Hiking Yakushima

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On my search for Princess Mononoke, everyone would tell me about Yakushima, a small island with tall mountains (up to almost 2000m) south of Kyushu. Great virgin forests, some of the oldest cedar trees in japan, great hiking up in the mountains in the mist of last nights rain (just for a change, not cycling 😉! Got lost a a small lonely footpath, and a eventually the whistling a a deer from the right way would lead me back. The Mononoke wood was incredible, with vivid green moss covering the stones in the mountain rivers, covering the branches of the old giant cedar trees. Spent a night in a very basic cottage on 1400 meter, and returned in the pooring rain back to my 2000 Yen homestay. My friendly host brought me to the next Onsen to warm up again and served deer sashimi...

After the rain had stopped, I cycled arround the island in three days, taking my time climbing up some lonely tracks to remote waterfalls in the south, cycled arround deer and macaque monkees on a very small road with almost no traffic but incredible steep passages and returned to my cheap homestay again. One more time up in the mointains, heading for Aiko dake (1200m). Rock climbing with little saveguarding to the top. Ice rain on reaching the top, and the footpath back down turned into a river of ice cold water...

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Photos

Forest of Princess Mononoke
a picture can barely resample the real impressions...

Tall mountains
catching every cloud that comes along. Thats why its raining almost every day...