Tsurugi-san

On June 10th we left the house at 7:30 AM to drive to tsurugisan, Tsurugi mountain. This mountain is located in Miyoshi city, in Tokushima prefecture. It is the second largest mountain in western Japan, at 1955 meters (6,414 feet) high.
We park the car at the starting point which is at about 1200 meters (3,937 feet), and our journey begins at the steps of the temple. It's always uphill in Japan! Though it is only another 755 meters (2,477 feet) to the top, the paths leading there zig-zag up the mountain for 4 km (2.49 miles). So, we have an 8 km (4.98 mile) hike ahead of us. With only half of it going downhill.

It wasn't an easy hike. Yukiko even slipped and fell on her butt while we were on our way down.

It was often steep, with loose rocks.

There was even this spot, where the dirt was gone. The only thing left were some logs and roots.





There was a lift that would bring you from the parking lot area to 1730 meters (5,676 feet), but that would be cheating.

Here are the lifts from just above the parking area.




There is a camp site area, below where the lift carries people. They had grills and water there, but nobody was camping.

Looking up from the camp grounds to the lift station. It is in the center top of this picture. We still have a ways to go before we get there.




We finally make it to the top lift station. At this point we are at 1730 meters (5,676 feet).

There was no shortage of scenery during this hike. Just looking out at the other mountains and towns below was magnificent. Add to it strange rock formations, and you have some great photos.

Looking down at the top lift station, you can see how long a hike this is, and we aren't at the top yet!




Finally, the top is within sight. We have made it to the entrance of Tsurugi-jinga. The shrine at the top of the mountain.

It looks like such a lonely shrine

At the top you are at 1955 meters (6,414 feet)

People walking the path that leads to another peak.

From here, the towns below seem so very small.

After making the 4 km journey back down, with just one minor fall between the two of us, we made our way to Okuiya Tourism Monorail. It has the distinction of being the longest tourism monorail in the world, at 4.6 km (2.86 miles) long. It takes you 590 meters (1,935 ft) up the mountain.

Meet the friendly beetle who took us on our monorail trip

On my way! A view through the forest

The view from the highest point on the monorail, at about 1375 meters (4,511 feet).





Once we were done, we walked over to the old house that is displayed. It was built around 1830.

Look how thick the thatched roof is!

That wasn't enough for one day. So, we headed to Ryugugake Park. Here they have a long suspension bridge that goes out over the gorge. It is not for those that are afraid of heights, it even shakes a bit.

I didn't think Yukiko was going to make it, but she summoned up the courage and walked straight down the middle. She made it all the way to the other side.

The view from the center of the bridge.

 The day was coming to a close, so we headed to the camp site with enough daylight to set up our tent at the top of the stairs leading to the river. The site was great, and we were the only campers that night.

Hotaru Matsuri

On June 9th, we headed to the hotaru matsuri, or firefly festival. On the way there we stopped to see a waterfall, called hudou no taki.

We then went to the firefly festival. At first arrival it seemed more like a summer festival. The children were playing in the stream and catching fish with handheld nets, as passersby viewed from the bridges.

We arrived early so that we could find a place to park, but that meant that we had 4 hours to go before it started to get dark, and the fireflies come out. So, we walked around and found a hiking trail up a nearby mountain.

This one had 88 markers along the path up one side of the mountain and down the other. Each marker represented a different temple on Shikoku. So, we assumed that they were meant to represent the 88 temple pilgrimage that many make around the island, called Shikoku Junrei

The path was often steep

 This was the view from near the top. You can see the town we walked from at the base of the opposing mountain.





We returned on time for the taiko, drum, performance. The precision of their timing always amazes me. This is as much of a visual performance as is is a sound performance.

Their local English teacher even joined.






Once that was done, it was time to enjoy the local cuisine at the many stands set up during the festival.

I mean, who doesn't enjoy the sweet taste of squid on a stick?

Needless to say, that isn't what I ate... Then it was getting dark, and the fireflies were coming out. When we left, we were glad we had come so early to get a spot. The parking lots were pretty full when we arrived 4 hours early. When we left, there was a line of cars for miles down the road as the people arriving later tried to find parking.

