The Nyonin-michi–literally, “women’s trail”–circumambulates the rim of Kōyasan’s mountaintop plateau. Before the Meiji Era, this was as close to the sacred holy sites as women were allowed to come.
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Hiking Lake Toya: A Day on Nakajima
On the final day of last September’s hiking trip to Hokkaido, with a little more than half a day to kill before my train departed for Tokyo, my friend Ido and I headed out to Lake Tōya for one last hike.
Read moreNew Year’s Eve on Mt. Tsukuba (筑波山) (2021)
In December 2018, I established a new, personal New Year’s Eve tradition: I climb a mountain. In Japan (as elsewhere) New Year’s Eve is a time for personal reflection, and I reflect on myself, my year, and the world around me better on a mountain trail than just about anywhere else. The New Year’s Eve climb is also my way of expressing my hope that I’ll keep moving forward (and upward) and keep returning to the mountains in the coming year. This year, I chose to go back to the proverbial “scene of the crime”–the site of my original, 2018
Read moreHiking Mt. Muine (Sapporo, Hokkaido)[#140]
Last September, I headed up to southern Hokkaido for a week of traveling and mountain climbing with my friend Ido. He knows Hokkaido far better than I do, so when he was extra excited about our climb of Mt. Muine, near Sapporo, I knew to expect something special . . . and as you’ll see, Muine delivered.
Read moreAn Autumn Visit to the Dragon King
On the first weekend in November, my son and I headed up to Tochigi Prefecture to hike the Ryuō-kyō (Gorge of the Dragon King). This was my third hike through the gorge, but the first time for my son, and I hoped we’d timed it correctly for autumn foliage. As you’ll see, it didn’t disappoint:
Read moreOn Crying-Bug Mountain (Nakimushiyama) [No. 144-146]
On October 24, I headed north to Nikkō, in Tochigi Prefecture, to hike a new-to-me trail that included Nakimushiyama (鳴虫山), an 1,103-meter mountain not far from Nikkō station. The route went up and over three smaller peaks, too, and though much of the trail is surrounded by trees, there were a few spots with beautiful views as well.
Read moreHiking Mt. Tarumae [No. 139]
My friend Ido* and I kicked off my recent (Autumn 2021) hiking trip to Hokkaido with an ascent of Mt. Tarumae–a 1,041-meter active stratovolcano not far from Tomakomai in southern Hokkaido.
Read moreHiking Mt. Yotei
Mt. Yotei, also known as Ezo-Fuji for its resemblance to Japan’s most famous peak, is a stratovolcano located in Hokkaido’s Shikotsu-Koya National Park.
Read moreHiking–and Riding–on Daishiyama at Kinosaki Onsen
To celebrate my 50th birthday in July (2021), I headed five hours southwest to Kinosaki Onsen, a famous onsen (volcanic hot spring) town in Hyogo Prefecture. In addition to some of the best hot spring baths in Japan, Kinosaki is famous for the Japanese white storks that live and nest in the area (there’s a preserve within bicycling or walking distance of the onsen town)–and the large white birds also lend their name to the Stork Express, the train that runs between Osaka and Kinosaki Onsen Station. Although the “nature” portion of the hike wouldn’t start until I reached the
Read moreA Morning Walk at Lake Ashi: Hakone, Japan
Later this week, I’ll share a recent hike I took along a preserved section of the Tokaidō–one of the major travel roads of 17th century Japan–but the day began with a walk along a different, and more modern, path along the shore of Ashinoko (Lake Ashi), which I’m sharing here today
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