The beautiful and ethereal forest floor of Kibune. For me, perhaps the
highlight of the trip, as the lifted roots of trees is quite nostalgic
for me.
In an effort to see some of
the fall colors this year, the Town Mouse and I decided to head up to
Kurama for some hiking, as there is a popular “hiking” trail that leads
from Kurama to Kibune Temple. Of course, once we got there, we realized
pretty quickly it wasn’t so much hiking as stair climbing... and more
stair climbing. Taking the trail up, there is nothing but stairs, with a
small pit stop for closed panoramic views and temples, before the
descent down even more stairs begins.
The forest is truly beautiful, though
foot traffic is heavy, enough so that pedestrian lanes must be followed,
but all the same, it was an enjoyable walk. It was a little early for
the colors still, but perhaps it was a bad year for color this year.
From what I’ve overheard, Arashiyama was the only place in central Kyoto
that showed a full change, and no where in Kyoto did it stand up to
last year’s brilliance. Then again, the weather’s been pretty off this
year too.
All in all, I recommend the path for
anyone who has an afternoon to kill and wants to do it in nature, but
don’t go expecting a true hike- you’ll be disappointed!
