Amid the peak climbing season for Mt Fuji, four stations with graffiti were recently found along the hiking paths.

The katakana characters ルダイ ("rudai") were spray painted in red at the stations of the world cultural heritage site on July 31, TBS reported. A Shizuoka prefectural employee discovered the writings near check-point number seven while patrolling the hiking paths along the mountain.

According to prefectural officials, graffiti was discovered on rocks near the 7th and 9th stations and two other areas.

Shizuoka officials are submitting an official damage report to the Cultural Affairs Agency. Clean-up is expected to continue until Aug 8.

© Japan Today