A Recreation Department Store Showcasing Mountains and Highlands
Day 1
Nagano is one of my most favorite prefectures in Japan and it is a part of Joshin'etsukogen National Park. Today, I visited some amazing spots that I always wanted to go especially in Autumn.
Worldly famous JIGOKUDANI YAEN-KOEN otherwise known as WILD SNOW MONKEY PARK, where you will find hundreds of wild monkeys. Apparently the ones who go into the hot spring are females and kids. While male monkeys would not do so even in the cold winter out of a sense of pride.
If you fancy a nature tour in Nagano, visit KARUIZAWA WILD BIRD SANCTUARY PARK, which offers various types of tours from light trail walk to Flying squirrel watching tour. The guide was so kind and professional and showed me so many things that I would not have noticed if she did not point at them such as the claw mark of a bear.
In Onioshidashi Park, despite it is in the middle of mountains, you will find a sea, but a sea of rocks. These rocks are all LAVA from Mt. Asama that was intensively erupted in 1783. Asamayama Kannondo Temple is built in the centre of park with an amazing view.
Day 2
Walking is becoming my hobby recently and I have been walking 15k every day. So Joshin'etsukogen National Park was a perfect place for me, as it provides some great trekking courses. This time, I decided to walk "Nature exploration Course" that took me through beautiful ponds and wetland, the 4km of trekking I did here was definitely was one of the kind experience.
Kidoike I started the trekking from here. The lake is surrounded by birch forests, and the changing colors of the seasons are vividly reflected on the surface of the lake.In summer, the lake is crowded with people who enjoy hiking, boating, BBQ, camping, and other activities.
Tanohara Wetland After passing through the forest, the spacious Tanohara Wetland appears. On the other side of the wooden path, you can see the distinctive shape of Mount Kasagatake. I was a little scared to walk on the wooden path in the beginning, but it became fun soon after.
Hasuike "Hasu" means Lotus in Japanese. As the name implies, the pond is surrounded by aquatic plants. The nature trail continues along the pond, which is surrounded by a white birch forest. Autumn leaves in the mountains, beautiful reflection on the pond. The whole atmosphere reminded me of Switzerland.
Day 3
As three-fourth of land in Japan are mountains, we have some amazing waterfalls all over the country. Amongst them, Joshin'etsukogen National Park has some breathtaking waterfalls that you can not see in other parts of Japan.
Kaminari-Taki Waterfall Direct translation of the name in English is "Thunder Waterfall" When I was walking closer to it, I instantly understood why it was called that way. The waterfall was making massive noise and you can't even talk to the person next to you and it indeed sounded like a Thunder. The main attraction here is you can actually walk behind it and watch the the water falling inside.
NOTE: The trail to the waterfall is closed during winter due to snow.
Shiraito Waterfall Another waterfall that you can not miss, when you visit the area. Shiraito means "White Threads" in Japanese and the name describes the appearance very well. It is 70 wide long and when you carefully look at the water threads, you will notice the the water is not only falling off from the edge, but it is also coming out of the rock surfaces, which makes it so waterstream complex and incredibly beautiful.
Yamada Onsen Oyu After taking some splash from the amazing waterfalls, It was time to take a nice warm bath. Yamada Onsen Oyu is a public bath in Takayama village, The building looks almost like a temple. It would be your perfect place to heal the fatigue of traveling and even meet the locals. Also, there is a free foot bath outside for the ones who do not have enough time to soak themselves.
