Kagoshima, Sakurajima, & Yakushima

by Brianin Japan, Kagoshimaon Posted on

Jump Ahead:

Day 1 | Kagoshima
Day 2 | Sakurajima
Day 3 | Yakushima (Yakusugi Land)
Day 4 | Yakushima (Shiratani Unsuikyo)
Day 5 | Yakushima (Circle Island Drive)
Day 6 | Yakushima (Jomonsugi)
Final Day 7 | Homeward Bound

This was a highly anticipated trip for me, mostly because of Yakushima… an island south of Kagoshima noted for its centuries old cedar forests and also as the inspiration for Princess Mononoke.  The island itself is full of everything nature related and would be a great little retreat from Yokohama/Tokyo.  Getting to Yakushima is not the easiest as there’s a plane, a bus, and a ferry involved… you could take two flights however the airport on Yakushima is very small so flights are few and often affected by the quick changing weather there.  That being said, we thought it’d be a good idea to make the most of our travels and spend some time exploring nearby Kagoshima and Sakurajima as well.

Day 1 - Kagoshima

First leg of the trip, a short flight to Kagoshima Airport
The airport is not so near to the main city of Kagoshima so we had to take a bus to the main station
Kagoshima Station (bus building is across the street from the train station)
Kurobuta tonkatsu (left). Black pork is popular in Kagoshima. The sauce was also noticeably sweeter than what you might find in the Kanto area. Interesting fact: Kagoshima cuisine is also known as Satsuma Cuisine after the old name of the prefecture.
Pretty wide streets. We were immediately hit with all the ash in the air and on the ground. Was not expecting that.
Ash from the nearby volcano... the city would like you to believe that it's not harmful to breath this stuff in... hmmmm, I'd rather wear a mask eheh. Fun fact: while we were watching the news there, it was reported that Kagoshima has the most cases of people not using seatbelts in Japan.
Local ferries to Sakurajima... I was surprised by how many there were and how often they depart, given the type of run they make and few people waiting to board each time.
One of our first stops was at the Kagoshima Aquarium
They always look bigger in the wild and on TV
View of Sakurajima from the aquarium... always smoking
Shirokuma "Polar bear" ice, very popular dessert (and deliciously refreshing!)... basically ice cake with condensed milk and fruit toppings.
Just goofing around in the kids section.. little sea creature hats follow you on screen
Minatoodori Park
The far end of the park with the fountain
They have designated areas to leave your ash collection bags...

Statue of Shimazu Hisamitsu.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shimazu_Hisamitsu

Brushed it off with a leaf
Near Terukuni Shrine
Terukuni Shrine
Looking out of Terukuni Shrine towards city
Were trying to find our way up to the Shiroyama Park Observation Deck using google maps... found the stairs but it was much more than we expected, sweaty at the top!
Starting to level off (just a little)
Some very old, touristy shops... by now they're all the same (but we look anyway hehe)
Cat waking up from its nap in the tree
Made it to the top.. unfortunately the visibility wasn't so great as this was one of the more voggy days of the month
Your shoes will get dirty, just walking around the city...
Walking through one of the shopping arcades on the way back to the main street
Idk... maybe a bug company?
Miami St. along the city tram line (sister cities)
Statue near the river bridge
On the bridge crossing Kotsuki River, heading towards the main train station
Back at Kagoshima Station

Day 2 - Sakurajima

Cable car in front of the station

Ferry ticket and info.  We did the “scenic” tour which just goes a little more out into the bay before reaching Sakurajima.  This is only done once a day so we just thought, why not?
http://www.city.kagoshima.lg.jp/sakurajima-ferry/english/index.html

Pretty spacious for such a short ride
Quick place to grab a bite if you like

For a little background on the (former) island:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sakurajima

Outside/Upper deck of ferry
There are actually three active peaks on Sakurajima
Looking back at the harbor
You can kind of see the three peaks in this picture
Approaching the dock. Small fishing pier.
Ferry dock
This was cheapest, most convenient way to get around on Sakurajima... lot of hopping on and off buses which can add up throughout the day. Just does a circle of the main view points and brings you back to the main town area after. Best not to dilly dally off the ferry to the bus terminal because a long line will form quickly.
The buses are not that big so if you dilly dally you may end up waiting longer for another bus to show up.
First stop and lookout point, looking back at Kagoshima.
First stop, looking towards the peak
Second stop. Some sort of memorial for an all night concert that happened here at some time in the past....?
Looking toward the peaks from Yunohira Observation Point. The highest lookout point on the bus loop.
Looking back towards Kagoshima
Souvenir shop at Yunohira Observation Point
I thought this was interesting. Rather than the usual conbini colors, they're all brown to help preserve the nature-like feeling of the island. No flashy colors here!
Sakurajima Rest Area and souvenir shop
Inside the shop
The famously humongous radish on the island
Real size of the radish here
School children wear helmets as a safety measure
Public foot bath and park
Foot bath looking back at the volcano
Same fishing pier we saw coming in on the ferry
Heading back on the ferry to Kagoshima
After arriving back in Kagoshima, headed to the waterfront park and Dolphin Port shopping/restaurant area
Dolphin Port

