Father leaves seven-year-old son behind on Mount Fuji to carry on climbing
Officers reprimanded the father when he returned from the higher station and reunited with the boy, who reportedly apologised for the "rash" decision.
A father has been reprimanded by police for leaving his seven-year-old son alone on Japan's highest mountain for several hours.
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The seven-year-old was spotted sitting on a bench with just a drink and a snack on Mount Fuji in foggy and rainy conditions.
The father, 48, reportedly told his son to "wait here" after the boy complained he was tired - and continued the climb with his elder son.
Staff at a mountain hut found the child near the sixth station of a hiking route towards the summit, over 2,000m (6,500ft) above sea level, and alerted police at around 07:30 local time on Thursday (22:30 GMT).
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His father was tracked down around three hours away, between the route's seventh and eighth stations.
Officers reprimanded the father when he returned from the higher station and reunited with the boy, who reportedly apologised for the "rash" decision.
"Even if it means having to give up on climbing the mountain together, leaving a child behind is unacceptable," one told him, according to Japan Today.
The family was reported to have been on the Fujinomiya route, which starts from the fifth station on the mountain, a spot which is accessible by public transport, and includes around five hours of climbing to reach the peak.
It then takes a further three hours to get down, climbing guides suggest.
Mount Fuji, which stands at a height of 3,776m (12,389ft), has been the site of a number of climbing mishaps in recent years - including the rescue of a 99-year-old woman in July after she fell and hurt her hip and back.
Additionally, last year, a 27-year-old university student who went outside of official climbing season had to be rescued twice in four days - after he went back to look for his lost mobile phone.
Mount Fuji, an active volcano located south-west of Tokyo, was granted World Heritage status in 2013.
It is also one of three traditional "Holy Mountains" together with Mount Tate and Mount Haku, with around 200,000 people climbing it each year.