Walking in Japan
I am sure there are a lot of foreigners who have sat in Roppongi Hills or some other faceless Tokyo tower block, caught a glimpse of the mountains surrounding Tokyo and wondered what it would be like to be away from the concrete wilderness in which they find themselves out in the real wilderness of Japan.
Places to go, things to see
This website is intended to help the forlorn gaijin looking for a day or two of escape from the excitement of Tokyo walking in the mountains around Tokyo.
Fortunately, as the map below shows, there are a lot of accessible mountain ranges with excellent walks not too far from Tokyo. An hour and a half to two hours train ride can take you to a rural Japan rarely visited by tourists in mountains where you can still find warnings to look out for the bears.
View Main mountain hiking areas in a larger map
About Walkjapan
Walkjapan is the Editor’s personal blog with a record of his hiking trips in Japan together with information intended to help plan a hiking trip easier.
The hikes are mainly to mountains near Tokyo but will include a few more gentle walking trips around sights such as Kamakura and including trips suitable for younger family members. Posts will include both planned trips and reports from trips actually taken, along with generous use of maps and pictures.
What’s to come
This sight has only started in its current form in May 2011, so has a long way to go before having a decent amount of content. However below are some of the planned topics:
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Different regions for mountain climbing, starting with those close to Tokyo.
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A description of different walks, including maps and photos for those already taken.
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Onsens – places to have a bath after a hike, including reviews, links to websites and maps
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Transport and access – details of trains, buses and taxis and points to watch for on the mountains.
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Mountain huts – places to stay in the mountains either for a longer trip or in emergency.
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Posts on bits and pieces re mountain walking in Japan.
Contrary to the impression from much of the foreign press, Japan is not a nuclear wasteland strewn with the left over rubble of earthquakes. The country’s unique culture and beautiful natural heritage remains intact and is well worth the visit.