hiking

I went to Nikko with the express purpose of getting away from it all, something I find I have to do more and more when living in the megopolis of Tokyo. While the crowds decended on Toshogu Shrine, I headed directly to the outskirts, the area around lake Chuzenji and Yunoko, for some winter hiking...

Cool weather, crisp, clean air, colourful leaves; autumn is prime hiking season here in Japan with lots of great destinations to choose from. Unfortunately a few hundred thousand other people in Tokyo think so too, and will be joining you on your weekend of 'getting away from it all'. So it was with a bit of nervousness and hesitation that Kumi and I made plans to head to Mt.

Before heading to Oze National Park, numerous people told me to mentally prepare myself to share it with the hordes. It was a holiday, it was hiking season, it was a super popular destination, etc, etc. Funny that last part as I'd never even heard about it until a month ago when Kumi suggested hiking there as a counterpart to visiting her family in Fukushima. Oze? What's that?

Rainy season may not be ideal for hiking, but sometimes you just have to take what you're given...

Mitousan (three heads mountain) is one of the more inaccessible hiking trails in Tokyo, lying deep in the mountains in the Okutama area on the border between Tokyo and Yamanashi prefectures, the nearest train station being more than an hour away by bus.

As prosperity spreads across China, so does a passion for the outdoors. But can millions of new trekkers save Asia's vast wilderness from the march of development? Welcome to the world's next hiking frontier. PLUS, check out China's Top Treks