Kumano Kodo: Kohechi

Kumano Kodo Kohechi: the mountain route, from Hongu to Koyasan. Choisimichi: from Koyasan to Kudoyama.
5th of October to 10th of October 2024.
Distance: 84.4km. 6 days.

I then moved from a route that has passed into history to a route that still lives in it, Kohechi. One of the reasons for this is quite clear. Since the majority of the route is going up into the forested mountains in the middle of the Kii Peninsula, it has continued to exist, unlike Kiiji. For this very same reason, Kohechi is named the mountain route.

Map of the Kumano Kodo routes with Kohechi outlined.

This route originated from the purpose of connecting Koyasan to Kumano Sanzan. Koyasan is considered to be the sacred center of the Shingon school of Buddhism in Japan, where Kobo Daishi (the founder of the school) is said to be meditating in eternal sleep. Koyasan is for that reason also connected to the Shikoku 88 temples pilgrimage. It is normal to start from Koyasan and going south to Kumano Hongu Taisha, but I was going to walk it in the opposite direction.

The huge Otorii gate outside Ōyunohara was illuminated in the evening before I started on the Kohechi.

Kohechi is relatively short at 60 kilometers, but is still usually considered to be the hardest of the routes, if you exclude the Omine Okugakemichi. Each day on the route is characterized by a rather steep climb up to and over a pass followed by an equally steep descent. Which makes the stages more or less self-explanatory, it is normal to spend four days to walk it.

Kumano Hongu Taisha in Hongu.

View of the Otorii and surrounding mountains from a viewpoint found on a short detour from the trail.

The popularity of this route, as well as the fact that there is a somewhat limited amount of places to stay available, means that you have to book accommodation a good time in advance. Kohechi is also well waymarked in both Japanese and English, which also makes it more accessible to hikers from abroad. Make sure to have a plan for your lunch, as there are limited services available along the route.

A view through the woods from Kohechi.

A path in the mist, on the way towards the Hatenashi-toge pass.

When I start out from Hongu, it is under a grey sky bearing indications of imminent rain. Clouds besieges the mountains surrounding the old sacred site of Ōyunohara and its huge Otorii, which is looking even more impressive from a great viewpoint one can reach by walking a short detour from the official path. The two most popular Kumano Kodo routes are sharing the same path on the last steps to or first steps from Kumano Hongu Taisha, depending on the perspective.

Above Hatenashi, the village in the sky.

As the route is for the most part going up into the forested hills and mountains between Hongu and Koyasan, I mostly find myself walking on natural paths underneath the cover of the trees. The paths ranges from going on good tracks to uneven surfaces over gnarled roots or natural looking stairs of stones covered in moss, which can be slippery when wet. Down in the valleys between the mountain passes, however, walking on a hard surface cannot be escaped. The longest stretch of road walk is the about 8 kilometres between the Miura-toge and Hatenashi-toge trailheads.

Private onsen at the Gyoja Minshuku Taiyo-no-Yu in Totsukawa Onsen.

The Tanise valley between the Miura-toge and Hatenashi-toge trailheads.

The passes were often thick with fog when I hiked the Kohechi. As was the first one, the Hatenashi-toge pass, with a stupa and other ornaments enclosed in mist creating a mysterious aura. However, when I arrive at the quaint Hatenashi settlement, known as ‘village in the sky’, views opened up to a mountain scenery beneath dramatic clouds, shortly followed by heavy rain. Hiking in Japan can be a wet experience, but after the hike, it is a pleasure to be able to immerse oneself in a hot bath. The best wet experience is what you get if you stay at a place with an onsen (hot spring, bathhouse).

A Jizo statue covered in moss.

View from the Miura-toge pass.

Then to a little piece of Camino or Kumano magic, maybe just pilgrimage magic. In the small hamlet of Miura-guchi, I stay at a small accommodation that is also on the UNESCO World Heritage List, Minshuku Mandokoro. Pay heed to the wooden wall between the two guest rooms, it is over 300 years old. There were only one other guest. I walk north in the direction of Koyasan, the other one south in the direction of Hongu. At dinner we sit and look at each other, there is something familiar. Finally he ask me: ‘Have we met before?’, and then ‘Are you a Norwegian who walks with a camera?’. It definitely sounds like me.

The wind breaking cedar trees near the remains of Yoshimura's house.

Joe and me in Minshuku Mandokoro, we also met on the Camino Primitivo back in 2015.

