hiking in Japan – Susan Spann, Adventure, Mystery, and Mountains

Makuyama, Blooming Trees, and Soft Serve: Yugawara’s Ume Festival

Susan Spann 1000 Summits, Blog, Hikes March 7, 2022March 5, 2022hiking in Japan, Japanese plum blossoms, Makuyama, Makuyama Koen, ume, ume matsuri

Last weekend (February 26), I headed south to the town of Yugawara, in Shizuoka Prefecture, to climb a mountain and attend an ume matsuri–a festival dedicated to the blooming plum tree blossoms (known as ume in Japanese).

New Year’s Eve on Mt. Tsukuba (筑波山) (2021)

Susan Spann 1000 Summits, Blog, Hikes January 1, 2022January 1, 2022hiking, hiking in Japan, hyakumeizan, Ibaraki, Mt. Tsukuba, Tsukubasan

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

An Autumn Visit to the Dragon King

Susan Spann Blog, Hikes November 22, 2021November 21, 2021autumn, foliage, Gorge of the Dragon King, hiking, hiking in Japan, Ryuokyo, Tochigi, Tochigi hikes

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:

On Crying-Bug Mountain (Nakimushiyama) [No. 144-146]

Susan Spann 1000 Summits, Blog, Hikes November 8, 2021December 3, 2021autumn, hiking, hiking in Japan, Japan, koyo, mountains, Nikko, Tochigi, travel

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.

Hiking Mt. Tarumae [No. 139]

Susan Spann 1000 Summits, Blog, Hikes November 3, 2021December 3, 2021hiking, hiking in Japan, Hokkaido, Hokkaido Hiking, Hokkaido Nature Tours, Japan, mountains, Mt. Tarumae, Tarumaesan

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.

Hiking Mt. Yotei

Susan Spann 1000 Summits, Hikes August 30, 2021December 3, 2021hikes in Japan, hiking, hiking in Japan, Hokkaido, hyakumeizan, Japanese mountains, Mt. Yotei, Yotei, Yoteizan

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.

Hiking–and Riding–on Daishiyama at Kinosaki Onsen

Susan Spann 1000 Summits, Blog August 20, 2021December 3, 20211000 summits, Daishiyama, hiking, hiking in Japan, Hyogo Prefecture, Kinosaki, 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

Seikanji – a Hidden Mountain Temple in Kyoto’s Higashiyama Ward

Susan Spann Blog August 13, 2021August 13, 2021hiking in Japan, Japan, Japanese history, Kyoto, Kyoto temples, samurai, samurai history, Seikanji, travel

While visiting Kyoto’s Kiyomizu-dera on July 6 (2021), I made a side trip to visit Seikanji–a mountain temple with beautiful views that most visitors don’t even realize is there.

Jogasaki Coast Nature Study Course Hike (Part 2 of 2)

Susan Spann Uncategorized June 14, 2021June 26, 2021hiking in Japan, Izu Geopark, Izu Peninsula, Jogasaki

(Click to see Part 1 of this two-part virtual hike.) I love the Jogasaki Nature Study Course, both for its beauty and for its easy accessibility from Tokyo. When I’ve gone, it was also significantly less crowded than the Picnical Course, which is a significant point in its favor. After leaving the “hidden cove” (pictured above, and where I left off at the end of Part 1) I headed back to the trail, which followed the shore, alternating between the open coast and the forest that grows almost to the edges of the cliffs. Statues of Jizō, like the one

Hiking the Jogasaki Coast: Nature Study Course (Part 1 of 2)

Susan Spann Hikes June 14, 2021June 14, 2021hiking in Japan, Izu Geopark, Izu Peninsula, Jogasaki, Jogasaki Coast, Jogasaki Kaigan, Shizuoka Prefecture

South of Cape Kadowaki, the Jogasaki Picnical Hiking Course becomes the Jogasaki Nature Study Course. There’s no significant difference in the nature of the trail itself–the Nature Study Course is longer, and has a few more posted signs describing the natural features of the Jogasaki Coast, but aside from the extra length, the Nature Study Course isn’t really any more difficult than the Picnical. The first time I hiked Jogasaki, hiked both courses in a single afternoon–and I did the same this May, so this virtual hike picks up where the Picnical left off–just south of Cape Kadowaki. I’m splitting

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