Japan Revisited - Off the Beaten Track pt 1 - Chiba

When you travel to Japan, and especially Tokyo, it is easy to go to places that all the tour books list:  Akihabara, Ginza, The Imperial Palace, everyone knows them and everyone goes to them.  That isn't the way real traveling is done.   No, a real traveler can balance the known with the unknown, step off the beaten track.   In travel, especially to Japan, wonders await beyond every open Torii gate, down disused paths and train lines traveled only by locals from far flung places.   In order to understand the heart, the soul of Japan, you have to know to step beyond yourself, and look for something you never would expect.

So it was with me, as I searched for places to visit in Japan, to mix old with new, I decided to look up day trips from Tokyo and found the wonderful blog "Zooming Japan" and 19 day trips from Tokyo.  I cruised through the first few listings, places I knew, until I discovered some I hadn't.  In my initial plan, I hoped that my family could take more day trips to some of these places, but in the end, we only managed to get to one:  Nokogiriyama.  From what I saw back then, it looked like a marvelous place with hiking, some beautiful carvings of Buddha's and incredible views.   It was some 3-4 hours by train from Tokyo Station to what is called the "Boso Penninsula" in the Chiba ward of Tokyo. Truth be told, it wasn't easy finding a rout there, and it is closer to Haneda Airport than anything else.  All the same, my family boarded a train -very- early in the morning and headed off into the unknown.

Brief Glimpse at Disneyland/Disneysea.  Don't blink, you'll miss it!

The Nokogiriyama Ropeway opens at 9AM, so we had to get up around 5 or 6 to hope we could get there before the crowds.   Traveling was an adventure in itself, because it required a Shikansen and then a local train to get to Hamakanaya Station which lies on the other side of Tokyo Bay.  There is a Ferry that goes over there, but given my propensity for seasickness, I decided to avoid that.   At first one passes along through the city and some highly industrial areas.  At one point, we flashed by Disneyland and Tokyo Disneysea, and I managed to get a quick shot of it before we went by again.  I'll talk more of that later, but someday I would like to visit that place.  Eventually the modern structures gave way to fields and farms, then mountains, and then finally the wide open sea, with a tiny little town resting on the edge of the hills.   This was our destination.  Kanaya.

Hama Kanaya (Nokogiriyama Station)

The town of  Kanaya is very much a fishing village, getting off we almost wondered if we were in the wrong place at first, but as we wandered outside we saw a large sign that showed the mountain and some directions to get there (in Japanese of course.)   Wandering through this sleepy place, we didn't see much other than an occasional cat or some other travelers.  In a way it was refreshing after the hustle and bustle of Tokyo, an opening to the quiet lives of ordianry Japanese who live and work in places like this where western tourists do not go.   

Looking up at Nokogiriyama

From our walk, we could see the mountainside itself, a network of ridges with square holes and grooves cut out of it.  In our terrestrial vantage point, it looked very odd, with trees growing from the base, but even here I could see the ropeway that connected the town to the top of the mountain.  This is actually a place that isn't that well known to many Japanese either.  Though we saw plenty of people on the mountain later on, one of the women we stumbled onto in our walks was surprised we found it.  She was a local from Japan, and spoke very good English, but even she had only recently found this place after living in Japan her whole life.   Just a testament to the fine work at that blog for people like me to get here.  

Down the Tramway

The tramway itself was nothing special, about a 5-10 minute ride up the steep embankments overlooking the town.  I managed to get a good view out the window, but the car was fairly packed even though we got there early in the morning.   At the top we emerged out with a little map, and started along the forested pathways that wove along the mountainside.

Distant towns

From our new vantage point, we could see a larger city to the north and many mountains stretching off into the mists beyond us.  On a good day one has views of Fuji, Tokyo and some other areas, we were not so lucky.  In a way though it gave it a unique, mystical quality.    

Now, the layman or laywoman who has read a bit now might wonder why there are carvings up on a mountainside.   Well, Nokogiriyama was once a quarry, and after its use was done, artisans came and made two major carvings here.  The paths that wind around the mountainside weave through the old quarry, though I am sure some are modern, you would not know it.  The ways on the mountain are steep, and there is no such thing here as "wheelchair access"  in some areas.  I would dare to say that with some of the recent rainfall, the water coming down the mountain and other factors, it could be a dangerous hike for some.  All the same, it is worth seeing, as my readers will soon discover.

Misty Lands

Its strange to think that such unspoiled country exists so close to one of the most densely populated areas on earth.  Standing on the tops of these hills you might be forgiven for thinking your anywhere else on earth.   With deeply wooded areas, winding paths through the rock and rising hills in the mist, Nokogiryama had a magical quality in the fog for me.    Every corner provides a new surprise. 

 Wandering down through a narrow gorge, the walls look like ripples were cast into molten earth, and left to harden.  Then one sees flat stone ahead, carved by what looks like thousands upon thousands of chisels.  Its all perfectly square, or rectangular, and then you see it, carved into a recess in the wall:  a statue of Kannon.

Kannon Carving

This statue of Kanon must be a good two stories tall, carved fromt he solid earth by such hands to create beauty from the roughest earth.  To its right is a deep chasm, a great overlook perched above it, like a roaring lions head raised to the sky.  On the wall opposite are Japanese letters, or words, I do not know what they say.  

Kanon and the Precipice, Looking up, it looks like a lion to me

Looking up at the statue, and the surroundings, I was struck dumb with a sense of awe.  There were only a few people down here, so it was eerily silent.  One stands at the threshold of this stone statue as explorers must have done before the Sphinx or the temples of Luxor.  The stoic, watchful face of the Kannon is firm, betraying no emotion.   It is clothed in traditional Indian clothes and beads, weilding what looks to be a scepter.

Which kannon of the many there are I cannot say it is, but whoever carved it, also carved the words in the wall to explain it, or perhaps it is a poem.

Close up of Kannon

Standing in the presence of the statue, one's eyes raise to a rocky outcropping high above.  I mentioned from our angle it looks like its carved itself into a lion's face, but I think the rock is natural.  It juts out like a thumb against the sky, and we could see people climbing up on it.  Rather precarious, but I wanted to go check it out.  So we made our way out of the narrow canyon and up along a steep set of pathways.

Unknown Writing

To say that something like this wouldn't exist in the United States is an understatement.  I've been to places like Zion National Park where the only way to angel's flight is a narrow path with chain guards on the rock side of a steep 2000 foot drop.  This however, is something that would never pass anything in the US.  The rocky outcropping with a view over the Kannon and the forest of trees is a remarkable feature.  People climb up a VERY steep cliff, yes a cliff, to reach this.   Then they amble out on this jut of rock, and they take a picture.  How long the outcropping has been there I don't know.

Looking out

My parents and I were brave enough to go out ourselves, though getting up the cliff was no easy task and summoning the courage to stand on the rock, doubly so for me.  Still they were very good sports. 

My folks on the edge (along with the picture below)

The view from here is remarkable with the clouds and the sea.  You can look down into the gorge with the Kannon, but then you have to scramble back down this cliff.  I remind you, the "Stairs" are carved only by the travel of human feet.  And with the rain it is much more treacherous than it looks and even now it still looks treacherous.  

Perilous climb down

Of course, our exploration of Nokogiriyama was not done.  There is still the more famous Buddha statue that features on many pictures of the place.  I wanted to open however, with how I found this remarkable location and to stress once again, that when you travel, you must go off the beaten path.

Next time:  Off the Beaten Track Pt 2 - Buddhas of Nokogiriyama