Which indeed is the case, I met Joe on the Camino Primitivo when I walked it in 2015. One can only wonder what the probability is of that. Of all places, we meet again in a tiny place seemingly in the middle of nowhere in Japan walking in the opposite directions. It lead to a very pleasant evening with a lot of reminiscing. Joe lives in Japan with his wife (whom I also met in Spain) and their two children, and studies pilgrimage on a daily basis. We kept in touch afterwards.

A typical winding path of the Kumano Kodo, on the way up towards the Obako-toge pass.

At 1344 meters above sea level, Obako-dake is not only the highest point on the Kohechi, but also on the Kumano Kodo in general. In good weather it can offer a panoramic view of the Kii mountains. I was up on the summit both enshrouded by clouds and with a view of the surrounding mountains, having a lunch break in the basic hut below during a rain shower in between.

The first view of Obako-dake, covered in low clouds with no views to be had.

The second view of Obako-dake, now with views after some of the clouds has dispersed.

In terms of difficulty, the stage between Omata and Koyasan is probably the easiest one on the Kohechi. I walk most of it together with an American couple that I met at the Obako-toge pass, which I appreciate given the otherwise solitary walk so far, they are a pleasant company. On the way they show me a scenic spot with a waterfall, Koya Otaki.

Koya Otaki, a scenic spot with a waterfall on a short detour from the Kohechi.

There are around 120 temples in Koyasan, where about half of them offer accommodation. If you stay overnight at a temple, you will be served tasty vegetarian food (shojin ryori) and have the opportunity to participate in the morning prayer, as well as a meditation in the afternoon. I had booked a stay for two nights at the Koyasan Sanadabo Rengejoin temple.

Danjo Garan in Koyasan.

Old tombstones and stupas in the Okunoin at Koyasan.

In addition to the large temple complex in the center of the town, Danjo Garan, it is the ancient cemetery, Okunoin, which requires a visit. I wander among moss-covered old stupas, both large and small, on the outskirts I find graves that are slowly disappearing into nature, while in the evening lamps light up the darkness.

Niutsuhime jinja, which is normally on a detour from the original Choisimichi path.

I leave Koyasan by walking the Choisi-michi down to Kudoyama, which I had previously walked up when I did the Shikoku 88 Temples Pilgrimage, passing by the same ancient signposts of stone. A part of the trail was closed, probably due to erosion, which forced me to take a detour that took me to Niutsuhime-jinja on the way. I was not discontent about the detour at all, as I had planned to visit the famous shrine anyway. As dusk settles on the sky, I arrive at the Jison-in temple marking the finish of the Kohechi for my part.

On the Choisimich on the way down to the Jison-in temple and Kudoyama, in the eyes of the ancient stone signpost I would only be a person passing by in the blink of an eye due to its age.

< Kiiji | Ohechi >

Note: At this point I had in the end decided to skip doing the Omine Okugakemichi. I spent the night in Hashimoto, as planned, but there I rearranged my plan trying to make it fit with the accommodations that I had already booked for the Nakahechi route. From Hashimoto I first took a train to Wakayama and from there a train to Tanabe to start walking the Ohechi. In Tanabe, I had time to walk a short section of the Nakahechi to Inabane-ōji, but that I will cover in a later section.

Kumano Kodo: Kiiji

Kumano Kodo Kiiji: the access route, from Osaka to Tanabe.
28th of September to 2th of October 2024.
Distance: 195.1km. 5 days.

Kyoto and Osaka where the two most common places to start from when pilgrims in the old times embarked on the journey to one of the shrines of the Kumano Sanzan. Osaka was also from where I started my hike on the Kumano Kodo. I stood at the Kumano Kodo monument next to the Okawa river that runs through Osaka, and with no waymarks there were no way for me to know where I should go.

Map of the Kumano Kodo routes with Kiiji outlined.

The route that went from Osaka and led the pilgrims southwards to Tanabe, went by the name of Kiiji. This was the access route to the Kumano Kodo. Today, this is a route that barely exists. If you look at the map, it is as if a continuous line of cities from Osaka and south of it have merged into a huge one. Where the route once went, modern civilization with its roads, railways and not at least high densities of buildings has taken over.

At the start of the Kumano Kodo Kiiji in Osaka, the Kumano Kodo monument next to the Okawa river.

Enoki-Daimyojin shrine in the streets of Osaka.

