#kongo san

Monday 6th November 2017. 16:30 Mt.Kongo Osaka.

On our descent from Kongo San we were greeted by beautiful golden hour light combined with the awesome autumn colours of the mountain was perfect. We also came across the most amazing tree which looked like it had started as one but has split during it’s growth, it was huge! 

Monday 6th November 2017. 14:00 Mt.Kongo Osaka.

We reached the summit after about an hour and 30/40 minutes climbing. There is actually nothing more satisfying than climbing a big old mountain. I’ve always loved hiking, ever since I was little, and to be able to it here so regularly is amazing. 

Although it was a beautiful sunny day there was a haze over the city so we couldn’t actually see anything below haha but still rewarding nonetheless. I would love to come back here when it’s covered in snow, that would be something special. They say the best time to come is in February so we’ll see! 

Monday 6th November 2017. 13:00 Mt.Kongo Osaka.

Mount Kongo (金剛山) in Osaka, at 1,125 meters is Osaka’s tallest mountain, with the border between the Osaka and Nara prefectures slicing right through it. Mount Kongō has a rich history as the birthplace of the Shugendo, a religion where one attains enlightenment by understating the relation between humans and nature through mountain dwelling and worship. The mountain also hosted an epic battle around 1330 between imperial loyalists and the Shogunate totalitarian ruler of Japan. On clear weather days the view from the summit include the plains of Settsu, the Rokko Mountains and even as far as Awaji Island.

I love having Mondays off with Ellen because we can actually do stuff together now that we live in the same city which is so nice. We escaped to the mountains on the most beautiful day, we couldn’t have asked for better weather to hike in. We got the train to Kawachi-nagano and then jumped on a bus from here which took us to the bottom of our hiking trail.