Day 10: From Takahara to Tsugizakura (day 3 of the Kumano Kodo hike)

Day 10: From Takahara to Tsugizakura

Weather: Cool in the morning, a very slight amount of rain early on the hike, then gradually warming to the low 70s

 

The view in morning from  our room

Jamie's room, a new eco-addition

The usual: pre-breakfast of coffee and rolls and biscuits; breakfast is the full complement of Japanese items, and then up and out and on the trail a little after 8.

Here’s a picture in front of the inn, note that we’ve added a member, Kyoko. 

She’s the sweeper and official conch blower (think of it as a loud shofar, akin to a moose call).

 

The 2nd signpost of the day

The last signpost of the day

Mileage today: 8 miles (4.5 hours of walking), Much up and much down, something like 1100 meters of ascent. Somewhere over 6 miles of trails in the monoculture forest. A bag lunch of two sandwiches and a banana. THB and DB accept a shuttle ride for the last kilometer.

Snacks

A three solar panel toile

Solar powered toilet light

Kyoko found a squirrel's nest

Our lunch drinks (cal-pissssssss)

Dessert (from the little store)

Kyoko designed this "tengui"

Jamie and P check our progress on an i-pad

The rice harvest is over, they may burn the "slash" and then plow into the field

Persimmon in various forms:

DB slips on a wet stone, and her pole takes the brunt of the fall:

Good news: after dinner, the mechanical engineer on the trip manages to “fix” the pole. Even better, DB has no aches from the fall.

We see something new: places where some special mini-monument was erected (some as long ago as 1000 years ago) and are now commemorated with signage and a STAMP! THB starts collecting stamps on a blank page, then at lunch finds a book perfectly tailored to collecting the stamps. Since the book is in Japanese, THB can only hypothesize that the stamp collecting is the intended purpose.

These are pics of the book and an actual stamp being placed in the book:

The minshuku for tonight is new and minimalistic: small communal baths (sex segregated as always), dinner of regional specialties, and lots of beer, wine and sake consumed.