Iwatayama Monkey Park

If you like monkeys and want to get up close with them, this is the place! (But if your best friend is scared of monkeys, you might want to cross this off you itinerary.) Iwatayama Monkey Park is a 5 minute walk from Hankyu Railway's Arashiyama Station, but count on 10 more minutes to climb the mountain to where the monkeys are hanging out.

Starting from downtown Kyoto, catch the Hankyu line bound for Osaka (usually Umeda Station). It's 220 yen for the whole trip, but you will need to switch trains at Katsura Station. At Katsura you will need to exit your train, go up some stairs and go back down another flight to your left. Then you will be on the correct platform to ride to Arashiyama.





When you arrive in Arashiyama exit the station and go straight. This isn't the most direct route to the park, but I feel that's it's the most scenic and also gives you a chance to buy snacks. You will pass bus stops and a parking lot, but then you will arrive at the park by the river! Turn left and do not cross the bridge onto the island that is a large park. Keep walking straight until the road ends and turn right. In about 1/2 a block you will be at an intersection with a bridge. Stay to the left and walk along the river- don't cross the bridge! The entrance to the park is inside a small shrine- look for stone steps to the shrine on your left after about 180 ft. The shrine looks empty, but when you enter there is a booth on the far left selling tickets to the park. It is 550 yen for an adult entrance ticket. Now the hiking begins!

I was carrying my camera backpack, was in fairly good shape and still had to take a break halfway up. Apparently I took the left path, which is shorter but steeper. Hang right for a less onerous climb. On my trail there was a sign halfway up reading, "Hang in there! The monkeys are waiting for you!" There is fencing up around the trails which made me think there were monkeys in the bushes and trees, but I didn't see any on my way up to the top.

At the top of the mountain it is MONKEY CITY! Monkeys sleeping, grooming, just hanging out. There is a small wooden building with chain link fence over the open windows. You can buy food in here and give it to the monkeys through the fence-windows. They were selling apple slices and peanuts- I asked the lady selling them which the monkeys liked better and she said the younger monkeys liked the apples and the older monkeys liked the peanuts. When you feed the monkeys you are supposed to put the food on the windowsill for them to grab (so you don't touch them), but they hold out there little hands and it is Very Difficult not to put the food in their palms.

Outside the hut the monkeys don't bother you for food, but there are still rules to follow:
1. Don't look the monkeys in the eye.
2. Don't touch the monkeys.
3. Don't feed the monkeys outside.

There are rangers walking around making sure everyone is following the rules and that monkeys and humans play nice. The rangers are happy to take your picture with a monkey you just need to stand a few feet behind one so you are not too close, but in the same shot. The rangers also know all about the monkey's history and hierarchy. If you speak Japanese I highly recommend asking them questions, they are happy to answer!

Last of all, if you are there at the end of the day (4:30 to 5 pm), you will catch feeding time. I'll let the video speak for itself:

Mt. Kurama, Part 3

Once you reach Kurama Temple the area opens up a lot. There are benches to rest on and a small area with picnic tables. The temple is associated with the zodiac year of the Tiger, so there are statues of tigers on the premises and all amulets you buy will have tigers on them. There is stone triangle in front of the temple that is a "power spot" associated with the practice of reiki. I didn't know that at the time, but stood on it anyways- every little bit helps, right?

A roof at Kurama Temple

There is also a museum on the temple grounds, with an extra charge to get in. I didn't see this, but if you are interested in statuary it might be worth your time. Mostly I spent my time enjoying the beautiful weather and fabulous view. You are above it all up in the mountains!

From the temple you follow a steeper set of stairs up to the path to Kibune. This portion of the walk is truly a trail, with lots of roots and stones to watch out for. It isn't that bad since you are almost near the top- most of the uphill was just getting to the temple. Sights to see along the way include Kinone Michi, the path of roots, an area where the roots of trees have spread and joined across the forest floor. I was interested in seeing the measuring stone where it's said that Minamoto Yoshitsune measured his height while training with the tengu.

There are several small shrines and temples along the way down the mountain. They are great stops to rest, look around and enjoy the forest. You will know you have reached Kibune when you come out of the forest at a red bridge, crossing the river.

Another mountain shot, because being there rocked!

To get to the Kibuneguchi Station turn left on the road and walk 2km. Before you do, visit Kibune Shrine. They have one of a kind fortunes that are blank until you soak them in the shrine's spring.

