Kumano Kodo pilgrimage hike and autumn leaves viewing in Japan 2016 – Trip Overview

After a successful trip to Japan to walk the Nakasendo Trail in late spring 2016 with some good friends, we set our sights on walking the more challenging Kumano Kodo pilgrimage route in the Kii Peninsula. We had already planned to visit Japan in autumn to experience the famous and magnificent autumn foliage around Kyoto and adding in a week’s hike in the mountainous Kii Peninsula in November...

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Prelude to our Kumano Kodo Nakahechi hike – Hineno and Kii-Tanabe –

14 November 2016  Kii-Tanabe is a city located on the west coast of the Kii Peninsula. Typical tourists would be unlikely to set foot on this town but for those who wants to walk the Kumano Kodo Nakahechi trail, Kii-Tanabe would be a good place to stay the night before embarking on the epic ancient pilgrimage trail across the rugged mountains to the Kumano shrines located near the eastern part...

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From Takijiri-Oji to Takahara on the Kumano Kodo Nakahechi Pilgrimage Route Day 1

14 November 2016 We alighted at the Takijiri-oji bus-stop about 45 minutes after boarding the bus at the Kii-Tanabe Station. Although the bus was almost full. Only 4 persons alighted - the two ladies I mentioned in the previous post and us. The rest of the passengers seemed to be heading for Hongu Taisha Shrine and/or one of the onsen villages around Hongu area. The 4 of us were the only persons doing...

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