Walk from Zoorasia to Niiharu / Miho Citizen Forests

When we combine the area for Niiharu 新治 and Miho 三保 Citizen Forests 市民の森 with Yokohama Zoorasia and Shikinomori Park 県立四季の森公園, it becomes a large are of forest in the northern Yokohama. Actually, it is a designated area for maintaining the cohabitation of traditional Satoyama and newer residential area. It is required to obtain a permit from the Mayor of the City when in the area anybody tries to build / redesign any architecture, to cut / harvest vegetation and soils, and to use an open space for anything. That’s why we find the scenery here so different from the downtown Yokohama. 

We can plan a full-day hiking to cover all the area starting from Shikinomori Park or Zoorasia. This time, I write about a route from Zoorasia to Niiharu / Miho Forest.  

From the bus terminal of Zoorasia, we can start to walk to the north along the well-manicured road. Actually it is the road along the Zoorasia parking so that we can sometimes hear the voices of animals (human included) and birds from Zoorasia. In the middle of it there is a superbly clean toilet with washing soap. Finishing the necessary things there, we proceed further along the drive way. The opposite side from Zoorasia is a planned site for another Forest park of the City.

From Zoorasia bus terminal to the north, it’s a beautiful boulevard all year around.

Toilet

There is a small entrance to the botanical side, actually. I’ll write about this place later.

The Forest is a partner of Zoorasia. Together they will be called as Yokohama Animal Forest Park, which has the concept, “co-habitation of every living creature – nature’s harmony.” Contrasting to Zoorasia, it is planned to be a kind of botanical garden that preserves traditional Japanese forest. This forest welcomes annual out-side art exhibition by young artist all over the world. (I will create an independent entry for this forest later.) We just walk along the drive way and eventually find the huge parking space for Zoorasia at the end of the road. Just before the parking, on the left, is a recycle plant of green waste from municipal parks, operated as a public-private project between City of Yokohama and Yokohama Green Project Cooperative. Seeing from the entrance gate of the plant, you can find a small entry way on the right of the parking gate to the planned forest park. Let’s dig in.  

Recycle Plant entry

The entrance to the Forest has this sign.

Just 30 m or so from the gate into the forest, we’ll see several installations created during the previous exhibitions. Looking these on the right, proceed to the way on the left, downward. Whenever you find parting ways, always choose the left one. Eventually we’ll find the end of the parking lot of Zoorasia on the left beyond the caged fence. From here, the way becomes graveled road, then a paved way.

An installation in a previous art exhibition

Proceeding this way, we reach to …

a gravel road, and

the bottom of Zoorasia parking lot.

Sometimes, you’ll see a biker or two coming into this road. In late autumn, leaves turn their color yellow and red between the beautiful bamboos. By the way, this part of forest is so natural that especially during spring and summer there are nests of vespinae and gloydius blomhoffii, both of them can be deadly when you are bitten. Also, the point of having a city forest park is to preserve the precious vegetation in the modern city, including the tiny floras on the ground. If we stomp our feet over them, they can die. When you venture into the off-road, please do it at your own discretion and decency.

Fall in Satoyama

Keeping strolling down for 5 more minutes or so, we eventually see roofs of houses, many of them are traditional Japanese kind. It is Miho 三保 community, whose historic name was Umeda-yato 梅田谷戸. The area preserves the traditional village atmosphere. There are very few “newly developed” housing units in Miho. Many houses maintain traditional design of Japanese village with large front yard which was for chores of large farming family.

We come out of the forest-village and find a commuter bus stop Umeda 梅田. There is a large map for the area at the bus stop. In front of you, there is Lawson, a convenience store. If you are hungry, you can get your lunch here to bring it to Miho or Niiharu Citizen Forests.

Umeda Bus Stop

Lawson

Turn left along the bus route, cross at the traffic light over a tiny road going to JSAT Office, Toyo Eiwa University Campus 東洋英和女学院, and the Niiharu Forest weekend parking space. Further ahead, first you’ll find a billboard for horse launch, Avalon Hillside Farm. Passing the billboard, now you’ll meet the bus stop for Miho Forest Park (Miho Shimin-no-Mori) with the shelter.

Traffic light to JSAT, Toyo Eiwa, and Niiharu parking

After the traffic light, on the right, the huge antenna for satellite is poking into the sky.

The next bus stop from Umeda to Miho Forest is Umeda-Yato.

Finding the billboard for the Avalon ...

and we arrive at Miho Shimin-no-mori Bus Stop.

