When it comes to heavy lifting, Norihito Ishitaka is no shirker. He regularly lugs 100-kilogram loads on his back to deliver food and other items to mountain huts in marshlands on the border between Gunma, Fukushima and Niigata prefectures.

As a “bokka” porter, Ishitaka, 34, typically carries a load 1 meter taller than himself on his back as he negotiates a wooden causeway in the Ozegahara wetlands lined by Asian skunk cabbage flowers to reach mountain huts catering to tourists.

In the peak summer season, his load often exceeds his body weight. On one occasion, he carried 140-kg load on his 70-kg frame.

Although his weight is usually above 70 kg, the physical exertion in the bokka season brings it down to around 65 kg.

No matter how hard the task proves, Ishitaka said he always appreciates the words of gratitude he receives when he arrives at the huts. “I can see firsthand that my work is helping others, and I take great pride in that.”

Ishitaka is in his 10th year of working as a bokka, a job he describes as the “ultimate form of heavy lifting.” 

He teams with six colleagues during the hiking season from late April through the end of October to deliver meat, vegetables and assorted items to 10 or so huts on the route. A typical season will see him lugging an overall total of 17 tons of goods on his back.

Ishitaka generally begins his climb in Gunma Prefecture from the Hatomachitoge station starting point to ensure he can return to the base of the mountain on foot by evening. He does this six times a week.

The only tool required for his trip is a ladder-like “shoiko” wooden frame fitted with shoulder straps.

“It’s so simple, don’t you think?” Ishitaka said.

But the actual work of being a bokka is anything but simple. The sheer physical exertion of lugging such extreme loads requires skill and a good knowledge of the area.

Ishitaka said it is crucial to stack cardboard boxes of different weights and shapes in piles before departure. If they are packed in a way that causes the load to tilt at an angle, rather than staying upright, the burden on the body will increase. Ishitaka spends 15 or so minutes figuring out the best way to combine loads before setting out. It’s like watching someone doing a puzzle.

“The key is placing the center of gravity at a point slightly above the back of my head,” Ishitaka said.

He also pays close attention to the way he walks. If he topples over, the load must be piled up again, which takes time and energy.

Ishitaka makes a point of stepping toe first on the ground to stop him falling because it allows him to dig in with his heels if he slips on rain-wet boardwalks or gravel.

He also has to worry about lingering snow covering holes in the ground. Ishitaka gingerly decides what course to take to avoid such pitfalls.

Born in 1988 in Osaka, Ishitaka worked for a moving company after graduating from high school. He later found a job working in a hut catering to tourists on 3,776-meter-high Mount Fuji.

After he turned 24 years old, Ishitaka read an online article about bokka working in the Oze National Park, home to the Ozegahara wetlands.

Although Ishitaka had lugged loads weighing dozens of kilograms on Mount Fuji, porters in Oze appeared to him to be made of even sturdier stuff.

“I was astonished that humans can backpack such heavy loads,” Ishitaka said. “Lightning raced down my spine.”

Ishitaka became a rookie bokka the following year, in 2013, but quickly found the job to be far tougher than he had anticipated.

Lugging much heavier loads than before on a daily basis pushed his body to its physical limit. His hips joints became so inflamed from the exertion that he had to take painkillers.

Ishitaka often collapsed, breaking eggs and damaging tomatoes he was carrying in the process.

It nearly broke his spirit, but senior bokka stepped in and egged him on. They paid close attention to Ishitaka, and offered him helping hand when needed or kept a respectful distance, enabling him in the end to become independent.

In autumn in his first year as a bokka, Ishitaka reached a momentous decision: to devote the rest of his life to working as a mountain porter.

“All the people here, including huts’ staff members, mountain guides, nature protection activists and construction officials, have warm hearts,” Ishitaka said. “I resolved to keep working in Oze as a bokka to earn a living.”

Depending on the weight of goods carried and the distance to the huts, a bokka’s daily wage ranges from 10,000 yen ($74) to 15,000 yen.

Given that bokka only work from late April to late October, the delivery fees alone make it difficult to carve out a livelihood.

For that reason, in an attempt to raise his income from fall through spring, Ishitaka carries heavy equipment deep into mountain areas for construction of power transmission towers, geological surveys and other projects.

Ishitaka also set up a group around the same time to help his fellow bokka find odd jobs in off-peak periods.

All those endeavors have a simple aim: to continue delivering loads in Oze.

“I want to live in this place, with a sense of gratitude for being able to earn my keep thanks to the natural surroundings,” Ishitaka said.