Mt. Takatori

Springtime in Japan is just perfect. Everyone tells us that the summer can get pretty miserable with the humidity, but right now the temperature is wonderful and everything is blooming. We decided to tackle our first hiking trip by checking out some trails nearby, featuring a temple and buddha statue way up the mountains. We also got to try out our new baby backpack for Jonathan!

Mt. Takatori is nestled inside Zushi, just northwest of Yokosuka and is only a short hike away from several train stations. Our plan was to start at one station and hike across the mountain to another station and it worked out great!

Shortly into the hike we found the temple. Jimmu-ji temple, like so many of the innumerable temples in Japan, has ancient origins (this one supposedly dating back to the 8th century) but has been destroyed and rebuilt many times. The temple grounds were absolutely beautiful, and unlike the other temples and shrines we’ve visited that are buried in a city and filled with vendors and tourists, this one was in the middle of quiet woodland. It really felt like going back in time, standing in this ancient moss-covered forest. Definitely a spot that I didn’t want to leave.

Overall the hiking trails were wonderful. Lots of natural steps and inclines, complimented with constructed stairs and even some steps carved into stone. It was a lot more difficult than we had anticipated, but definitely worth it! (Such a beautiful hike throughout!)

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We reached the summit towards the end of the hike, featuring a lovely view of the area. The area also used to be a quarry, and the square-cut mountains have since been repurposed into some really awesome rock climbing walls. The area was packed with Japanese enjoying the first weeks of Spring. Maybe one of these days we can get some rock climbing gear and head back. We enjoyed a packed lunch and watched some of the locals tackle some of the bigger walls.

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On the way down we found the buddha carved into the mountain, surrounded by more quarried walls now used for rock climbing. Hard to tell from the photo, but the statue was pretty large. You can see some full-sized bouquets at the bottom for perspective.

Shortly after the buddha, we got to the opposite trailhead and made our way to the station. Our path led us though a beautiful neighborhood which did an excellent job showcasing springtime in Japan.

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Our hike definitely wiped the kids out. We found Jonathan asleep in his seat on our way to the train station, and Jeffrey slept on the train ride home in a very…interesting position.

Overall we had such a great time on the hike! The Japanese really love the outdoors and have a great culture of camping and hiking, so there are no shortage of beautiful trails to explore, even in the middle of a densely populated area like this one. We’re already looking for new hikes to do this Spring in the area and eventually want to upgrade to some camping (It would be fun for my first camping experience to be in Japan!). In particular, Jeffrey really loved the hike and wants to do more. He asks me all the time to hike to the top of Mt. Fuji (sorry bud, don’t think we’re quite ready for that!) so we’ll definitely get out again soon!

BRB, out to Japan – Taylor