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Hiking NokogiriyamaDay trips from Tokyo Hiking Kanto Travel - March 19th, 2013

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Nokogiriyama – the “saw-tooth mountain – in Chiba, is one of the best day-trips from Tokyo butfor some reason its great hiking and wonderful views are lesser known than those of itscounterparts to the west of town… It’s just a short trip over the Tokyo Bay Aqua-Line or a train rideaway – so what’s stopping you?

by Peter Sidell

Go to the top of any of the tall buildings in Tokyo and you might get the impression that theurban labyrinth never ends, so uninterrupted is the greyness spreading towards the horizons.Head east into Chiba prefecture, however, and it’s possible to not only get out into lush greencountryside and fresh air, but also to take in an important piece of Japan’s spiritual past.Overlooking the town of Kanaya on the coast of Tokyo Bay, Nokogiriyama isn’t a staid, drearymuseum piece; with mountaintop lookouts and its sprawling temple grounds and gardens, it’s aplace where venerable Buddhist statues live in harmony with their appealing natural setting.

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Did you know?The Daibutsu representsYakushi Nyorai, the Buddhaof Healing; he took threeyears to carve, between1780 and 1783.Owing to weathering andearthquake damage, theDaibutsu needed extensiverestoration and that wascompleted in 1966. TheHyakushaku Kannon wascarved at the same time asthis restoration work andwas completed in 1963.Hyaku means 100; shaku isa traditional unit ofmeasurement based on theaverage length betweennodes on bamboo, definedas being 10/33m, or30.3cm. Although its usewas discontinued by law in1966, it’s still usedinformally in such fields astraditional carpentry.An Arhat is a Buddhistdisciple who has achievednirvana, or completespiritual enlightenment;the 1500 Arhat statueswere carved between 1779and 1798.Nokogiriyama means ‘Saw-tooth mountain’ and itsname pertains to itsjagged, zigzag profile. Thiscomes from its days as aquarry, when it was usedas a source of stone to layfoundations in the marshyland on which Edo wasbuilt.

If you’re feeling energetic it’s possible to scale the 329m (1,080ft) mountain on foot from Kanayain about an hour (the trail starts about 15 minutes from the ferry port, or ten minutes fromHamakanaya JR station) but you can save your legs for the paths at the top by driving or taking thecable car that whisks you to near the summit in just a few minutes.The Cable CarArriving at the cable car station you’ll find lookouts that give a sweeping 360-degree panorama:on one side you have a fine view across Tokyo Bay to the Miura Peninsula and, on a very clear day,to the Izu Peninsula and Mount Fuji beyond, while on the other you can see the rough-hewncoastline and the scenic, rumpled landscape of low hills inland.From there, a short walk along a rough path and down some sheltered steps brings you to Nihon-ji temple, founded in 725, and it’s here that you’ll find the main must-see sights.The period of the area’s history as a quarry (from the 14th to the18th century) is evident from the straight lines and flat, chiseledrock faces, and from the precise angles of the alcove inhabitedby the Hyaku-shaku Kannon, a relief image of the BuddhistGoddess of Mercy carved into the rock.

The Hyakushaku really wants to break out of the box(Photo: Peter Sidell)

At over 30m high she towers over visitors, bestowing mercy onsupplicants with a slight frown that suggests she’d rather beout in the open air than stuck in her box.Despite her constriction and the lack of light due to high wallsaround, though, she’s an impressive piece of work and appearsdignified and austere.A few minutes on from the Kannon is the Ruriko observatory, acollection of lookout points providing more views out acrossTokyo Bay, and also of the forested hills stretching northtowards Tokyo.A View of Hell

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One of the lookouts here is known as Jigoku Nozoki, ‘A view of hell’, after the vertiginous drop itoverlooks from its precarious-looking outcrop above the Kannon; I’m sure it’s perfectly safe, but Iwouldn’t like to be there during an earthquake.From here you can take the ‘1500-Arhat Approach’ down the mountain. This long path winds leftand right and up and down past shelves, caves and alcoves in the rock, some naturally formed,some man-made, and each clustered with carved statues of Buddhist devotees and deities.There are only in fact 538 now, as many of those originally placed here were destroyed in anationwide wave of anti-Buddhist violence, prompted by the government’s establishment ofShinto as the state religion and the outlawing of Buddhist practice at the start of the Meiji Periodin 1868; however, those that survived are still numerous enough to display a tremendous varietyof expressions, with as wide a range as humans in their postures, faces and manners.

Some of the 538 carved statues of Buddhist devotees and deities (Photo: Peter Sidell)

They’re standing, sitting and occasionally reclining, smiling, frowning, sometimes scowling, eachin a rather un-saintly fashion. Some of them chat convivially with their neighbours, some of themperch in hermit-like solitude. Many are badly weathered or cracked, or lack limbs or heads –beheading was a common method of Meiji-era violation – but those that have made it throughthe ages intact display the exquisite craftsmanship, lavish attention to detail and imagination oftheir makers.This is also a very atmospheric part of the mountain; while the very top is rather bare in places,along these paths it seems nature is determinedly encroaching to reclaim its territory.There are steps and stones completely overgrown with vivid green moss and ferns growing out ofthe cracks, roots push their way up out of the earthen paths and a fallen tree across one of theflights of steps has been there long enough for ivy to have completely overgrown and envelopedits base.Down a slope you come to the stately Daibutsu, sitting meditatively on his pedestal in a tranquilclearing; he’s around the same height as the Kannon and as elegantly simple a piece of work, butthe setting gives him a more peaceful air than his companion up the hill.Japan’s LargestAt 31m he’s the largest stone-carved Buddha figure in Japan, with a deeply serene expression andposture that acts in harmony with the natural surroundings to create a restful atmosphere, makingthis the best place on the mountain to pause for a break, some reflection and perhaps a picnic

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lunch.If you want to approach the mountain as originally intended then the main entrance to Nihon-ji isactually along the coast between Hamakanaya and Hota stations. The narrow path takes youslowly uphill through an airy forest of tall, slender trees until you come to two ancient stonelanterns that stand like sentinels on either side.The vermilion buildings at the entrance make a striking contrast with the lush greenery around,and beyond them there’s a compact garden with cherry blossom trees overlooking a pondspanned by stone bridges that look as old as anything else here.Just a couple of hours south of the big city, Nokogiriyama makes for a day out that’s bothrefreshing and interesting, leaving you to head back to the urban jungle with a clear mind andlifted spirits.Access: Hamakanaya and Hota stations are on the JR Uchibo line; it’s also possible to reachKanaya by the Tokyo Bay ferry from Kurihama if you’re coming from south west of Tokyo, or alongRoute 127 down the coast if you’re driving. The Tokyo Bay Aqua-Line, too, offers a ‘shortcut’ with aview.

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