“Freshly pounded glutinous rice in small balls about the size of ancient Japanese gold coins are skewered on two bamboo sticks, roasted, and basted with a warm, sweet sauce made from miso, black sugar and thickened with starch. The tradition of always using two sticks has been said to be in imitation of the long sword and the short sword carried by samurai warriors, and also gives them the name “jambo”, meaning “both sticks”.”
https://www.pref.kagoshima.jp/af09/foreign/english/profile/gaiyou/3c5.html

Also some local tofu and natto!
So good!
Nice, small outdoor mall
Walking back towards hotel on Miami St. after long day, came across this ice shop that also sold shave ice!
Another great find! Usually I can eat the whole thing by myself, but this was large enough to share hehe... I think I'm fairly picky with shave ice, and I rated this one pretty high.
Couldn't figure out what the structure was running along the street but looked like an old elevated track.
We weren't hungry but wandered through Kagomma Furusato Food Village near Kagoshima Station.. popular spot for a meal if you're in town!
Kagomma Furusato Food Village street view
Made it back to the station

Saw this ramen shop near the hotel on our first day, decided it looked good enough to try.  Satsuma Shimuja:
http://shimuja.com/

Kagoshima style ramen, tasty!
The "Sakurajima" haha. It's always nice to pair a bowl of ramen with a roast pork bowl and/or gyoza and/or beer and/or ice cream hehe

Day 3 - Yakushima (Yakusugi Land)

Caught the cable car to get us as near to the ferry terminal as possible
No crowd early morning
They like their statues on the main road, accompanied by some short history lessons

The car ferry terminal building.  There are three ways to get to Yakushima as outlined here.  We thought we’d catch the slower (but cheaper) car ferry to Yakushima, and then the Toppy Rocket Hydrofoil coming back.  It’s really just a matter of how much time you have, when you have it, and how much you want to spend.
http://www.yesyakushima.com/getting-to-yakushima/by-sea/

Car ferry from pier
First come, first serve for seating... it was actually crowded and all the seats would eventually be taken up in this section
Main lobby and stairs... can leave luggage underneath there but we didn't trust (even though in Japan)
Didn't watch a show but looks like they'd have some kind of entertainment
Main lobby again
Approaching Yakushima!
Entering the harbor
Our shuttle driver to the car rental shop. Was waiting for us and one other couple as soon as we got off the ferry.
Our rental car place. Very small storefront, and luckily we didn't end up with that truck (another couple checked in right after us and the truck was all they had left for them). Like some of the other island trips, I'd recommend booking rental cars well in advance because we always seem to get lucky with the very last ones available.
Marie volunteered to drive for the entire trip!
Heading up into the mountains for our first little hike
Rainy first day, visibility not that great
Yakusugi Land center and souvenir shop
Ticket stand and entrance to Yakusugi Land

Yakusugi Land is basically a nature park so the multiple paths you can choose to go on are well maintained and make for easy viewing of yakusugi.  A good intro for us to the island before our longer hikes.
https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e4655.html

Signs mark the older, more famous trees
Paths are pretty well maintained, though slippery on this day
I do enjoy the views that open up at the bridge crossings
Wet but happy!

Just a snapshot of our activity

This was our bath house at the inn we checked into the first night. Designated bath times per room (not by sex) or when available. The little sign near the door tells when occupied or not.
The water on the island was really soft and nice. The conditioner there was pretty amazing and found out later we could by it on rakuten for cheap... in the end, it worked better with Yakushima water (softer) than Yokohama water (harder), but I think the goat's milk played a big part too).
Not bad eh? Especially after the wet rainy day we had
I'm frequently surprised by the quality of the food at these smaller inns... apparently the old man chef here used to work at some fancy resort before so he brought his skills to the table... and yes, that's a snail. He was very friendly and chatty even though I couldn't speak much Japanese.
Small place but comfortable enough

Main building and dining area.
Manmaru Guesthouse:
https://manmaru.jimdo.com/

Day 4 - Yakushima (Shiratani Unsuikyo)

We were able to enjoy our breakfast at the hotel this morning
Checked-out of the guesthouse and started the drive back to the northern side of the island
Going pretty high up again
Parking is near the trail head area
Some big rocks at the beginning
I like big rocks and moss
This area of the island is known to have been a huge inspiration for the animation in the movie Princess Mononoke
Gigantic
Wanted some all natural Yakushima water. Had to get upstream of the people washing their feet and still used the UV pen later.
Easy Peasy

Out and back. Didn’t go so far to meet up with the Arakawa trail.

