One of Yokohama’s neighbors is the city of Fujisawa. The place is famous for beach tourism, whose representative is Enoshima Island (; my post for June 30, 2017). Geologically speaking the City has 4 different kinds of features. One is Enoshima Island. Then there is beach front area where sandbanks and inlets were filled up by the sediments from the sea and several small rivers. These two areas, roughly south of National Route 1, are the most populated and urbanized sections of the city. The north of Route 1 is for the third and the fourth areas where there remains decent acreage of forests and farms. As such, there are large college campuses as well. One is College of Bioresource Sciences for Nihon University in the third geological area. The area is a mixture of hills and small valleys where farmers have engaged in their agricultural business for centuries. It’s apt that Nihon University has a large campus with experimental farms there. The fourth area is the northernmost area of the city where the Sagamihara Terrace is ending. It has the highest altitude of the city, for ASL 30-40 m. And in general, the terrain is flat. So, there is a large factory and warehouses for Isuzu and an extensive Shonan-Fujisawa Campus for Keio University. The area is a mixture of such large establishments, farmland, housings and forests. It has 33ha for the water source forest for Koide River, a tributary of Sagami River. It’s located right next to the Keio Campus. Today let’s start visiting this forest whose name is Forest for Healthy Living 健康の森. The idea of this forest is not apart from the existence of Keio University.
The designation of the Forest was originally included in the City Planning Mater Plan of Fujisawa City, formulated in 1999. (It was updated in March 2026.) There, the city would have forests of culture and health for the benefit of people of Fujisawa. Already, Keio University has a campus in the north of the city surrounded by a forest. So, “culture” part was well-established in 1999. Then there were the farmlands and forests next to the Campus, or to be exact the Faculty of Nursing and Medical Care. Before Great Kanto Earthquake, this area had a large village engaged in wet-rice cultivation using the spring water for Koide River. Unfortunately, the land good for paddy cultivation was vulnerable to Magnitude 7.9. After the disaster, many people abandoned the area and greenery remained. (Keio’s Campus is on the hill, going up from the former rice paddy area.) Ironically it has worked well for nature conservation. When Fujisawa City thought the Master Plan, it was natural for the forests remained side-by-side with the faculty of medical care to be designated “Forest for Health” … er, it might be too easy idea at that time. But, now, the forest is suitable to be called “forest for Health” not only for humans, but for the ecology of all the living creatures.
To dive in the forest, first the access. The nearest public transportation facility for the forest is the commuter bus terminal for Keio Shonan Campus, named Keio University Bus Stop. There are two services to reach there. One is from Shonandai Station for Odakyu/Sotetsu/Yokohama City Subway. Another is from JR Tsujido Station. This note site, written by Student Government Association of Keio Fujisawa Campus, has a detail to use these services. Or, if you drive, there are parking spaces of 14 cars for the Forest, almost in front of Keio’s Nursing Faculty campus. It seems to me the parking is busy always. If you play safe, I recommend public transport. You get off the bus at Keio University Stop, then you may notice there is a large hospital building in front of the terminal. It is Keiiku Hospital affiliated with Keio University, famous for rehabilitation treatments. (My mom stayed there for two months after she broke her left femur due to osteoporosis.) Please cross the road and stand in front of the Hospital. Facing the hospital turn left and walk along the wide road which is Prefectural Road #410. 100m or so from the hospital, there is a road on our right. Turn right here and go along this road running in parallel to Road 410. At the 4th corner from the previous turning, 500m or so ahead, turn right. Both sides of the road are of grassland and a garden of shrubs. Ahead of us there is a forest. This is our destination today.
 |
| Keiiku
Hospital’s over there. |
 |
| A
scene after turning right from the hospital |
 |
| Our
destination is over there in this photo. |
200m or so from our final turning to the right, there is a small sign saying this is one of the 4 entrances to the Forest for Healthy Living. Next week, I tell you about my adventure in this Forest. It’s a relaxing walk on more or less flat trekking roads. Please stay tuned.
 |
The
signpost.
We are at the corner named Number 6.
In this exhibit, there is
another forest named Forest for Boys,
west of the Forest for Healthy Living.
I
haven’t checked it,
but it says there are large metasequoias,
non-native for
Japan, in the center of the field.
Perhaps, it is a well-maintained garden. |
Endosasakuboyato Park 遠藤笹窪谷公園
4840 Endo, Fujisawa, Kanagawa Prefecture, 252-0816
Japan
Phone: 0466-47-7760
https://endosasakuboyatokouen.jp/ Instagram: @endosasakuboyatokouen
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