Venus transit of the sun

On June 6th, we had viewing for the full length of the Venus transit. I was able to get a few photos of the event thanks to a friend here who was able to lend me a solar viewer that was large enough to cover my entire lens diameter. I searched everywhere locally for a 58mm solar filter, but everybody was sold out due to the solar eclipse that was visible from here just a few weeks before.

Kikaku Koen

On June 3rd, we went to the sｙobu matsuri, which is the iris festival held at kikaku park. There were many iris flowers of course...

and what area in Japan would not have a temple or shrine nearby that comes complete with steep steps?

There were also dance and taiko performances.

complete with dragon




On our way back from the iris festival, we went to tsubaki no shiro, which translates to camellia castle. It was the most useless building I have ever seen. It was apparently built by a famous architect, but I guess you have to be an architect to appreciate such things. It appeared to me to have the same design structure as the fort we built as little kids with scraps of lumber that we gathered from the neighborhood.

View from inside

 View from the back

View from the road






The bridge that is used to get across the road at least served a purpose, but it had what looked like observation decks that there was no way to get to.

The one thing that was nice about the site was the nearby shrine. It was small, but still interesting to see.

After that we stopped of at a damn.

From here we had an excellent view

Ritsurin Garden

On May 29th, we went to Ritsurin Garden. This area is just a few minutes walk from where I used to live. This garden's construction began in the 1570's by the local rulers, the Satos. In 1625, Ikoma Takatoshi continued developing the garden. It was taken over by successive rulers until the 5th, Matsudaira Yoritaka, completed it in 1745. This area served as the private estate of the Matsudaira family for 228 years. After the end of the feudal clan system, the area became a public park in 1875.

The entire park covers about 185 acres, with the flower gardens using about 40 acres. It is the largest garden in Japan designated a national scenic area. The mountain you see in the background is Mount Shiun.

They built an artificial waterfall that ran from half way up the mountain. In the times of the feudal lords, the servants would carry water in buckets up to a large container. When the lord walked by, they would release the water, causing the waterfall to flow. Today this is all done by electrical pumps.

There are three tea houses within the garden. Kikugetsu-tei, pictured below from different locations, is reported to have been a favorite of the feudal rulers.

All of the trees in the foreground of the picture below were planted by members of the Japanese royal family, except for one. The third tree from the right was planted in 1923 by the Prince of Whales. He was the uncle of Queen Elizabeth II. Thirteen years after planting this tree, he would become King Edward VIII, only to abdicate from the throne within a year for the woman he loved.

There were many things to see... The Japanese plums were ripe on the trees

The lily pads were in full bloom

The Japanese gardens as a whole are very well thought out and blend well with the surroundings

I really like the Japanese lanterns that are used to decorate gardens, houses, and temples.

And of course, what Japanese garden would be complete without koi. Visitors here can purchase food to trow in the lakes. So, every time you walk by the lakes' edge the koi would congregate hoping to be fed. We were feeding them in the below photo, which had them all scrambling to get a piece.

The souvenir shop had a lot of wood made items, as the lacquerware from this area is popular in Japan. Outside the shop, they also had a large assortment of bonsai trees for sale. 

Honen-ji

On May 16th, we went to a local temple called Honenji. The best I can figure it is named after a monk named Honen, who was somewhat of a religious reformer who was exiled to Sanuki, present day Kagawa prefecture. Here there are all the typical things a Japanese temple has like shrines, buildings and of course a lot of stairs...

From the top we had a great view. In the background of the picture below, you can see Yashima mountain. As was explained to me many years ago by the principal of Yashima Jr. High School, this used to be an Island, however lava flowed from this volcano at some point, filling in the narrow distance between the island and the shore. During the Genpei war the Taira had retreated to this island and built defenses here. On March 22, 1185 they were in a battle with the Minamoto at this site. The war, which lasted about 5 years, was because of a dispute about whom was the rightful heir to the throne. There is now a wax museum at the top of Yashima that depicts the battle.

After leaving Honenji, we went to another local temple called Kawahigashi Hachiman. Of course there were many stairs here too.

I had mentioned in an earlier post that people here believe if you trow a stone up onto the beam of the temple entrance (archway) that it is good luck. We both managed, after multiple attempts, to get our stones to stay up there.