo has focused increasingly on professional guiding and nature conservation.

Interviewed by Jiji Press Ltd