Highlights

Two-day hike over Miyanoura-dake (1,935m) on Yakushima and seeing the oldest cedar forests in Japan · Open-air seaside natural hot spring baths · Visit to a shochu distillery · Classic Isoteien garden at the old Shimazu family residence in Kagoshima · Climbing Mount Aso, volcano with the biggest caldera in the world · Visit to Usuki town and stone Buddhas on Kyushu coast · Hot sand baths · Travel on the shinkansen bullet train · Hiroshima Peace Park · Itsukushima Shrine on Miyajima · Izumo Grand Shrine · Matsue – castle and home of Lafacadio Hearn · Climbing Mount Daisen · Train journey along the beautiful Sea of Japan coast · Traditional Japanese pottery-making session · Kinosaki hot spring town · Delicious food, particularly local seafood specialities (flying fish, crab) and mountain vegetables.

Guide – Bob Heffill

ob first visited Japan more than 30 Years ago. After graduating from the University of London School of Oriental and African Studies in 1980, he worked in Japan as an English teacher in state schools for three years. He has spent most of the last fifteen years in the UK working as a Japanese translator and interpreter. After doing a Mountain Leader training course, Bob established Hike Japan in 2003. He now spends much of his time guiding small group adventure tours with his network of expert local guides throughout Japan .

Style of tour
Japanese-speaking British leader. Accommodation in family-run minshuku , traditional ryokan, hotel, temple .

Dates
Saturday 15 November – Sunday 30 November 2008

Price for 2008
£2,150
Single supplement : £120

Duration
16 days 15 Nights

Hiking days
5 days

Grade
Moderate

Group size
Maximum: 8 Clients Minimum: 5 Clients

Includes:
All domestic transport, accommodation, meals, guides, entrance and activity fees

Does not include:
International Flights, drinks with meals

Booking

www.hikejapan.com

info@hikejapan.com

Hike Japan Ltd.
Registered office
89 Fleet Street London EC4Y 1DH

Phone:

Japan : ++81 (0)3 5226 1169 (tel & fax)
              ++81 (0)80 3445 1130 (mob)

UK :       ++44 (0)207 353 2363

North America :

INTRODUCTION

Osaka · Kagoshima · Yakushima · Mount Aso · Usuki · Hiroshima · Miyajima · Izumo Grand Shrine · Matsue · Kinosaki hot spring · Kyoto

Hike Japan tours typically travel to some remoter parts of the country. This tour is a particularly good opportunity to explore places well off the beaten track. We will fly from Osaka to Kagoshima . After a restful night, we look over Isoteien gardens before taking a high-speed ferry to Yakushima. We explore Yakushima and do a two-day hike over the forested interior of the island. Flying by light aircraft to Kyushu , we then we travel on by road over Mount Aso to the east coast, take a bullet train to Hiroshima , bus to Matsue, and then another train along the beautiful Japan Sea Coast to Kinosaki and Kyoto . Whilst we will be on the move much of the time, there will be times to relax and learn something about the islands, people, and culture of the West. The delicious local food would be worth the trip alone.

Speak to any outdoor guide in Japan and they will recommend you visit Yakushima. The mountainous island is covered in ancient, dense cedar forests. The mightiest of these has a girth of about 28 metres! Trails cross the island, however, and we will spend one night in a mountain hut on our hike. Annual rainfall is high, but November is probably one of the best times to visit. Deer and monkeys thrive on Yakushima. After the hike, we will stay in comfortable cottages by the sea, where we can relax in natural hot springs on the shore. Flying fish are a local delicacy – washed down with the local shochu brew. We will have a guided tour of a highly rated shochu distillery where they make imojochu using regionally produced Satsuma potatoes.

Returning to the island of Kyushu , we will visit the classical Isoteien garden and stay in the city of Kagoshima . The three-hundred year old landscape garden Senganen, or Isoteien, belonged to the Shimazu family, the clan which ruled Kagoshima for almost 700 years, until 1868. Kagoshima had links, as did other parts of Kyushu we will visit, with the west, during the time Japan was closed to the outside world from 1600-1868. Kyushu politicians and families were instrumental in the Imperial restoration in 1868, and in the period after the country opened its doors after centuries of feudal rule.

From Kagoshima we will travel to the volcanic Aso region in central Kyushu . Mount Aso has the largest active caldera (crater) in the world – a circumference of some 128 kilometres. Only the middle is smoking – the surrounding area is lushly fertile. After a night in a lovely local ryokan , we will climb up to rim for a closer look.