In order to find where the Kiiji is going, or rather where it once went, it is necessary to download the route on your phone or a GPS decive as only fragments of the original route remains. These remaining sections are partly waymarked and described in the officially published guides, but the waymarks are not consistent or coherent.

The Kiyomizu-dera temple in Osaka, a friendly Japanese man insisted on showing me this nice and tranquil temple bringing back memories from my Shikoku 88 Temples Pilgrimage.

Walking past the Bandai pond, the route does not go through the island, but I had to do it.

Before I traveled to Japan, I had come into contact with Masako Iwamoto Vierstraete, a Japanese woman who has hiked and tracked all the Kumano Kodo routes over several years together with her husband, Erik, which she has shared on her Wikiloc profile: https://www.wikiloc.com/hiking-trails/kumano-kodo-and-koyasan-routes-xiong-ye-gu-dao-togao-ye-shan-can-yi-dao-192526587. This was an invaluable resource for me in terms of finding the way, both on this route and some of the others.

A short detour to the Sumiyoshi Taisha shrine is worth the visit.

This is what the Kumano Kodo Kiiji is all about on the first days of the walk, walking on streets through Osaka and out of it.

If you want to try to follow the Kiiji route from Osaka to Tanabe as it exists today, the distance is about 185 kilometres. This is one of the distances that I had got down wrong when I did my estimations, planning for about 120 kilometres and four days of walking. The result was that I had to start walking straight away the day after I had arrived in Osaka, losing the day I had wanted to explore the city and adjusting to the different time zone from home.

Yamanakadani, a pleasant village walkers on the Kiiji arrives at once having left most of the city behind.

Walking through fields after the remains of the Kawanabe-oji shrine.

When I started walking, there was city as far as the eye could see, although I obviously could not see very far. With a few exceptions, most of the Kiiji goes on a hard surface. Navigating through the cities also meant that I had to continuously check that I was still on the route as I had no waymarks to guide me, sometimes finding out that I had passed by where I should have left the current street that I was walking on. Despite that, walking the Kiiji still felt like an adventure in itself. I had no idea where the route would bring me, did not know what I would see and where I would end up each day.

At the beautiful Itakiso Jinja shrine.

On the first days, it was the shrines and temples that provided me with the change of scenery. I met a Japanese man who wanted to show me the Kiyomizu-dera temple with its small waterfall in the midst of a big city, a visit that brought back memories of the Shikoku 88 Temples Pilgrimage. Enoki-Daimyōjin, a shrine built around a tree in one of the streets. And of tourist attractions like the Tennoji temple and Sumiyoshi Taisha shrine. The favourite of all of those that I passed by was the Itakiso jinja shrine dedicated to the god of wood, with its wooden idols, pond and several subsidiary shrines. I was also fascinated by the decaying state of the Susa jinja, where I was lured up its broken stairs by its whispers of a forgotten past.

Jizo statues lining up next to the path leading up to where the Haraedo-oji shrine once stood.

On the third day, the path had changed to include more natural paths, although still with the majority going on paved roads. This from a section through bamboo woods up towards Fujishiro-toge.

Gradually the city slipped into more rural surroundings and the route surprised me by offering some short but steep climbs. There were bamboo forests and views, but at the same time descents on overgrown and cumbersome paths. Crossing over one of the passes on the way, I spotted a tiger keelback slithering away from underneath the leaves on the ground.

View from above the Fujishiro-toge pass.

And then the plot thickened, the descent from Fujishiro-toge became rather overgrown.

Here and there I passed by signposts and small information boards indicating that this was where the old route once had run. Here and there I passed by the remains of the old oji shrines, which are subsidiary shrines of the Kuman Sanzan and houses the child deities of Kumano Gongen, protecting and guiding the pilgrims.

View from the walk over Itoga-toge pass on the fourth day.

An old street in Yuasa.

With the exception of the last night before Tanabe, I ended up adopting a routine of walking as far as I could before it got dark, and then taking a train to a city where I could find a place to stay for the night. When it comes to Tanabe, I had booked a hotel in advance when I planned for the Nakahechi and Kohechi routes.

The Kiiji crossing over the Shikagase-toge pass.

