A guide to subtraction to draw out participants’ “want to know”

Koichi Toba is a mountaineering guide and ski guide centered on Mt. Asahidake in the Daisetsuzan region. He has a unique background as a graduate of the university’s exploration club, and has a reputation for his extensive experience and high communication skills. Mr. Toba’s motto is “a guide to subtraction that draws out the interest of participants.” I have learned in the past 30 years that if you don’t like nature and people, you can’t be a guide for nature experiences.

The charm of Hokkaido, with its distinct four seasons

The four seasons are distinct, which is the charm of Hokkaido. The value of what local residents take for granted has been taught by foreign tourists and visitors from Honshu. The joy of spring when life sprouts, the summer heat unique to the inland areas, the earliest autumn leaves in Japan dyeing the Daisetsuzan Mountains, and the beautiful and harsh winter of the silver world. I was impressed by the delight of customers from Honshu who were happy to be able to enjoy Katakuri again this year. “The location of the trailhead of Daisetsuzan is special, 4~5 hours from Tokyo,” he emphasizes.

Discover something every day and keep a heart that moves you

Usually, the main focus is on mountaineering and skiing guides, but sometimes they organize tours specializing in canoe guides, alpine plants, and bird watching. Tours to experience the culture of the Ainu people are also appreciated. “The interesting thing is that Japan people want to know the names of flowers and plants, but foreigners want to know about geographical vegetation. That’s why I learned a lot about not only flora and fauna, but also geography and history.”

On the other hand, there were also failures when I was young. “When you study, you want to show it off, so I think it wasn’t a fun tour because the tour became a classroom lecture with the teaching side and the teaching side.”

What I am trying to do now is to “impress” the tour participants. And since Mr. Toba himself does not lose his heart of being moved, he values having fun in his work as a guide. Even if you climb Mt. Asahidake every day, nature is changing. The joy of discovering it… He says that it is important to hone his observation eye.

The guide communicates with people

Mr. Toba’s greatest feature is his communication skills. Foreign guides often go with native interpreters, and I was grateful that Mr. Toba was happy to see him communicate with me in simple English. “I reaffirmed that guides are people.”

At university, I belonged to the exploration club and went to Shikoku to look for otters for one month. Mountaineering and river rafting were to acquire the skills to survive outdoors for the activities of the exploration club. I still interact with my friends at that time, and when I take a Hokkaido customer to climb mountains in Honshu, I sometimes ask a local guide to guide me through the introduction of my friends.

Mr. Toba looks back on his time in the university exploration club to his current job as a guide, and says, “I have been serious about playing.” Maybe it hasn’t changed since I was a boy. I feel like I got a glimpse of the origin of Mr. Toba’s heart that does not lose his emotion.