Omatasetashimashita!!!! Yakushima Tour Report Part 2
After a wonderful nights sleep and a delicious breakfast we were picked up by Kinoshita-San and kunren chu lab Ruby. We then went up to the entrance of Shira Tani Un Sui Kyo. It was a cloudy day and little chilly in the beginning but after you started hiking you warmed up pretty quick. We were walking through the beautiful Yakushima Forest, had our lunch by a river and saw the tree which inspired a seen from the movie Princess Monnonoke. We proceeded all the way to the top of Taiko Iwa which actually makes a sound like a drum if hit in the right spot. At the top we all had Macha made for us by Suzuki Papa using his new Mont-Bell Sabi set. It was delicious and the setting was perfect, Gochisosamadeshita Suzuki-san. We then descended down the mountain and back to the lodge and had a wonderful bath before enjoying a delicious BBQ of a mixture of seafood, meat, and vegetables. The next day after breakfast we were again picked up by Kinoshita-san and Kyojoken member Watanabe san who both took us on a bus tour around Yakushima. We stopped at Inakahama which is one of the most important nesting site for sea turtles in the North Western Pacific. We also went to a Lighthouse were we enjoyed a wonderful view. We also drove through the UNESCO world heritage site on the far side of the island. We saw a bunch of YakuShika and Yakushima saru on the side of the road. We also stopped to see the Ogawa Waterfall which is rated as one of the best 100 waterfalls in Japan. We also saw the Japanese national treasure kajumaru tree before arriving at Miyanoura where we ate a quick lunch and bought omiyage before getting on the ferry to return to Kyushu. It was a wonderful trip where we got to not only experience nature in a way that most people haven’t but also learn a lot about it too from our amazingly knowledgeable guide Kinoshita-San. Kinoshita-San Arigatou Gozaimashita. I’m really looking forward to our next trip to this wonderful place.
10月8日〜10日 「Yaku nature tour Part 1 」 by John John and Takezo
Last weekend we went to the beautiful UNESCO world heritage site Yakushima. We all tried a variety of outdoor activities. We caught the 8:35 ferry Yakushima 2 and we arrived at Miyanoura around 12:35 where we were met by my friend and KyuJoKen sempai Kinoshita Daizen san who is the owner of “Earthly company” an Eco tourism company on Yakushima. We then ate a delicious lunch at the “Un Sui “restaurant. After lunch we all went kayaking to the base of the Troki waterfall which is a waterfall that drops straight into the sea which creates a very unique environment with a mix of fresh water and sea water. We also went snorkeling there which was very interesting. The top layer of water was a little cold as it was the layer of fresh water from the waterfall. Because sea water is heavier than freshwater the bottom layer was very warm sea water so you wanted to spend more time underwater than on the surface. After we finished kayaking Kinoshita san dropped us off at the Lodge Yaeyamadake sanso where we rested our bodies in the ofuro before we enjoyed a delicious supper before heading off to bed. Check back for part 2 of our trip to ShiraTaniUnSuiKyo and a bus tour around Yakushima.