To Niiharu Citizen Forest, we turn right at Umeda Bus Stop. Keep walking along the bus route for less than 10 minute, we find a beginning of pedestrian promenade along Umeda River 梅田川, parting from the bus lane. Although the local kids may venture into this way on their bike, it is basically for strollers to enjoy a relaxed walk with seasonally changing scenery along the river.

The beginning of the pedestrian promenade

Early spring along the river is full of cherry blossoms and thunbery spireas …

and early summer is for enjoying river.

Before reaching to Niiharu Elementary School 新治小学校, there are two basins for flood control. The place is located in the valley of Yaman’me Yama やまんめ山 and Mukebara 向ヶ原 of Niiharu Forest. It becomes a kind of bathing place for birds living and coming to Niiharu Citizen Forest. Early morning, there also could be enthusiastic photographers to catch a glimpse of natural birds.

A bird and a bird watcher in the basin

We can walk along the promenade, and find Niiharu Administrative Office beyond the Niiharu Elementary School. Ahead along the promenade is a small bridge and Ippon-basi-Medaka Hiroba 一本橋めだか広場 where local elementary schools have science classes for learning nature and cohabitation. The way goes to the confluence of Umeda River and Onda River 恩田川 some 1km ahead. Before reaching to Onda River, there is Enkohji Temple 円光寺 on the left which was located along the main road from Nagatsuda 長津田 to Tohkaido 東海道, the present-day Route 1 going from Tokyo to Kyoto. The temple has traditional festival on 16^th of January and August. From Zoorasia to Onda River along Umeda, it would be about 2 to 3 hours walk. The scenery changes from formidable zoo park, to traditional Satoyama, then to an ordinary residential area surrounding an ancient temple. It’s one way of finding modern Japanese city life.

Where the wild things are: Miho Citizen Forest 三保市民の森

Miho Citizen Forest 三保市民の森 is located to the west of Niiharu Citizen Forest 新治市民の森. The map is here (in Japanese). Roughly speaking the two forests are separated by 6 campuses of educational institutions and JSAT, a satellite operator. So, the area itself is more of one continuous forest rather than 2 forests divided by housing complex or metropolitan businesses.

If you come to Miho Forest by public transportation, take Kanachu-Buses from Tsurugamine Station 鶴ヶ峰 of Sotetsu Line, or from Nakayama Station 中山 of JR Yokohama Line. There are 2 bus routes to choose. One is Route Naka-53, between Nakayama Station and Tsurugamine Station via Imajuku 今宿. (Mind you, there is another bus service between Nakayama and Turugamine operated by Sotetsu-bus withouht going to Imajuku. This route does not come to Miho Forest Park.) Another is Route Yoko-52, between Nakayama Station and Yokohama Station via Kawaijuku 川井宿 and Tsurugamine. (Come to think of it, if you come from Yokohama Station anyway, this Yoko-52 would be the cheapest option as we don’t have to pay for the fare for the trains ...) When you take those buses to Miho Park from Nakayama Station, find Bus Stop Number 1 in the South Square of the station. In Tsurugamine, find Tsuragmine bus terminal from the North Exit of the station. If you come from Tsurugamine Station, here is the time table. From Nakayama Station, the timetable is this one.

Get off the bus at the bus stop for Miho Citizen Forest 三保市民の森 (Miho Shimin-no-Mori) with a bus-stop shelter. I love its simple and rustic design.

Miho Shimin-no-Mori Stop

Next to the bus stop is a small car park, open only for weekends and holidays, for you coming to the park by car.  To find an entrance of the Forest from here is a bit tricky. From the bus stop, go south a bit, just 10 m or so, then turn right for the first small road.

At the end of the way,

there are 2 tiny roads, One-michi 尾根道 (Ridge Way) and Tani Michi 谷道 (Valley Way), both leading you into the Miho Forest.

We can also come to the Forest from Tokaichiba 十日市場 JR station. Go to Bus Stop #1 in the South Square of Tokaichiba Station. The service runs between Aobadai-chuoh Station 青葉台中央 of Den’entoshi Line and Wakabadai-chuoh 若葉台中央, with Yokohama City Bus Service 23 or Tokyu Bus Route Blue 23. Here are the timetables for the Buses to Wakabadai-chuoh from Tokaichiba Station (as of April 2015). The bus stop for the Forest is Kirigaoka Kohkoh (High School) 霧が丘高校. Find a traffic light named “Kirigaoka Kohkoh.” At the crossing, facing Wakabadai Junior High 若葉台中学 take the road on the left. Keep going to meet a T-crossing. Choose the way on the right which eventually becomes Ridge Way of Miho Citizen Forest.