Starting at Kurama vs. Starting at Kibune

Most guides will advise you to get off the train at Kibuneguchi, walk up the road to Kibune and start the hike from there. I think this approach might be best in the summer, when the shops in Kibune are serving lunch on platforms over the stream running through town, and it's a nice cool break after your walk from the station. Starting from Kibune also means you are all ready to hit the Kurama onsen (hot springs) when you finish your hike there.

Starting in Kurama means you are right at the trailhead when you get off the train. This is the ideal plan for anyone who only plans on seeing Kurama Temple and not hiking over the whole mountain. You can even hit the hot springs on your return. If you do plan on hiking the whole trail, when you arrive in Kibune depending on the time of year there may or may not be many restaurant and entertainment options. When I went it was very cold in Kibune, though I warmed up on my walk (nice and downhill) to Kibuneguchi station.

Ending Tips for a Trip to Kurama:
- Wear layers of clothes. In the mountains it can go from hot to cold very quickly.

- Bring something to drink and a snack. There's nowhere to get anything once you start up the mountain.

-Bring your camera to capture the beautiful scenery!

-Interact with other hikers. Most people are friendly and willing to try and talk even if you don't speak Japanese.

-Take into account whether you will be hitting the Kurama hot springs at the end of your hike and plan from there.

Mt. Kurama, Part 2

Road to the gate.

The road to the trail and temple is pretty obvious- you turn left out of the parking lot and about a block away you will see the large gate where they charge admission. Lining the road to the gate are a few touristy shops. I was a little surprised how few of them there were, but I recommend stopping by to pick up a drink and snack- once you get up on the trail there isn't really anywhere to purchase food.

Average section of stairs and road on the path.

It costs 200 yen to enter the mountain and temple area. They give you a very useful map, and walking sticks are available for free if you want to take one along for steeper parts of the hike. At this point you can decide to walk or take a cable car (100 yen) to the temple. I HIGHLY recommend walking, unless you have a physical limitation that will prevent you. The trail to the temple is more of a road, and the switchbacks make it a fairly easy walk. Also, if you take the cable car you will miss Yuki Jinja, the shrine where the Fire Festival is staged.

Yuki Shrine

Yuki Jinja is a few minutes up the path from the gate. There are some steep steps to get inside, but it's a nice place to take a breather and bond with your fellow hikers.

Steps up into the shrine.

When I was there I bought a "tengu fortune" which consisted of a bell shaped like a tengu head with a fortune rolled up in the back. The older ladies at the shrine all asked what my fortune was and then we speculated over what certains part could mean- especially the love section! Mine read: "You will meet someone good, but it will be dangerous". All the ladies were wondering, "Good but dangerous?" "Maybe it's a 'bad boy'?"

Tree with shimenawa

Yuki Jinja also contains a beautiful cedar tree with a shimenawa around it. Coming out of the shrine I stopped by a pond with a dragon statue (and offerings of sake) to take some pics. As I headed up the road I heard screaming coming towards me! I couldn't see what it was, but suddenly a large group of kindergarteners came running down the road, hurtling past me. I continued up the road until I reached the temple...

 

Born to be wild.

Some other pictures from this part of the trail:

Mt. Kurama, Part 1

I'd been to Kurama for the famous Fire Festival, but I'd never been up on the mountain before. Since it was a beautiful day to get out of the city I decided to give it a try.




Sanjo Keihan Station & BOOK OFF!


To get to Kurama I took the Keihan Line from the Sanjo Station to Demachiyanagi (210 yen). At Demachiyanagi I used Exit 5 to leave the underground Keihan Station and crossed the street to the above-ground Eizan Railway Station. From the Eizan Station it was 410 yen for a ticket to Kurama.

The Eizan is fun to ride since it's a bit of a throwback, Instead of electronic tickets at smaller stations you just take a paper slip noting what stop you boarded at, then hand it to a conductor along with the fare on your way out. Since it's an older train line there are also less cars in the train- 3 versus the 5 or 6 cars of a JR or Keihan lines.

I got off at the Kurama stop which is the end of the line. Many people and guidebooks recommend doing the hike the opposite direction, starting at Kibune which means getting off at the stop before Kurama, Kibuneguchi. I think both routes have their merits- more on this topic later.

Giant Tengu head greets you

When you get off the train there are a few huge statues of tengu faces in the parking lot. Tengu are a sort of youkai , a spirit or monster. They are mostly famous for having long red noses, so I have a lot of fellow feeling for them. The wikipedia article has a pretty comprehensive roundup on them, but in addition they have been popularized lately in several shoujo manga as romantic heroes (Love Monster and Black Bird come to mind). I wonder if this means the ever-changing public image of tengu will eventually make them like the sexy vampires that are ubiquitous in the US!