A Hike Down Mount Nokogiri

In front of us was “Saw-tooth Mountain”.

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Four hikers arrived at Hama-Kanaya Station. the group consisted of three nurses (Rioko, Toshie, and me) and a med rep (former med tech Mei).

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We began our journey up after eating at Funaosa. It was about a 20 min walk to the ropeway. Up the mountain, it cost 600 yen up by cable car.

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Mt. Nokogiri Summit (313 meters high) has treacherous terrain on the summit.

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They are jagged and steep and uneven. It was tough to negotiate. A stairway lead up to the Jusshu Ichiran Observatory for an even better view.

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Afterwards, we went down the pass guarded by tall stone walls until we reached an opening with the Hyakushaku-Kannon carved in the stone wall. Here is a group photo of the nursing expedition team.

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Then we back tracked abit and took the other way up Jigoku-Nozoki Cliffs which means “a peep from Hell” especially looking down, but feels more like Heaven up here.

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To begin our journey down the mountain, we had to enter Nihon-ji Temple. In fact the whole mountain is a temple. It cost 600 yen to enter. Now begins our 3000 stair-step trek down the mountain. We saw the hundreds of Rankan (saints) mounted on the rock wall. We finally reached the enourmous Daibatsu that dwarfs the Kamakura Daibatsu at 31m tall.

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To the side is an ivory Buddha. Small statues are place around it by pilgrims said to be the names of lost children. With a snack break and short respite, we planned our next trip.

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We took a steep detour up a lot of steps to see a waterfall? Something was wrong here. It was more like water dripping than falling. Having wasted our energy on this curiosity, we headed down the bamboo fence line to Kari Hatto-Temporary Auditorium of Nihon-ji Temple.

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It was about a 45 hour walk to after that JR. Station Hota but we saw the train leave the station just as we were about 200 meter from the station.

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So we had to take a side trip to the town’s dock and fish market. Two hours later we rode the train back to Tokyo out of Hota Station. Ooww! My “dawgs” are barking! So were the girls as they massaged their sore legs. But I had to “steel myself” and show them that this former paratrooper, who once roamed the steep, thick-wooded mountains of South Korea and jagged rocky mountains of the Mojave Desert, that this little hike was child’s play. Though deep inside, I grumbled to myself of the exhaustion I was experiencing.