Our
guest was a lady from New York.
TENGU
guides included Nori and Shiro as tour leader.
The
weather was reasonably good during the tour.
Having
said that, we were not able to see clearly high-rise buildings in Shinjuku and
Tokyo Skytree from Sumika-mae Observation Deck.
To
start with, we showed our guest a statue of Osoji-kozo (young Buddhist monk
cleaning the temple) as a symbol of our Mt. Takao clean-up campaign that has
proven highly effective and successful, and then statues of Japanese Giant
Flying Squirrel native to Japan, another symbol of Mt. Takao.
Soon
after we got off the cable car, we followed Trail 1, the front approach to
Yakuo-in Temple, effectively a monastery of mountain priests.
At Sumika-mae Observation Deck
At Kasumidai Observation Deck
On
the way, we showed our guest various landmarks such as Monkey Park, some 500-year-old
Octopus Cedar Tree, Joshin-mon tori-i gate symbolizing the fusion of Shinto and
Shingon sect of Buddhism, Ah-Un statues at Jinben-do Hall, etc.
At Jinben-do Hall
At
the information board about “Asagimadara” with its English name of Chestnut Tiger
Butterfly, we explained the butterfly famous for its incredible long-distance
migration across Asia,
It
was a pleasant surprise that our guest from New York was familiar with the
sub-family of Chestnut Tiger Butterfly called Monarch Butterfly which travels
for a longer distance between North America and Central America.
Looks
like Monarch Butterfly is also poisonous to their predators such as birds as caterpillars
feed on milkweed plants like Japanese “Kijoran”, which contain harmful
alkaloids as is the case with Chestnut Tiger Butterfly.
We
spent some time at Yuki-en (Joyful Garden) featuring an outdoor fire altar and a
photogenic Thai style white stupa.
In front of Thai style white stupa
Before
we got to the grounds of Yakuo-in Temple, we showed our guest a wooden plate
mentioning TENGU as a donor to Yakuo-in Temple to demonstrate our loyalty to
Mt. Takao.
When
we went into the grounds of Yakuo-in Temple going through Shitenno-mon (the
Gate of Four Heavenly Kings), it was around 11:30 am.
In front of Shitenno-mon (the Gate of Four Heavenly
Kings)
As
soon as we entered the grounds of Yakuo-in Temple, we purified ourselves at the
purification basin.
At the purification basin
In front of a pair of Tengu statues
In
the grounds of Yakuo-in Temple, our guest got a certificate of her visit (a
combination of calligraphy and red ink stamp) to Yakuo-in Temple called Goshuin
on her Goshuin-cho notebook.
Getting Goshuin
I realized that some other foreign tourists making a line there were also very enthusiastic Goshuin collectors
In front of the main hall of Yakuo-in Temple
At the 2nd last stone
steps
We
got to the peak of the mountain around 12:30 pm.
Unexpectedly,
a graceful figure of Mt. Fuji was visible from the peak of the mountain, which
was very fortunate to our guest.
We
didn’t spend much time after taking a group photo at the peak of the mountain, and
left there around 12:40 pm.
As
our plan was to have a late lunch at the foot of the mountain, we had a tea
break instead near the entrance of Iroha no Mori Trail briefly.
After
that short break, we started to follow Iroha no Mori Trail, then switching to Trail
4 going through a suspension bridge.
At suspension bridge (Miyamabashi bridge)
On
the return journey, we took a chairlift for a change.
After
coming back to the mountain base taking a chairlift, we took the final group
photo in front of cable car Kiyotaki Station around 2:30 pm.
We
had a late soba noodle lunch together with our guest to find that our guest has
been very much accustomed to Japanese cuisine including raw egg, slimy grated
yam and slimy edible water plant called Junsai.
Looks
like she had been to Japan several times.
As
our guest planned to visit the spa facility adjacent to Takaosanguchi Station,
we said goodbye to her in front of it, which was the end of the tour.
Written
by Shiro
Dated:
21 April 2026