This souvenir shop was probably the best one on the island, right off the main road back in Miyanoura.
The one thing they didn't have was the yakusugi necklace that Yakusugi Land had in their souvenir shop. Glad I bought that when I did.

Our next stay was at Tashiro Bekkan, on the north side of the island near the ferry port of Miyanoura and car rental place.
http://www.tashirobekkan.co.jp/

Nice view of the mountains from our room
Very filling dinner. The crab was a little more work than it was worth but overall satisfying meal.

Day 5 - Yakushima (Circle Island Drive)

We were a little worried about the weather so we switched days for Jomonsugi hike and circle island drive. We were expecting more rain but looked nice in the morning!
Not sure what they're trying to do with the trees there
Nice full breakfast at the hotel
Just outside the hotel, Miyanoura River
Hotel front
Directions on google were a little confusing trying to find the waterfall so we ended up driving through some farm roads (not the first time, surely not the last)... in the end, found out it's best to just park at the souvenir shop building to the right of the main road.
Sign marking the first waterfall area
We walked just a little down the path until we got this small view... it wasn't as impressive as we were expecting and decided it wasn't worth hiking further down to see more (we had a bigger waterfall on our itinerary anyway).
Looking off the bridge on the main road
More impressive looking in real life
The small center where you can park to go to the waterfall trail

Short detour to the Yakushima Fruit Garden:
http://www.yesyakushima.com/yakushima-fruit-garden/

Wasn't too impressed by the offerings but at least it was a cheap
The waiting area. Tours are short and I'm pretty sure it was just the same guy walking in circles with a new group each time... didn't have to wait long anyway.
Not a long tour, and I was just kind of doing my own wandering because I couldn't understand anything being said...
The guide did point out some funny looking things though
Falling behind the group a little hehe
Moving on to Ohko-no-taki Waterfall, one of Japan's top 100 (as the sign says)
For scale
Good place to just relax and reflect
Driving along the west side of the island, you enter the UNESCO protected area Seibu Rindo Forest Path
Here you'll run into a bunch of monkeys and deer, just hanging out and relaxing on the roads. They really couldn't care less about humans or cars driving by.
In fact, it took so long to get these monkeys to move... just kept creeping closer and closer with the car, short honks... talking to ourselves really but they really wouldn't budge for so long! Just keep cleaning and picking and scratching...
Seems peaceful
Towards the end of the forest path, a short turn off the road leads you to the Yakushima lighthouse at Nagata Cape. The road here was extremely narrow, which made the drive more stressful.
Looking south from the lighthouse
Looking northeast from the lighthouse
Moving along...
It's no Hawaii, but we'll take it!
More coastal shots while driving by... blink and you'd miss it but there's a cave out there with a tiny red torii gate at the entrance. Near Isso Beach Resort.
And one of our last stops of the day was at the Shido Ko Banyan Park. Not large at all but just a place you'd go to enjoy this variety of tree I suppose.
Picture to scale
Reminds me of Hawaii of course
No swinging from these vines though
Back in the main city, not far from the ferry terminal on the main road are some souvenir shops and misc stores
Another souvenir shop. We probably stopped at all of them on this trip hehe
Nice dinner at hotel to wind down the day...
Meals were always quite large, sometimes almost too much food but good thing because we were using a lot of energy each day.

Day 6 - Yakushima (Jomonsugi)

