Taking the Long Road: Pilgrimage Routes of Japan
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Mountains cover 70% of Japan’s land. As a result, the country is home to thousands of hiking trails, including many multi-day ones. Japan’s mountains not only bring happiness to many hikers and skiers but also play a central role in numerous religious, social, and cultural rituals dating back thousands of years. These rituals establish strong connections between certain segments of society and the mountains—connections so strong that they sometimes lead to courtroom drama.
Who owns Mount Fuji? Ask the court.
When I first heard that the iconic Mount Fuji, Japan’s tallest mountain, is privately owned, I was as shocked as any person hailing from a country where nature assets automatically qualify as public assets and, thus, can only be owned and controlled by the government, would be.
Sengen Grand Shrine, located in Shizuoka Prefecture, owns the upper section of Mount Fuji, covering the area from 3,250 meters up to its peak at 3,776 meters. What is even more surprising is that, in a country where litigation is considered the ultimate last resort (unlike my country, where everyone sues each other), the shrine went as far as suing the government to reclaim its ownership of the land and obtained a court decision declaring its ownership of the top section of Mount Fuji in 1974. While the shrine’s ownership right is legally based on the Constitution of 1949 and the new regime that it implemented, Sengen Grand Shrine’s claim to the ownership of Japan’s most beloved mountain mainly derives from the spiritual importance of the mountain for the shrine.
Pilgrimage routes of Japan
While all the background drama, litigation, and spiritual importance add to the allure of Japanese mountains, one could also certainly argue that the landscape beauty offered by Japanese mountains cannot compete with what countries like New Zealand, Norway, or Switzerland have to offer—otherworldly scenery powerful enough to inspire one to be a more decent human being. However, what Japan lacks in terms of awe-inspiring and life-altering scenery (so sorry, but forget about climbing Mount Fuji and walking down as a more decent human being), it makes up for not only in exciting drama but also in a unique hiking experience that showcases a perfect harmony between people, nature, and, in some cases, religions. Most of the country’s multi-day trails will fulfill one’s desire for cultural interaction and outdoor adventure equally.
Some of these trails are over a thousand years old, and hikers follow in the footsteps of religious pilgrims who once risked their lives visiting sacred sites. There are also some recently developed trails, such as the 1000-km-long Michinoku Coastal Trail in Tohoku, which was built to celebrate the revival of a region that has been hit by one of the deadliest natural disasters of the century.
While I visited some sights along the Michinoku Trail in 2022 during a trip planned by the Japan Reconstruction Agency, I have yet to hike any of its sections. So, I will focus on the three trails that I have personally experienced.
Kumano Kodo: ancient pilgrimage routes
Kumano Kodo is one of the best-known multi-day pilgrimage destinations in Japan, owing part of its fame to its inscription as a UNESCO World Heritage in 2004 and becoming, along with Camino de Santiago, one of the only two pilgrimage routes in the world having such recognition.
Kumano Kodo is the name given to a network of five pilgrimage trails—Nakahechi, Kohechi, Iseji, Oheji, and Omine Okugake—that have been used for over a thousand years, connecting sacred sites in the Kii Peninsula.
These ancient trails connect the three sacred sites: Hongu Taisha, Nachi Taisha, and Hayatama Taisha. Collectively known as “Kumano Sanzan,” these are the ancient Kumano religion’s three grand shrines and holiest sites. The trails of Kumano Kodo also extend to Koyasan, the capital of Shingon Buddhism in Japan; Ise-ji Shrine, the most important Shinto shrine in Japan; and Yoshino and Omine, the centers of mountain worship – Shugendo.
With all this historical, cultural, and religious background, UNESCO refers to the Kumano region as a cultural landscape, a concept defined as “[places] where human interaction with natural systems has, over a long period, formed a distinctive landscape.”
Nakahechi Route
Once reserved for the emperors and nobles and therefore also known as the Imperial Route, the most popular Kumano Kodo trail is the Nakahechi Route. The trail starts in Tanabe and traverses the Kii Peninsula towards the three sacred sites of Kumano Sanzan.
While the official trail begins at Tanabe, most people, including myself, start their hike at Takijiri Oji— an infamous section that first punishes you with a grueling two to three hours climb and then rewards you with a stay at one of the finest accommodations along the entire Kumano Kodo route – Kiri no Sato Takahara, where each room comes with uninterrupted views of the surrounding mountain range, which looks exceptionally mystical in the morning.
The Nakahechi, which ends at Nachi Falls, Japan’s tallest waterfall, is completed in five days. The trail has many diverse highlights that keep the walk interesting every single day. One popular stop is the Yunomine Onsen town, known to be Japan’s oldest hot spring town and home to the UNESCO Heritage Tsuboyu.
Among all Kumano Kodo trails, Nakahechi is the most well-served one in terms of tourism infrastructure. Thanks to a community effort, you can book your accommodation, arrange luggage transportation, and even book a guide using a single and easy-to-use website (a rare comfort in Japan): https://www.kumano-travel.com/en
From the paid archive: a diary of a recent hike along Japan’s beloved pilgrimage route, complete with an FAQ section and trail notes – Hiking Kumano Kodo: The Nakahechi Route.
Iseji Route
Known as the Eastern Route, or the route for the “ordinary people” of the time, the Iseji Route is another Kumano Kodo trail I had a chance to experience.
The route starts at Japan’s most important shrine, the Ise Shrine, and follows fishing villages and beautiful mountain passes all the way down to Hayatama Taisha.
The 170-km trail is commonly completed in 10 to 14 days. While the Nakahechi Route mainly passes through the mountains, the Ise-ji Route offers a mixture of mountain passes, including sections such as Magose Pass (referred to as one of the most scenic sections of the entire Kumano Kodo), road walking, and fishing villages.
More from the subscriber archive:
Hiking Kumano Kodo: the Nakahechi Route
Hiking Japan: From Okinawa to Hokkaido
Shibu Onsen and the Snow Monkeys of Nagano
Tohoku Onsen Hopping: Four Nights, Four Hot Springs
Tokyo Eateries: the Non-Gourmet Version
Autumn Colors Trip to Aomori: Itinerary Suggestion
Cycling the Shimanami Kaido in Two Days
Japan Trip Planning Q&A Series (three posts)
Winter Trip to Biei in Hokkaido (four posts)
Walking the Goto Islands (eight posts)
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