A Bit of Adventure: another way to the summit of Mt. Ogusu 大楠山

There is a course climbing up to the summit of Mt. Ogusu 大楠山 from the side of Tokyo Bay. The City of Yokosuka is somehow reluctant to introduce this route actively. The course has several points with fallen trees due to typhoons or the like during the previous years. Well, because of such incidences, the course is more interesting to take. Though, I have to add this: Caution. Many broken trees mean the level of safety is lower than the courses I’ve introduced to you in my previous posts. Please be prepared for emergencies with proper gear and communication tools. Map, compass, and good hiking shoes are the MUST. Now, let’s start. The beginning is Kinugasa Station 衣笠駅 of JR Yokosuka Line. In front of the station, there is a terminal for commuter bus services. Find bus stop #3, and ride a bus Kinu-25 which is a circular service between Kinugasa Station and city’s Iris Garden. Take this line and get off at the Iris Garden (; timetable is here). It’s a short ride of about 10 minutes.

Kinugasa Station

Bus terminal in front of the Kinugasa Station

The trekking starts from Yokosuka Garbage Disposal Plant, aka ECOMIL. To visit ECOMIL from the bus stop, one way is following perfectly paved road that is taken by lots of garbage collecting cars to the Plant. From the Iris Garden stop, walk a wide road to southeast, and turn right at the second traffic light to another wide road. It’s going up for about 1.5km and turn left at the first corner. After another 1km or so walk of beautifully paved road, you’ll find a well-equipped toilet on your right, and behind the facility there is a signpost saying “To Mt. Ogusu.” I would say this course is … boring. Another route is, from the bus stop, turn right at the Third traffic light. It enters residential areas spreading along a steep slope. Go straight, and the road eventually becomes a forestry road of simple pavement. Walk this way for about 20 minutes, and we meet a hairpin curve. Stop there and find a narrow trekking road on your right which is blocked by a fallen tree. Don’t hesitate to go over the tree. Proceed beyond the blockage by a so-so wide hiking road. In no time, we meet a bridge over Yokohama-Yokosuka Toll Road (E16). Go to the other side and 500m or so more, we meet a beautifully paved road for garbage trucks coming from the other side of the Iris Garden. Turn right there and in less than 10 minutes, we’ll meet the toilet which is the gate for the trekking road to Mt. Ogusu. As I told you in my previous post, the toilet at the peak of the mountain is now out of order. So, finish the necessary thing here before you start hiking!

The third crossing from the bus stop

Turn right there and start going up this slope.

Going straight and the road becomes narrower …

to become like this.

A hairpin curve

A blockade

Beyond the block is like this.

The bridge is over there.

Please cross it.

And proceed further to

meet this signpost. It says “Mt. Ogusu this way.”

The road to ECOMIL.

During weekends, the gate is closed for cars.
 We pass it via the sidewalk.

ECOMIL

The toilet

Behind the toilet of ECOMIL, there are steps going up. Please take it, and from there the road to the peak of Mt. Ogusu is almost one-way up. Compared with the course from Shonan Village, the road is … I would say, not so well-maintained, but at the level of standard hiking road. The steps constructed for the route are sometimes crumbling. The signposts are old with peeled paints. Still, the course is cleared. We don’t have to bushwhack. Climbing up for about 30 minutes, after passing a short narrow ridge way, we arrive at the corner of Hayama International Country Club 葉山国際カンツリー俱楽部. The golf course and the hiking roady are separated by vertical and horizontal net fence. I guess the fence over our head is to protect the hikers from out of bounds of hard golf balls. The fence is impressively long. Anyway, we’re protected, aren’t we? From the end of the fence, the hiking course becomes a bit wider. Eventually, on our right we find a small open space with a large camphor tree standing in the middle. Telling you the truth, this is the only camphor I’ve found along the hiking routes of Mt. Ogusu. “Ogusu” means “Large Camphor Tree” in Japanese. Maybe the mountain has the other camphors off the hiking road …

The hiking route starts from the toilet.

Please go up these steps.

Here! We’re in the trekking route.

Not bad, huh?

The signpost has character.

The ridge way.

