Posts Tagged ‘Nikko’
Japan is best known for its technological advances and gizmos. Visitors from America, Australia, New Zealand, and Europe expect to see giant billboards that are actually television screens, advanced vending machines, and computer stores on every corner when they visit this mystical place to the East. But some of us think we see too much of this already at home. A great way to see the ‘real’ Japan is to look at the popular hiking spots in rural Japan.
Featuring a vast history and many untouched beauties, Japan is not a country to be missed. So grab your hiking boots and fill your water packs, and check out these rural Japan popular hiking spots.
1) Oze National Park
Oze National Park covers many different areas within itself. The Ozegahara Marshland and the Ozenuma Pond are two of the most well-known areas within the park, but there are many trails and smaller mountains that make up this majesctic piece of wilderness. The trails lead to many places but decent hikers should look to hiking from the Hatomachitoge trailhead, past the marshland and pond, and then finishing at the Oshimizu trailhead. This is an all day hike, six to eight hours, so inexperienced hikers may want to consider doing a smaller hike.
2) Nikko National Park
Two hours north of Tokyo, and yet a world away. Nikko national park surrounds the Toshugo Shrine Complex and the mausoleum of the founder of Japan’s Tokugawa Shogunate. This are is a great place to relax that won’t take you too far from the city. If you are visiting the county, it’s a good idea to devote a day to go here and have a look at other things that the country has to offer.
Japan is a country of opposites. The capitol and surrounding major cities give the impression that it is all modernised, yet a short bus ride to the west will show you lazy towns, massive hills, and tiny villages. A hike in Japan is worth the leg pain you’ll feel the next day.
Image: Stefan Schlautmann