Our
guests were a merry group of five who spent more time at more places of
interest in Mt. Takao and took a lot of photos.
A fun group of five
TENGU
guides included Satomi, Ken, Rico, Mika and Shiro as tour leader.
The
weather was reasonably good on that day to the extent that we were able to see Tokyo
Skytree and high-rise buildings in Shinjuku from Sumika-mae Observation Deck.
After
the briefing on the dos and don’ts at Mt. Takao, the tour plan on that day,
etc. in front of Takaosanguchi Station, we started the tour.
At
the foot of the mountain, we showed our guests the statue of Osoji-kozo (young
Buddhist trainee 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.
At the statue of Osoji-kozo (young Buddhist trainee
monk cleaning the temple)
At the statue of Japanese Giant Flying Squirrel
We
took a cable car leaving Kiyotaki Station at 10:00 am where we showed our
guests unique white or pale pink Sekkoku orchid flowers that grow on other
plants without harming them while their peak blooming season was about to be
over.
At Sumika-mae Observation Deck
At Kasumidai Observation Deck
After
getting off the cable car, we showed our guests various landmarks such as some 500-year-old
Octopus Cedar Tree, six-sense purification stone, wheels, Joshin-mon tori-i
gate symbolizing the fusion of Shinto and Shingon sect of Buddhism, etc. along
Trail 1.
At the statue of lucky octopus
At
the information board about “Asagimadara” with its English name of Chestnut Tiger
Butterfly, we explained the butterfly that is famous for its incredible long-distance
migration across Asia,
Interestingly,
one of our guests asked us what is the longevity of the butterfly. Looks like he
thought that the butterfly’s long-distance migration should require a long life
of the butterfly. Then, we explained that a key aspect of the flight mechanism
of the butterfly is to ride ascending air currents which allows them to save
time and energy rather than rely solely on constant wing flapping.
At a folk on Trail 1, the front approach to Yakuo-in Temple, our guests bravely chose the more challenging route called “Otoko Zaka”, literally, the Slope for Men
At Otoko Zaka
We
spent some time at Yuki-en (Joyful Garden) featuring an outdoor fire altar and a
photogenic Thai style white stupa we explained to our guests.
In front of Thai style white stupa
Before we got to the grounds of Yakuo-in Temple, we showed our guests a wooden plate mentioning TENGU as a donor to Yakuo-in Temple to demonstrate our loyalty to Mt. Takao.
Pointing to the wooden plate showing the name of TENGU
as donor to Yakuo-in Temple
When we went into the grounds of Yakuo-in Temple going through Shitenno-mon (the Gate of Four Heavenly Kings), it was around noon which indicates that we moved so slowly.
In front of Shitenno-mon (the Gate of Four Heavenly
Kings)
In front of a pair of stone carved guardian lions
At the last stone steps before Izuna Gongen-do Hall
We
got to the peak of the mountain around 1:00 pm.
Unfortunately,
we were not able to see clearly a graceful figure of Mt. Fuji from the peak of
the mountain due to unwanted clouds.
At the peak of the mountain
At the lunch table
After having lunch together, we took a group photo at the peak of the mountain, and left there around 13:40 pm.
At the peak of the mountain
On
the way back, after stopping by the restroom, we took a little different route
by following Trail 1 briefly and then switching to Iroha no Mori Trail, then further
switching to Trail 4 going through a suspension bridge.
At suspension bridge (Miyamabashi bridge)
Even
after coming back to the Sumika-mae area, a curious group of five wanted to
explore the observation deck of Takaosan Beer Mount, Tokyo’s beer garden
closest to the sky while unfortunately we found that the observation deck was
not open to the public at this time of the year.
Then,
some of our guests tried a local dessert, beer at the shop of Takaosan Sumika.
On
the return journey, we took a chairlift for a change.
Taking a chairlift
After
coming back to the mountain base taking a chairlift, we took the final group
photo in front of cable car Kiyotaki Station almost 4:00 pm, which was the end
of the tour.
In front of Kiyotaki Station
Thereafter,
the merry group of five appeared to have a plan to visit the Takao Trick Art
Museum located in the vicinity of Takaosanguchi Station.
Written
by Shiro
Dated:
8 June 2026