Not directly on the route, but near Gobo, I took the time to make a detour to the Dōjō-ji temple, with memories from Shikoku flashing by again. This temple has famous legend attached to it, conserning a very cute monk from the north of Japan and the daughter of a family who let him stay while he was walking the Nakahechi. She fell in love with him and he gave her false promises, but in the end he left to return to his monk aspirations. In her anger she followed him to the Dōjō-ji temple, turning into a snake on the way. The monk hid inside the big temple bell, but the snake woman became furious and like a dragon melted the bell with fire coming from her mouth. When she afterwards saw the dead monk, she regretted her actions and threw herself into a nearby bay to kill herself.

Back to memories from Shikoku. A short detour off the route took me to the Dōjō-ji temple.

Whereas finding the route can be an issue on the Kiiji, finding necessary amenities like food and drinks are not. There are some sections of the route where there are longer distances between places to find it, but it should never pose a problem. The route goes through too much city for that.

The Motoshima Jinja Torii. A literal translation of torii is bird perch, which fit perfectly in this picture.

The last day of Kiiji brought me to the coast. A long day that had me walking through a variety of small towns, over tiny passes, overgrown paths and even on the sandy surface of a beach. Although still mostly going on a hard surface, it was a significant change from the first days on the trail. Monoshima jinja with its torii out in the water was a great ending of the Kiiji route, with the evening sun on its way down into the ocean.

A fisher lady on the walkway to Motoshima island.

After five relatively long days on Kiiji, I arrived in Tanabe. Here the Kumano Kodo splits into the Nakahechi and Ohechi routes, but those two routes I were to tackle later in my journey. As I was enjoying my dinner in the evening, I looked back at a walk that felt a little bit like pioneering an old and non-existing route, at the same time wondering what it must have been to walk it back in the days the route did exist.

Walking through the streets of Tanabe.

< Kumano Kodo | Kohechi >

Note: To get to trailhead for the next route, Kohechi, I took a bus to Chikatsuyu from Tanabe on the first day due to miserable weather. The next day, I then took the bus to Hosshimon-oji and walked a short section of the Nakahechi in reverse to do the Akagi-goe and Dainichi-goe sections to Hongu. The original plan was to walk all the way from Tanabe, but here I had done another miscalculation that made it not possible to reach my destination without the use of public transportation, I skipped the first day entirely due to the bad weather. It did not matter as I would walk it at later time.

Kumano Kodo: On ancient pilgrim paths in Japan

A walk on ancient pilgrimage routes in the Kii peninsula in Japan.
28th of September to 6th of November 2024.
Distance: 963.3km. 40 days.

To the east lies a mythical and isolated country. Japan is known for its mystical creatures and culture, its samurais and ninjas, as well as its modern pop culture, often characterized by neon colors and stories in the form of manga and anime. Closely linked to the Japanese culture and history is Buddhism, which exists side by side with Shintoism, a religion that some would call a philosophy. If you visit Japan, you will gaze devoutly at the many temples, shrines and torii gates that stand out in the landscape and cities.

Map of the Kumano Kodo routes in Japan (original map taken from Wikipedia).

Japan also has its pilgrimage routes. On the island of Shikoku, pilgrims visit 88 temples in the footsteps of Kobo Daishi, the founder of the Shingon school of Buddhism. A smaller version of this can be found on Shodoshima. And then, deep in the dark, forested mountains of the Kii Peninsula south of Kyoto and Osaka, you find the historic pilgrim routes of Kumano Kodo.

• Articles from my walks on the Kumano Kodo:
• Kiiji
• Kohechi
• Ohechi
• Nakahechi
• Iseji
• (connecting the dots)

A path on the Kumano Kodo where gnarled roots forms a natural staircase, but beware of slipping or stumbling on them.

Kumano Hayatama Taisha in Shingu.

In ancient times, this part of Japan was known as Kumano, which loosely can be translated as ‘the land of bears’. Here you find the Hana-no-Iwaya rock said to be the grave of Izanami-no-Mikoto, the goddess creator of Japan. Here the Emperor Jimmu, the legendary descendant of the sun goddess Amaterasu landed and was guided over the mountains by the three-legged crow Yatagarasu to Yamato (now Nara) where he became the first emperor of Japan. On the way he discovered the Nachi-no-taki waterfalls.

Kumano Nachi Taisha at Nachisan.

At a time, three grand shrines was founded. Kumano Hayatama Taisha in Shingu, symbolizing the past. Kumano Nachi Taisha in Nachisan, symbolizing the present. And Kumano Hongu Taisha in Hongu, the future. Collectively, these are considered to be a single shrine, Kumano Sanzan, where the main deity is Amaterasu. It is also said that the Shinto gods of Kumano were manifestations of Buddhist deities, Kumano Gongen.

