The most majestic mountaineering photos are snapped as a climber reaches the summit and poses with a beaming, triumphant smile – one that hadn’t emerged on the excruciating climb up, nor the inevitably long journey back down.
This state of euphoria also comes over us as we reach the top of Mount Kuromidake, a dormant volcano rising 1,831 feet above sea level on the remote island of Yakushima, an hour off the coast of Kyushu via a high-speed hydrofoil ride. Along with my companions for the journey – five Australians and two Singaporeans, along with Walk Japan tour leader Takuya Ugajin and assistant tour leader Mayumi Yoshida – we’re ecstatic to pose for photos at the peak of our highest hike after spending the past three days charting across Kyushu, Japan’s third largest island, being captivated by its natural beauty and charmed by its rich cultural heritage.
Rather than whizzing past piercing skyscrapers and historic temples typical of whirlwind trips to the nation, Walk Japan embraces a slower pace, encouraging its participants to immerse themselves in their surroundings through guided walking tours that get up close and personal with the local people and their collective history. Every day presents eye-opening surprises that go beyond the regular tourist circuit, such as a tour of the Chiran Samurai District in Kagoshima, which leads us through a maze of fortified homes dating back to the 17th century.
Many of the walled-in residences are still inhabited and closed off to the public, but visitors are invited into a handful of perfectly manicured gardens, which take into consideration the surrounding mountain vistas in their structured designs. Further afield, we’re given a sobering 20th-century history lesson at the Chiran Peace Museum for Kamikaze Pilots, which houses Second World War memorabilia as well as an extensive collection of moving letters written by young pilots, just moments before meeting their sombre fates.
Culture and history are often interwoven throughout the course of the eight-day Kyushu Expedition, and we awake each morning eager to tackle and explore a different natural playground. Back on the island of Yakushima – Japan’s first UNESCO World Heritage site – we traverse a unique ecosystem that abruptly changes from tropical to alpine. The stewartia camellia trees, with their spindly branches stretching up to the sky and fiery orange trunks that remain surprisingly cool to the touch in order to stave off heat and humidity, sit in contrast with endless stretches of dense, green foliage, intercut with bursts of fuchsia rhododendron flowers.
Encountering packs of elderly hikers en route is common, but it’s important to note that ascending the volcanoes is physically demanding. Thick roots criss-cross the path; they tighten like shackles around our ankles with every misstep. We’re also met with vertical granite rock faces that need to be scaled using a frayed, limp rope. Other routes are less challenging, yet nonetheless awe-inspiring, such as the day we spent discovering the Shiratani Unsuikyo Ravine nature walk. Winding through the enchanting moss-covered primeval rainforest scenery that inspired Hayao Miyazaki’s animated movie Princess Mononoke, and traversing crystal-clear streams and waterfalls by skipping from boulder to boulder, the landscape here also abruptly changes from ancient cedars blanketed in soft, green moss to stark stretches of muddy swamplands shrouded in mist.
Only millennial cedars grown on Yakushima bear the prestigious title of yakusugi (Japanese cedar); a walk along the deserted train tracks winding through the back of the hiking trail sheds light on the historic logging trade that once thrived here, long before the area was protected. Today, priceless yakusugi woodwork can still be found at the Takeda Kan workshop and boutique in town, where the family business has stood for half a century. The Takedas are on hand to take us on a tour of their atelier, which houses collectible furnishings, homewares and souvenirs handcrafted from the treasured hardwood.
Evenings are spent unwinding at various accommodations that span sleek business hotels to relaxing onsen resorts – yet, it’s the family-run minshuku inn that’s truly a gem. We spend two nights at Guesthouse Manmaru on Yakushima, a rustic retreat commanding a pretty spot overlooking the Pacific Ocean that’s just steps from a rocky beach. Our welcoming hosts treat us to nightly 12-course omakase meals that have been lovingly prepared with the freshest possible ingredients, paired with potent shochu spirits made from a local sweet potato, while we swap stories from our distant homelands well into the night. These sensations – good food shared among even better company – make it difficult to leave and nearly impossible to return to our respective realities. walkjapan.com
A version of this article originally appeared in our August 2016 issue.