Next stop on the tour is the coastal town of Usuki , famous for its Buddhist rock carvings. These were carved into rock faces between the 12 th and 14 th centuries and are designated National Treasures. Usuki has a well-preserved town centre you can explore. We will have a guided tour of the local soya sauce factory – it uses the largest wooden brewing vats, made from Canadian yellow cedar, in the world. From Usuki we will enjoy a morning trip to Beppu for a sand bath on the beach, and lunch.

Our journey then continues by train from Kyushu to Hiroshima on the main island of Honshu . The section from Kokura to Hiroshima will be on the fabled bullet train. We will stay in a modern ryokan next to the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park . The Peace Memorial Museum explains, in a vivid way, the reality of the nuclear holocaust. From Hiroshima we take a short ferry ride across to Itsukushima Shrine with its ‘floating' Shinto torii gateway (popularly regarded as one of the three most famous scenes in Japan ) on Miyajima.

Next stop on the tour is Matsue. To get there we have to cross to the Sea of Japan coast, a different prospect to the heavily industrialized Pacific coast. Matsue was the home, for a short time, of the writer and teacher Lafcadio Hearn (1850-1904). His observations on life in 19 th century Japan are well worth reading. We will visit his house, situated not far from Matsue Castle . We will take a morning trip by local train from Matsue to look at the Grand Shrine at Izumo, one of the oldest and most important shrines in Japan , and the following day will climb Mount Daisen .

Our next destination is the natural hot spring ( onsen ) town of Kinosaki . We will stay in a quiet part of town, not far from a quiet Zen temple with a wonderful garden. An afternoon pottery session has been arranged at a local pottery with a noborigama or ‘climbing brick kiln'. Your wares will be shipped on to you. Crab is a local speciality, and autumn is the start of the season, so expect some on the menu.

From Kinosaki we will travel by train to the old capital of Kyoto for the last day and half. We will have a night there in a rather special ryokan – a Hike Japan favourite. You will be free to sightsee, shop, or hike around Kyoto . Activities can easily be arranged. Your guide can adapt the time to suit the interests of individual members in the group.

The tour aims to blend some adventurous hiking with less strenuous, cultural activities, all fuelled by good food and company.

DAY-BY-DAY ITINERARY

DAY 1 – SATURDAY MEET AT KANSAI INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT (KIX) OSAKA

Clients, travelling from the UK , will be me at KIX. From there we will transfer to Itami Ai rport for the internal flight to Kagoshima . Clients already in Japan can either join the group at KIX or Itami, whichever is more convenient. Fly to Kagoshima .

Overnight city hotel

DAY 2 – SUNDAY DAY TO RELAX ON YAKUSHIMA

In the morning we will visit Isoteien (Senganen) gardens. Over 300 years old, the landscape garden is set in a beautiful bay side location overlooking the perfect volcanic peak of Sakurajima . The old Shimazu clan residence is located in the gardens. In the afternoon we take a high-speed ferry to the island of Yakushima .

Overnight minshuku Yakushima

DAY 3 – MONDAY HIKING ON YAKUSHIMA

We will explore the island today, relaxing a little after the long trip. We will visit a famous shochu distillery.

Overnight minshuku Yakushima

DAY 4 – TUESDAY HIKING ON YAKUSHIMA

Today our Japanese guide, travelling with us for the first half of the tour, will guide the group into the mountainous interior of the island. We head for the 1,935m peak of Miyanouradake , the highest point in southern Japan , passing some cedar trees reckoned to be many thousands of years old. Yakushima is in the Kirishima National Park , and in 1993 was the first place in Japan to be recognized as a World Heritage Site.

Overnight basic mountain hut Yakushima

DAY 5 – WEDNESDAY TRAVEL TO KAGOSHIMA

We continue along the trail, along high ridges where, weather permitting, we should get some great views. We will pass the largest cedar in Japan , the Jomon sugi, and the massive Wilson stump as we descend from the peaks.

Late afternoon visit to open air hot spring baths beside the sea. Relaxing evening in comfortable lodging.