Kumano Hongu Taisha in Hongu.

Kumano Kodo Kiiji.

And with the founding of the Kumano Sanzan, pilgrim routes began to emerge, known as Kumano Kodo, ‘the ancient ways to Kumano’. The name of the five ancient routes are Kiiji, Nakahechi, Kohechi, Ohechi and Iseji. There is also a sixth route, Omine Okugakemichi, although that is not technically considered a part of the routes.

Kumano Kodo Kohechi.

Originally, I had planned to walk the Kumano Kodo back in 2020, but the pandemic saw an end to that plan. Additionally my original plan had been to hike all of these routes as one continuous walk. However, when looking at a map of the routes, it soon becomes apparent that making a continuous walk is not easily done. As both Osaka, Koyasan, Yoshino and Ise forms isolated branches, connecting the dots is not an easy task. Another issue is that at least the Nakahechi and Kohechi routes requires one to book accommodation well in advance, which I had to fit into my plan in terms of the rest of the routes. For the Omine Okugakemichi booking any accommodation is not possible.

Kumano Kodo Ohechi.

Kumano Kodo Nakahechi.

In the end, I managed to come up with a plan, although it required that some of the sections would need to be walked more than once. And where I could not make use of an existing path or route, I would have to make my own path in order to connect the dots. I planned to walk the routes in the following order: Kiiji, Kohechi in reverse, Omine Okugakemichi, Ohechi in reverse, Nakahechi and then Iseji in reverse.

Kumano Kodo Iseji.

Waymarks on the Kumano Kodo, these wooden poles points the way in both directions, with names both in Japanese and English and the distance. Smaller waymarks are only marked with Kumano Kodo, but points where the route goes in both directions.

Also, when I do a long distance trail, using any means of transportation other than walking is usually not an option for me. If I should make an exception to the rule it would be that the transportation is considered a part of the actual route of historical reasons. On the Kumano Kodo, the traditional boat trip down the Kumano Gawa river can be considered such a route, as it was used by pilgrims in old times for this very reason. Incorporating it into my plan solved one of the issues of having to walk sections several times.

A typical dinner to be had while on the Kumano Kodo, food is one of the highlights of walking in Japan.

An example of a room at an accommodation on the Kumano Kodo.

Then comes the inevitable fact that even the best laid out plans does not always go after the plan. And this was probably not the best laid out plan either. While on the way, I had to change my plan, letting go of my ambition to do all of the Kumano Kodo routes as a continuous walk. Upon arriving in Japan, I found out that my mind had not been where it should be. I was tired after working on a taxing project at my job, then a problem on the private plane had offset my mind as well. I realized that I had messed up some of the distances when I had estimated the time needed to walk some of the routes. This combined with a couple of other mistakes, made it not possible to accomplish my plan.

Collecting stamps is a common thing in Japan and the Kumano Kodo is no exception. You can get separate stamp books for each of the routes. To get the Dual Pilgrim certificate however, you need the special Kumano Kodo stamplet.

Along the way, hikers will encounter many of the Jizo statues watching over them while they walk.

With that being said, I still ended up walking all the five main Kumano Kodo routes and returned back home carrying with me memories from a great walk on old ancient routes of history. In the next series of articles, I will talk about my experience of the Kumano Kodo, starting with the Kiiji route.

• Articles from my walks on the Kumano Kodo:
• Kiiji
• Kohechi
• Ohechi
• Nakahechi
• Iseji
• (connecting the dots)

In Koyasan people can spend the night at a temple, here from the Koyasan Sanadabo Rengejoin temple.

Kiiji >

A look back at The Ridgeway: Coombe Hill

In this post, I look back at a memorable moment from one of my earlier walks, this time The Ridgeway in England. I hiked this trail in 2017 that took me past the monument at Coombe Hill commemorating the soldiers who died in the Boer War.

Coombe Hill, The Ridgeway, 2017.

Read about my walk on the trail here: The Ridgeway.

A look back at The Lycian Way: Alakilise

In this post, I look back at a memorable moment from one of my earlier walks, this time The Lycian Way in Turkey. I hiked this trail in 2015 that took me past the ruined church of Alakilise, Church of the Angel Gabriel, located at about 860 meters above sea level.

Alakilise, The Lycian Way, 2015.

Read about my walk on the trail here: The Lycian Way.