At the corner of the Hayama International Country Club

The caged road

The camphor tree

After the Camphor Tree, soon we meet with another simple pavement which is the road we’ve descended from the peak last week. To go to the top of the mountain, we turn right here and find the steps that bring us to the open space at the summit. From the end of the net fence to the peak, it’s about 30 minutes’ one way up. Start from the Iris Garden, by slow pace it takes about 2 hours to the top. Not bad for having lunch with view around noon. To descend, let’s take another route, not a forestry road of the last week, but more standard hiking course. Last week, we returned from the radar tower to the blacktop. This time, enter a narrow hiking road from the end of forestry road in front of the Tower. This route is wide enough for one person to walk, and thus when cherry trees stand along the trekking route, they are nearer than those of the last week. We can recognize old cherry trees, of of Prunus speciosa and Cerasus jamasakura, here and there literally lined the course. Sometimes the road is a small cut-through of typical sedimentary rocks of Miura Peninsula. They can be slippery. Please be careful. Compared with the course of forestry road, the feel we’re nestled in the mountain of cherry trees is stronger here. After an hour or so descending, you may notice the vegetation along the hiking course becomes more of those loving humidity. Soon, rustle of stream is coming from the valley below. It’s small Maeda River 前田川 originated from Megurino Forest for Shonan Village 湘南国際村めぐりの森. When houses appear ahead of you, it’s the end of the hiking course.

We’ve met the road we took last week at this corner.

And this time we go up to

find the steps to the peak.

a bit more to …

The summit!

Next to the radio tower, there is this monument saying
the previous Emperor and Empress, Heisei, came here
in 1992 for planting the cherry tree next to the monument.
We pass this point to

take this direction.

In this route, many spots are adorned with cherry trees.
Above our head in early April this year,
the buds are developing for full bloom.

Another cherry street ahead of us.

We also find a small colony of wind flowers.
They love humid soil.
The valley is near.

A bit going down,

and we can see Maeda River down there.

We rapidly go down

and cross the bridge over

Maeda River.

Please cross small bridge over Maeda River and follow a paved commuter road. Several farming families situate unattended booths selling their product of the day. I tell you the quality of veggies from the venders here are very good, and the price is right. When you find another bridge in front of you crossing Maeda River, there is a small café before the bridge on your left. They make and sell original jams and preserves made of vegetables from their field. I found jam of broccoli (oh, yes) is unexpectedly good! Passing this shop, and cross the commuter road at the traffic light beyond the bridge, there is a bus stop, Maeda Bashi Stop, for Keikyu Bus. Keikyu has at least 4 services per hour to the stations from 8:00 to 10:00 every day from these bus stops. Two stops before Maeda Bashi Stop is Ogusu-Ashinaguchi Stop 大楠芦名口. So the return itinerary is exactly the same as the last week from here. Having said that, compared with the last week’s itinerary, this week’s descend is for more standard hiking. If you’re athletic, this week’s course is more interesting to Mt. Ogusu, I guess. Of course, it’s an easy hiking compared with those in, say, Tanzawa Mountains. Still, we can enjoy deep forest via easy access from the downtown. Especially when it’s a time of cherry blossoms, courses to Mt. Ogusu can provide us a relaxed stroll under fallen cherry petals. If you miss the timing this year, please try it next year. 😉

The road after crossing the bridge is like this.
Residents come and go by cars.
Please be attentive.

There is this public toilet along the road.

Along the route, a temple Seigyou-in 正行院 stands.
The sanctuary has a grave for brave lady
of the 12^th century, named Tomoe-Gozen 巴御前.
She was a lover of Minamoto-no Yoshinaka 源義仲
and had a superb skill of Japanese archery.
She fought along with her lover till the end
of his death against Minamoto-no Yoritomo 源頼朝.
After the battle, she was picked up by Yoritomo
and became wife of one of his senior vassals,
Wada Yoshimori 和田義盛.
After her death, Wada built Seigyo-in in 1199
on the coast for consoling her soul.
Later in 1499, the temple moved to its current place,
and in 1659 this main hall was rebuilt.

One of the veggie stands

Café and jam place, Niikura Homemade Jam.
Could you figure out a traffic light over there?

Cross the traffic light, and on our left there is a bus stop.

