In 1964 the Japanese mountaineer Fukada Kyuya wrote the book Nihon Hyaku-meizan in which he recommended 'Japan's 100 Great Mountains'. He had climbed more than a 1000 peaks of Japan, and many more of the world's other great mountains. These 100 were those that he rated most highly in Japan, a rating which he determined through a number of criteria, including looks, history, the view from the summit, and further criteria too. Since then these mountains have become a "must do" to many Japanese climbers. They average 2200m (7,300 feet) in height, the highest being Mt Fuji at 3776m (12,288 feet).

Below is a list of the Hyakumeizan mountains listed from top to bottom in the order in which the team hope to climb them. Click on the Mountain's name to go to the appropriate diary entry when the team scaled it.