You can see Wakabadai Junior High from O-14 like this.

The 40.5 ha Park was opened in 1972, spreading over a hillside as one of the biggest remaining forests in the City of Yokohama. The tallest trees of the Park are human planted Cryptomeria japonica, Chamaecyparis obtuse, Chamaecyparis pisifera, and natural Quercus myrsinifolia, Magnolias, and others. Under the canopy are rich colonies of various ferns and Sasa palmatas, etc. In Japan, at this moment, there are about 600 kinds of known ferns. We can find 100 of them here in Miho Forest. This is the Forest of ferns.

Mind you, the network of treks within the park is complicated. There is no circular route of the park, Ridge Way (with numbering O-1 to 15) on the east, and Valley Way (T-1 to T-9) in the west both of which connect to the standard paved roads for the surrounding residential areas.  Ridge Way has 15 exit points colored Pink, some of which give us a clear view of Tanzawa 丹沢 and Mt. Fuji in a fine day.

Er, well, Red, yeah

The points for the Valley Way are 9 colored in blue.

Both Ridge and Valley Ways are popular among local joggers, especially for training to trek-run. These 2 Ways are connected by “Promenades” crisscrossing in the Forest. The point numbering is in orange from P-1 to P25, sometimes with a map of the Forest and benches.

If we choose the trek to the right from the Miho Citizen Forest bus stop, we go into the Valley Way that runs (almost) along the graveled road for cars used by locals.

In the middle of the route there is a source of Umeda River 梅田川, a tributary of Onda River 恩田川 which in turn is a tributary of Tsurumi River 鶴見川. The spring now has a name, Kotori-no-Oasis 小鳥のオアシス (“Oasis for small birds”).

You will find a Way climbing upwards which brings us to the northern tip of the Park.

When you go the way to the left from the Miho Citizen Forest bus stop entrance, it brings you to Ridge Way and the treks within the Park.

Just next to the sign to Ridge Way, there is an ancient road sign indicating the Ridge Way of Miho Forest was once a main road for pilgrims to Aburi Shrine 阿夫利神社 in Oyama Mountain 大山 in Tanzawa. 

Soon on the right, there is Miho-daira 三保平, an open space equipped with picnic benches and toilet.

Toilet

… and drinking water

This is the only toilet in the Forest. From here, you can either proceed to the Ridge Way, or turn right to deep inside. If you choose the direction to Ridge Way and check Yellow Point 5, you may find a small farm land cultivating vegetables. The system of Citizen Forest of Yokohama is a kind of public-private enterprise between the municipality and the landlord. The majority of such small farms within the Citizen Forests are by the landlord to preserve their way of farming. Further to the direction of Wakabadai Jr. High, on the left, there is a structure looked like a covered canal. It is a part of 37 km aqueduct from Lake Sagami 相模湖 to Nishiya Water Purification Plant 西谷浄水場 which distributes drinking water to the downtown of the City.

Inside the forest, there are several treks connecting the Ridge and Valley Ways. They are not straight, but winding, crisscrossing and often with steep ups and downs. + Sometimes, especially after rain, several points can suffer land-slides that make the routes impassable. The risk with nests of vespinae and gloydius blomhoffii applies here. Having said that, it is just a small park, surrounded by residential areas of Yokohama. The total length of the trekking network is only 9 k. If you get lost inside, you can either climb up to the Ridge Way leading to Wakabadai Housing Complex 若葉台団地, or down to the Valley Way which brings you to Miho Forest Park bus stop we found before. Grab your map and compass, and examine where you are when you find a check point along the way. No need to panic. 

Some of you may get excited with my description of the forest for its “wilderness.” You are not alone. It seems to me the Forest had problems with Survival Gamers so that you will find many notices saying “Survival Game is prohibited in the Forest.”

I do agree with the Forest administrator for this ban. This is a part of the final front to preserve original nature in the metropolitan Tokyo area. Stomping the ground with survival game surely damages the fauna and flora of the Forest. Miho Forest surely has a charm of many kinds of ferns colonizing the space here and there.

If you manage Japanese, you’ll notice each check point has species name of birds, which are frequent flyers around the point.

Choosing the right time of the day, we can enjoy bird watching there.

Please take your trashes with you when you say good-bye to the forest. There is no trash-bin, of course.

If you find a problem in the Park, please make a contact with

Office for the Park Greeneries in the North北部公園緑地事務所

Yokohama Municipal Government Creative Environment Policy Bureau横浜市環境創造局

Phone: 045-311-2016 (I guess in Japanese only)

FAX: 045-316-8420 (I hope there is somebody who can read English …)