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Published: December 10th 2006
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For some reason, I managed to convince myself that if I went back to Mt Hie I could find the path that John and I couldn't find the week before... Lets just say, the way that John and I took may as well have been a path compared to the alternate route I discovered, or rather, created!!! The terrain itself was not a pretty sight - but the leaves were indescribable!
I set off early morning on my own and was proud as ever when I discovered a paved path. I followed it for some time, before I hit an unknown "hidden area". I still don't know what it was - they say that monks live in the hills, so maybe that was it, or maybe is was a secret ninja training ground - though if that were true, I wouldn't be here to tell about it - it was crazy, there were kanji signs hanging from slabs of wood off of almost every tree, a small brick tower hidden in the distance and a great big house as well as paths every-which-where that led to stations. These stations consisted of ladders that led to nothing or strange mini-playgrounds like
monkey bars or something that I am sure were for training, not children - hence my initial ninja guess... unfortunately, I am much too creative as the signs turned out to be labels for the trees and not secret instructions as I had imagined, but I still wonder about that place…
So, I waited for a while in that area, partly out of apprehension, partly to see if anyone would come, and then I continued on, but soon found that the path had more than ended. In fact, here was nothing that resembled a path and the incline was ridiculous and all but unmanageable. Luckily there was a telephone wire heading through the forest up the side of the mountain- that was the only thing that allowed my body to achieve such an angle - mind you - just at the very end (or rather, what I thought was the very end) I got some small electrocutions from the telephone wire and was forced to abandon it, which made me head west (even though it was the wrong way) as I truly could not manage the incline without my aid...
The good news is that after a few
long breaks where I pondered how I would describe my path to the search and rescue operation - and at what point exactly I should call for help, I heard the faint sounds of the cable car in the distance. I immediately felt rejuvenated and scampered towards the noise, by a few wild deer, almost stepping on an unhappy snake (I think it is the first time I've actually screamed out loud out of true fear....) until I found myself at a standstill where the only option was to go back down or clamber into the worst brush I've ever encountered, leading straight to the fenced off outer portion of the viewing area from the Cable car. After much hesitation (trust me, the last thing I wanted to see was the shocked and frightened faces of the Japanese tourists gathered with their cameras at the view point, gawking at me as I emerged from the rustling bushes - a dishevelled, ogarly, white, gaijin clambering out
on all fours (yep, still a crazy incline) from the bushes with scratches, twigs, leaves, and dirt covering me…
Luckily, I used some common sense and hid out until I heard the cable car
go up the mountain, then went as fast as possible and thanked my lucky stars that there was no one to gawk at my entry. Though, shortly after I had made it to safety, as I was trying to pick off as much of the forest from my apparel as possible, a car of tourists arrived and a few of them were eying me over....
So, once I was back to an area I was actually supposed to be, I had my next idea - find the trail from the top and follow it down, once and for all solving this Mt Hie madness. To he honest, ordinarily this would have been a brilliant idea - especially as a long thorough search led to a trail - a proper hiking trail - at the top!!! But, just as I was gloating about my own success, the storm that had been building up started to unfold - I must admit though, it was really interesting to hear the tall trees clacking against each other in the wind. Mind you, the wind, cold, and rain were not so welcome. Especially considering I really had no idea where this trail was going
and what it would be like...
Luck was with me again when I encountered one other fellow on the trail (just in time too - it was like one of those spiritual movies - I hadn't seen another soul, then suddenly, the path forked in 3 very different directions, all completely the opposite way of where I knew I wanted to go, and there was this mountain man sitting at the fork, looking at me....
So, I asked him for directions, and he pulled out a topographical map (okay, so I was a little under prepared....) after trying to convince me of something (communication challenge...) for some time, we both opted to get moving (the rain was picking up) and we were not making any progress, so I semi-confidently picked a trail - that did lead to a city of some sort according to his map, and it was the only trail that could with a few drastic turns, manage to lead me where I needed to go (the other trails seemed to be heading down the other side of the mountain)
The good news: I did manage to reach a town! - My last challenge -
it was not at all the town I had started in. Turns out the hiking trail starts in another town all together. So, after convincing a few hesitant locals to stop in the rain and direct me to the eki (train station), which was apparently so far, a bus was necessary...!?! Of course, I was not about to take a bus after all that work, so I hit up a few vending machines (ah, yes, one of the joys of Japan is a vending machine on every corner) and stocked up on hot milk tea and plodded along the main road until I found the train and made my way home...
Let's just say I had a crazy day with some excellent views and a fantastic hike to see the leaves change!
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Petra
non-member comment
First one :)
Thanks for these fantastic pics! Now i realise that down here in the south I miss the colourful woods! Have fun and take care - I REALY mean that! Hope, one time in our lives we´ll do another crazy journey together! Hasta pronto, un gran abrazo!