If you find environmental issues in Kanagawa Prefecture, please make a contact with Kanagawa Natural Environment Conservation Center 神奈川県自然環境保全センター

657 Nanasawa, Atsugi City, 243-0121
〒243－0121　厚木市七沢657
Phone: 046-248-0323 

You can send an enquiry to them by clicking the bottom line of their homepage at http://www.pref.kanagawa.jp/div/1644/

The Dragon Radar (not broken!): going up to the summit of Mt. Ogusu 大楠山

 

Actually, from the beginning of the hiking course to the peak, it‘s a simple one-way-up from Shonan Village. The steeper slopes equip well-maintained steps. We walk up, then a gentler up-slope comes out. And the next steep slope with steps follows ... It goes like this. At the time of cherry blossoms, the forest floor often has colonies of Arisaema Urashima. It reminds us of the fact we’re near the coast. After 20 minutes or so climb, we meet with a hiking road that comes from the direction of Sagami Bay. We turn left there, and in less than 10 minutes, we’re at the top of Mt. Ogusu 大楠山, the highest point for Miura Peninsula 三浦半島 with ASL 241.1m. From the bus stop for Shonan Village to the peak, it is about an hour walk. From the top, we can see both Tokyo and Sagami Bays. Boso and Izu Peninsula can also be recognizable. To the south in the Pacific Ocean, Oshima Island shows its silhouette of Mt. Miharayama, ASL 758m. And of course, a view to Mt. Fuji. Unfortunately, City of Yokosuka closes the rest house and the view tower at the top of Mt. Ogusu. They do not say if they are planning to reopen the facility soon. If we need toilet, we go down the way we come and turn right at the point we’ve met the road from Sagami Bay. From the crossing, in 100m or so walk, we enter Ogusu Daira 大楠平 which has an interesting facility, aside from toilets.

The beginning of ascending is like this.

Steep slope with sturdy steps

Gentler parts are like here.

Lots of Arisaema Urashima along the course

The top of Mt. Ogusu

To the direction of Tokyo Bay.
The ridge beyond the Bay is Boso Peninsula.
We can hear whistles of mega container ships
 busily navigating Tokyo Bay.

To the direction of Sagami Bay

The rest house which is closed.

We cannot go up this view tower.

But from the closed door of the rest house,
we can see this beautiful cherry blossoms,
Sagami Bay, and Mt. Fuji.

To the toilet, when we go down from the peak,
there is this signpost.

And we take the right road that goes up slightly for the toilet.

Do you remember the white tower we noticed when we came from Shonan Village? Toilets we need stand right next to it. The tower has actually a very important mission for us living in megalopolis Tokyo. It’s a radar rain gauge constructed by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. Admitting it’s an old gauge of short polarization radar that cannot precisely measure convective precipitation, aka sudden local squall becoming common in Japan by global warming. Yet, it covers the movement of clouds within 120km radius range from the top of Mt. Ogusu (; the range of its coverage can be checked here). So, if a typhoon approaches the megalopolis Tokyo the strength of the storm is first measured by this tower and the alert is issued to us for coming natural disaster. Japanese government is building a system for weather prediction with dual polarization radars, but the covering range of the newest technology is smaller. I guess people in the Meteorological Agency will keep the radar of Mt. Ogusu as such for some time to come. It’s at the ideal location and with wide coverage.

Cherry blossoms clouds and the tower

Toilets at Ogusu Daira

Inside is this traditional Japanese style.
But its sewage system has
an environmentally friendly circular structure.

The tower for a radar rain gauge,
next to the toilets

When it is a fine spring day, the white tower is smiling under the sunshine and twinkling reflection from Tokyo Bay and Pacific Ocean. The facility also has a view tower attached next to the radar. Though the tall white structure blocks some view, it is still worth going up to feel “Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!” of spring warmth. Moreover, during cherry blossoms’ week we can observe the entire slopes of Mt. Ogusu dotted with white and pink clouds. I tell you, the cherry trees here are accumulation of 700 years of planting. Many of them are now huge trees, and it is more recognizable from above the forest canopy. The radar tower is an ideal location. I guess we can have two options for lunch: on the top of the mountain, or here in the view tower next to the radar.

To the inner Tokyo Bay from the Tower

Could you figure out over there
Minato Mirai area of Yokohama?

Mt. Fuji is floating above the cherry blossoms …

We can recognize Odawa Bay
with Sajima Marina 佐島マリーナ.

A floating something in the Ocean is Oshima Island 大島.

And we are looking to the top of Mt. Ogusu.
The radio tower there is for NTT’s mobile network.

