18/03/2013

Hiking Mt. Oyama in Kanagawa

Beautiful mountain scenery

Por Todd Wojnowski

Community writer

The cable car takes visitors to Afuri Shrine

The crowd making its way up to Afuri Shrine

Between its tourist town bottom and its desolate peak, Mt. Oyama is a hike for a true lover of nature. The trail juts more than it winds, and has unstable, rocky footing that is treacherous after a good rain. "Dramatic" is a word that comes to mind. It is scenic in a way that many mountains are not, featuring towering trees with swarming exposed roots that are more than a little octopus-like. The peak is an exposed, windswept bare spot that leaves hikers huddled together, eyes squinting against the howling wind as they silently work on eating their packed lunches. It's not a terribly difficult climb, but it's a wild one for sure.