We left the inn for a short walk up through town to the Shingon Temple and three pagodas. Some of the group went in the temple for a 45-minute mediation session.
I and others chose to walk around town, getting a coffee and viewing a few more sights. The group met up in time for a 2 1/2 hour taxi ride to start of the Kumano Pilgrimage Trail. After about an hour of the ride we stop for lunch at a high elevation viewpoint on the winding, twisting road. There was a watch tower which provided a 360 degree view of the tree covered mountains. One interesting note, the forest managers want to replace the softwood evergreen trees with hardwood decidous trees along the ridge lines to reduce ground slumping, as the following photo indicates. This area is subject to tyhoons that dump 1/3 of the annual rainfall in a single storm.
The trail is mostly up twice rising to 375 and 350 meters. We saw a troop of monkeys high in the trees. No photos were possible. After a bit of a wait, we were able to get into our respective communal baths for a thorough cleaning and soak. We enjoye another great meal of Japanese delicacies including crab, a 4-inch long trout, beef slices, mushrooms, and according to Jamie, various foods "found along the roadside."
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