 Most viewed - Yakushima 屋久島 |
Wild monkeys on the mountain road in Yakushima. Waiting to get food tossed by tourists. (None from us.)28 views
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Kind of sad to see so many great Yakusugi cedar trees which were cut down. But at least they still survive in some form or hosting other trees and plants.27 views
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Some wild monkeys on the mountain road.25 views
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Yakusugi cedar tree on Yakushima island, Kagoshima.24 views
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13 views
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Entrance to Yakushima most famous cedar tree named "Jomonsugi" (縄文杉) said to be a few thousand years old. However, it's a serious hike to see it.11 views
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Yakusugi cedar tree stump.11 views
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Yakushima's Miyanoura Port has nice mountain views when it's not foggy/rainy.11 views
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About 70% of Yakushima is made of granite. The island has many mountains higher than 1,000 meters. It's Japan's wettest spot where it rains the most.11 views
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11 views
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Welcome sign at Miyanoura Port's cruise ship dock.11 views
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Twin cedars or Futago-sugi and also regeneration on tree stump. 双子杉10 views
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10 views
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10 views
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Miyanoura Port is Yakushima island's main port for ferries and cruise ships. This dock is where cruise ships usually dock.10 views
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The dock connects to the main road, so tour buses can come right up to the cruise ship.10 views
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Miyanoura Port has nice mountain views when it's not foggy/rainy.10 views
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Miyanoura Port has nice mountain views when it's not foggy/rainy.10 views
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Welcome banners at Miyanoura Port's cruise ship dock, Yakushima.10 views
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Yakushima is a round island noted for Yakushima National Park and World Heritage Site. When describing a location, they use clock face numbers. Miyanoura Port is at one o'clock.9 views
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Rare to see these Yakushima mountains. They are usually shrouded by clouds or fog. Rains a lot on Yakushima.9 views
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Nice mountain views on Yakushima.9 views
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9 views
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Miyanoura Port's cruise ship dock.9 views
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Fond farewell to our cruise ship leaving Miyanoura Port, Yakushima.9 views
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Yakusugi cedar trees can only grow in cold climates. Therefore on Yakushima, they grow at high altitudes.8 views
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8 views
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Mountain road got very narrow. This bridge was narrow too.8 views
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Rinsen-bashi Bridge goes over a small stream.林泉橋8 views
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How sacred Yakusugi cedars started to be harvested from the 17th century. Much of the wood was used for roof shingles on mainland Japan. Luxury homes might still have Yakusugi as interior ceiling panels to show off the fine wood grain.8 views
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Domaiboku is a tree already harvested or felled by a typhoon. The tree's high resin content prevents the wood from rotting. Discarded scrap tree parts have been recovered to make souvenirs. 土埋木8 views
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8 views
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Kuguri Cedar or Cedar Underpass. くぐり杉8 views
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Seiryo-bashi suspension bridge. 清涼橋8 views
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Kigensugi as it looks from the road. "Kigen" refers to the beginning of recorded history which in Japan is the year 660 when the first emperor came to being. The tree seems to be older though, at age 3,000 years.8 views
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Momi fir tree stump also nearby. It was cut down. 455 years old.8 views
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Kigensugi cedar tree.8 views
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Scenic coast back to Miyanoura Port, Yakushima.8 views
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Cruise ship dock at Miyanoura Port, Yakushima, Kagoshima, Japan.8 views
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Main road on Yakushima as we go to Yakusugi Land by tour bus.7 views
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Yakusugi Land is in the mountains, so our bus drove up the mountain road.7 views
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7 views
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Road construction work, hopefully they are widening the road.7 views
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Kuguri-tsuga or "Conifer Underpass." They have names for all these different trees in unusual shapes or growths.くぐり栂7 viewsJapanese pamphlet (pdf) and map of the trail here: https://y-rekumori.com/pdf/yakusugi_land_pamphlet.pdf
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7 views
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7 views
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7 views
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Yakusugi Land tourist hike to see old cedar trees (and stumps) on Yakushima island, Kagoshima.7 views
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How sacred Yakusugi cedars started to be harvested from the 17th century. (English version) They can be centuries old or even a few thousand years old.7 views
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Such a picturesque forest trail. Highly recommended. Best to hike the longer trail (50 min.) though. The 30-min. trail is too short.7 views
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Ultra-fine grain of Yakusugi cedar.7 views
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Seiryo-bashi suspension bridge. After this bridge, it's a short walk back to the parking lot, bus stop, or starting point. 清涼橋7 views
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Phone booth inside a hollow Yakusugi tree trunk.7 views
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About the Kigensugi cedar tree. Wow, many other plant species also grow on this tree (epiphytes). They include Japanese cypress, Japanese mugwort, Yakushima rhododendron, and Japanese rhododendron.7 views
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Back of Kigensugi cedar tree.7 views
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7 views
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Gift shop on Yakushima.7 views
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Passing by Yakushima Airport.7 views
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Scenic coast back to Miyanoura Port. 7 views
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I thought Yakushima was going to be mostly wilderness and sparsely populated like Iriomote in Okinawa. So it was surprising to see the island so well populated.6 views
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Lots of greenery along the way up the mountains.6 views
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Yakusugi Land is a lush, thick, mountain forest area featuring ancient Yakusugi cedars (Cryptomeria japonica) native to Yakushima and the island's major attraction. You can see a variety of Yakusugi cedars by walking on a forest trail of varying leng6 viewsThe forest trail starts and ends at the same place, but there are several trail options. The shortest trail route is 0.8 km long (yellow line on this map named Fureai-no-Michi, numbered from 1 to 6), taking about 30 min. This is the trail we went on. Even this short trail for tourists was very impressive. Another easy tourist trail is 1.2 km taking 50 min. (red line).
The longer trails going for 2.0 km, 3.0 km, and 4.4 km (green line) involve mountain climbing taking about 80 min., 150 min., and 3.5 hours respectively. These longer trails require proper climbing equipment and physical endurance.
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Easy tourist hike.6 views
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Rinsen-bashi Bridge 林泉橋6 views
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6 views
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6 views
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6 views
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Everything is so artistic. Nature is the greatest artist of all.6 views
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6 views
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6 views
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At Yakusugi Land's starting (and ending) point is this gift shop named Shinsen (森泉).6 views
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The gift shop has this phone booth inside a hollow Yakusugi tree trunk.6 views
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Kigensugi is an ancient Yakusugi cedar tree you can conveniently see from the road. Local buses go to Kigensugi. If you visit Yakusugi Land, Kigensugi is a short drive away.6 views
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Kigensugi's height is 19.5 meters (64 ft) with a girth of 8.1 meters (26.5 ft). Elevation is 1,230 meters (4,035 ft). Hard to believe we were looking at something that has lived all these centuries.6 views
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About the Momi fir tree stump.6 views
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6 views
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Pretty hairy drive going up the mountain.5 views
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Nice mountain views on Yakushima.5 views
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5 views
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Detour path on the right to see the 1000-year cedar. Didn't have time to see it.5 views
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5 views
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So many things grow on these trees.5 views
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Regenerating on a tree stump. Other plants or trees grow on old trees, like epiphytes. 5 views
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5 views
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5 views
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Souvenirs made of Yakusugi cedar.5 views
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Kigensugi cedar tree also has a short walking path going around the tree, so you can also see the back of the tree (more impressive).5 views
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Driving back to town. Lots of ferns on the cliffs.5 views
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Gift shop.5 views
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