From the radar, descending Mt. Ogusu has two routes. Both are one-way-downs. Even when you’re meandering along the route admiring the living creatures with reference books (like me) and camera, in 90 minutes’ time we can arrive at the bus stop in residential area closer to the beach of Sagami Bay (not on the beach, I must add). From these bus stops, the easiest return trip is to JR Zushi Station or Keikyu Zushi-Hayama Station by Keikyu Bus. Keikyu has at least 4 services per hour to the stations from 8:00 to 10:00 every day from these bus stops. i.e. Relax! With the commuter bus, we first go to the route along the seaside to Hayama Town, and go a bit inland from the crossing in front of Hayama Imperial Villa. The vista of Sagami Bay along the bus route is superb, with Mt. Fuji over there a la Ukiyoe of Hokusai in fine day. With this closing in mind, let’s descend from the top of Mt. Ogusu, first to Ogusu-Ashinaguchi Stop 大楠芦名口.

 A view from the commuter bus to Zushi Stations.
Could you figure out Enoshima Island 江の島 over there?

To Ogusu-Ashinaguchi Stop,
we first return a bit to the signpost for the top of Mt. Ogusu.

Go to Ogusu-Ashinaguchi Stop from the peak is probably the easiest itinerary for Mt. Ogusu Hiking. We simply take a wide forestry route with blacktop. Basically, the road is for the maintenance of Radar Tower. Normally, the tower is an unmanned facility. The road to the place has lots of holes without regular maintenance. At least in theory, the road is for permit holding drivers only. So, when we hike there, we can enjoy leisurely going down along a wide (semi-)paved road to the very end at the bus stop. And cherry blossoms? Yup. Both sides of the road are natural forest of broad-leaved trees. The dominating figure here is evergreen Machilus thunbergia that loves warmer climate along the coast. That’s said, large cherry trees poking their canopy at the gap here and there. During cherry blossoms season, the forestry road is full of petals falling from high above. It is still early for leaves of cherries to be large enough to close the gaps of the forest canopy. Please look up and we can enjoy fresh lime green leaves of Prunus speciosa and Cerasus jamasakura, mingling with white flowers (Prunus speciosa) or pale pinks (Cerasus jamasakura). Janapese bush warblers are compete for their voice to attract healthy females to mate. In this day and age, it’s an incredibly peaceful stroll … The end of the forestry road has an organic café Shoku-yabo Noen open for lunch and dinner, and a small pond named Ashina-seki 芦名堰 on our right. A few minutes down from there on our left there are public toilets. Everything is well-equipped.

The road to Ogusu-Ashinaguchi Stop is like this.

The route equips signposts as well.
The gate at the bottom of this photo is to the NTT’s radio tower.

At that gate, another road (the right one of this photo)
joining to the forestry road.
More to this next week.

Cherry blossoms smiling from above.

Flowers for Quercus acutissima are also beautiful.

In the middle of the route,
there is a point where we can admire
the beauty of slopes of Mt. Ogusu.

Stachyurus praecox var. matsuzakii.
It’s a variant for Stachyurus praecox.
We can find it only along the coast of
Kanagawa, Chiba, and Sizuoka Prefectures, and Izu Islands.
The variant has definitely burlier boughs
 and leaves and longer and larger flowers
than those found inland areas.

Almost at the end of forestry road.
On our right beyond the fence is the premise of the Café.

Ashina-seki

The toilets

From the toilets above,
simply proceed and we can find Somei-Yoshino’s over there.

Reach there, and turn right to go to the traffic light ahead.

It’s Ogusu-yama Iriguchi 大楠山入口 Traffic Light.
Go to the other side of the crossing and turn right.

The bus stop, Ogusu-Ashinaguchi Stop, is there.

Well, so, if you need more adventure, today’s course could be a bit boring. Next week, I tell you another route for Mt. Ogusu Hiking. Please stay tuned!

If you find environmental issues in Kanagawa Prefecture, please make a contact with Kanagawa Natural Environment Conservation Center 神奈川県自然環境保全センター

657 Nanasawa, Atsugi City, 243-0121
〒243－0121　厚木市七沢657
Phone: 046-248-0323

You can send an enquiry to them by clicking the bottom line of their homepage at http://www.pref.kanagawa.jp/div/1644/