Overnight cottage Yakushima

DAY 6 – THURSDAY TRAVEL TO MOUNT ASO REGION

This morning we will take an early flight back to Kagoshima . From Kagoshima we will drive to the southern part of the Mount Aso region in the centre of Kyushu . We will have lunch and an afternoon walk in the company of a local ex-pat. Overnight is in an inn with delicious local food and hot spring baths. In the morning you can try your hand at whipping up some macha – powdered green tea (the sort used in the tea ceremony).

Overnight ryokan Uchinomaki

DAY 7 – FRIDAY CLIMB MOUNT ASO AND TRAVEL TO USUKI

This morning we will approach Aso from the north and climb up to the rim, from where we should get good views down into the crater. The walk takes about 5 hours.

After descending we will drive to Usuki, stopping to see the 700 year-old Buddhist stone carvings on the way.

Overnight minshuku Usuki

DAY 8 – SATURDAY USUKI AND BEPPU

In the morning we will have a guided tour of a local soya sauce factory. Essential as miso , sake , kombu seaweed, and mirin , in Japanese cooking, an interesting glimpse into the production of an unfamiliar product. After the tour we will travel to Beppu for a hot sand bath on the beach, followed by lunch at a nearby restaurant founded by a well-known sumo wrestler.

Free time to wander around the old part of the town of Usuki in the evening before dinner.

Overnight minshuku Usuki

DAY 9 – SUNDAY TRAVEL TO HIROSHIMA MIYAJIMA SIGHTSEEING

Local and shinkansen bullet train to Hiroshima in the morning. Visit to Itsukushima shrine on Miyajima island in the afternoon.

Overnight modern ryokan in Hiroshima

DAY 10 – MONDAY HIROSHIMA PEACE PARK AND TRAVEL TO MATSUE

In the morning we will visit Hiroshima 's Peace Memorial Park . After lunch we will travel to Matsue by bus.

Overnight hotel Matsue

DAY 11 – TUESDAY VISIT IZUMO GRAND SHRINE AND SIGHTSEEING IN MATSUE

Today we will take a local train to Izumo to see Izumo Taisha or Grand Shrine. Noodle lunch. Afternoon guided visit of Matsue sites including Lafcadio Hearn's old house and the well-preserved castle.

Overnight hotel Matsue

DAY 12 – WEDNESDAY CLIMB MOUNT DAISEN

Today we will climb Mount Daisen , about an hours drive from Matsue, weather permitting. If weather prevents a walk to the top, we will shorten the walk and visit the Adachi Museum of Art.

Overnight hotel Matsue

DAY 13 – THURSDAY TRAVEL TO KINOSAKI AFTERNOON POTTERY

Today we will take a train along the Japan Sea Coast to Kinosaki. In the afternoon we will visit a pottery. You will have a short lesson, followed by the chance to play with some clay and make something that will always remind you of your adventures with Hike Japan .

Evening visit to the local public hot spring baths.

Overnight ryokan Kinosaki

DAY 14 – FRIDAY TRAVEL TO KYOTO

This morning we will take a train to Kyoto . After checking in to our ryokan, there will be time to start exploring Kyoto . Activities can be arranged depending on the interests of individual group members.

Accommodation in a very special inn that Hike Japan has always used in Kyoto .

Overnight ryokan Kyoto

DAY 15 – SATURDAY KYOTO

After a leisurely breakfast, there will be time for enjoying Kyoto sites, shopping, or hiking. Activities for all or part of the day can easily be arranged. Evening guided tour of one of the traditional geisha quarters in the Gion district. Farewell drinks and dinner.

Overnight ryokan Kyoto

DAY 16 – SUNDAY TOUR END AND ONWARD TRAVEL

Transfer to airport or travel onward to other destinations.

TRIP NOTES

Equipment & Clothing

On receiving your booking, we send you a dossier which contains a suggested gear and clothing list. If you have any queries at this initial stage do ring us and we will be pleased to offer advice.

Accommodation

KAGOSHIMA : Comfortable, modern, downtown hotel YAKUSHIMA: Minshuku, mountain hut, cottage ASO: ryokan USUKI: minshuku HIROSHIMA : modern ryokan, MATSUE: hotel KINOSAKI: ryokan KYOTO : traditional ryokan and hotel

Meal Plan

All meals are provided.

Important Notes

Every effort will be made to keep to the above itinerary, but we cannot make absolute guarantees! Changes to the itinerary will normally be made to introduce an improvement. Weather conditions, road and transport conditions, and the health of walkers can all contribute to changes. The guide will ensure that the trip runs according to plan, but an easy-going nature is an asset!