The long awaited Jomonsugi hike! This was at the start. We decided, rather than hiking through Shiratani Unsuikyo again, we'd drive back south and catch the first bus from the Yakusugi Museum to the Arakawa Trailhead where the Anbo section of the trail begins. Pays to go extra early as there was already a line forming. We managed to get the very last two seats on the first bus! Trail access is restricted between March and November so private vehicles are not allowed to go to the trailhead.
The Anbo trail is mainly tracks the whole way, which after some time begin to get annoying since you can't really walk properly. As with a lot of stairs in Japan, spacing between steps is awkward for me. Still, we were in a good mood and spirits were high.
Several of these bridges make for nice open scenery... they're not too high up but if you're afraid of heights I suppose it could be a little shaky.
One of the larger, more supported bridges
Bridge crossings usually open up the views
There used to be an entire logging community, Kosugidani, living in the area but has since vanished. They'd show videos of the people catching a very tiny, open air/car, train (same tracks we're hiking on) all the way into town for groceries once a week or something like that.
This is where the children's school used to be
And it's also where a portable toilet is! Hikers are supposed to bring their own toilet bag for use in these types of tents. The inside has a toilet seat however you apply your own bag and carry out the waste yourself.
A more proper bathroom stop... still just an outhouse though... picture of the insides on the way back. There's also a place to fill water here but looks like it's coming out of a 100 year old pipe.
Any view opening up is refreshing after walking under the cover of trees and on tracks for a while
At the end of the Anbo trail is a restroom building. This is the end of the tracks and also the last restroom facility until a small campsite just after Jomonsugi. It gets steeper from this point on!
The middle finger tree. At first we mistook this for Wilson's stump but we had a little more ways to go.

THIS is Wilson’s Stump, one of the main attractions en route to Jomonsugi.  Little bit crowded area and good resting place.  Victim of logging way back in the day but also said to (previously) be the tallest cedar on the island.
http://www.yesyakushima.com/wilsons-stump/

Popular photo op from inside the stump... you have to crouch real low to get the heart
Woohoo! No more tracks (for now)
The labyrinth of stairs
Just cool what time does
Yes, feel it's nature!
Meoto sugi or the Couple tree... the two trees (husband and wife) are basically fused together by that middle branch(?). Pretty cool up close.
Some sections are pretty old... always pay attention as some stairs are slanted also.
Finally, the main attraction!
For scale
Resting and refueling (breakfast bento from guesthouse earlier) on one of the relatively new viewing platforms near the tree. One of the paid guides from a separate group of people said no eating there, however there are no signs indicating this. We were careful with our food/trash anyway. The good thing about many of the hotels/inns on the island is that they realize tourists are there to hike and are aware of the limited itineraries for doing so. Our hotels were nice enough to provide breakfast bentos really early so that we could still get a breakfast (that we paid for) and make our buses (operate limited times). This seems like a minor thing but actually is very important to consider when picking accommodations on the island... we had to plan several steps in advance to make it a successful trip. There are other places that sell bento early in the morning but they're rare, as are conbinis.

As old as 7200 years (but as young as 2000)… I guess anything that old is hard to estimate really… OH if trees could talk, right?
https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e4653.html

Some stairs are steeper than others. Can seriously break ankles if you slip off the sides.
Came across this wild deer on the way back... we slowed on the trail as to not get too close or scare it away, but of course other tourists came up from behind, and rushed up close to get a selfie and scared it away.... you can see it's not happy
Little creepy
Another famous peak in the distance
Such a great weather day
What is this???
I did enjoy the wild flowers around the island
Just enjoying the moss wall
Staying entertained
Here's the inside of one of those restroom houses we saw in the morning... actually didn't stink as much as I expected them to. Just to be safe, take a dump before you go!
Really hard to keep myself from climbing down there
Huge rocks!
Don't you just want to dive right in???
Crystal clear waters all around
Getting close to the end/beginning!
One of the last bridges!
Made it back! What a long day.
No problemo
Line for the return bus hehe. There's aren't many throughout the afternoon so you really have to watch your time since it is a long day of hiking. Since we started earlier, we were able to get on one of the first buses back to the museum.
Bus ticket

Outbound

Inbound

Not far from the bus stop is the Yakusugi Museum
Main hall. Lot of info on the history of the island as well as the logging communities.
(It's heavy)
Interesting displays at least
If you look at the picture of the tree in the background, at the very top there's a branch that sticks out to the left of the tip... that's the branch on display... I can't remember if they cut it off or it fell off but it's one of the more famous trees on the island.
There's also an info center not far from the museum building
Inside the info center
Stopped by a few random souvenir shops on the way back to the hotel... so tired though.
Last dinner pictures!
All delicious!
Some of our trip goodies!

Final Day 7 - Homeward Bound!

Returning our rental car... thanks for driving!
Inside the Toppy Rocket terminal
The Toppy Rocket... much faster ferry heading back but I think double the price... you get what you pay for basically.
Pretty comfortable, much shorter ride back anyway.
Much better view of Sakurajima on this day... you can see the ash coming out of the southern peak only.
On land back in Kagoshima, leaving the ferry terminal area (near Dolphin port). They could really use a cable car stop closer to the ferry terminal
Waiting for the cable car along Miami St.
Our last big polar bear ice at Kagoshima Station
At the airport
Mt. Fuji in the distance welcoming us back!
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