+1070m / -940m / 19km
The hike of the day is a stage of the Kyoto Trail, at the North-East of Kyoto (in blue on the map). It is feasible from station to station by slightly adapting the route.
I take the subway at Sanjo towards the North until Demachiyanagi, and I change for a single-car train which brings me to Yase-Hieizanguchi. It’s a bit steep-sided. I must cross the river but the bridge shown on the map is nowhere to be seen, only pillars remain.. I reach the next one 200m farther. I climb Mount Hiei via the Eastern slope that I don’t know yet. It is a path that gets lost from time to time. I come across some sort of sanctuary where statues are disposed in lines. I meet the Kyoto Trail again a bit before reaching the summit, as well as the markings seen the last time. By the way, there are about 200m shared with that previous hike but instead of going down to the main lodges of Enryaku-ji, I take to the left on a crest trail going down gently.
I see other temples and secondary lodges. One of them (Jodo-in) features a nice zen garden. The path is now clear and passable, there are plenty of signs: it would be hard to get lost. The crest goes through two peaks, whose slopes are quite steep: mount Yokotaka (767m), and mount Mizui (794m). Fortunately the path stays high between those two. I go through the Ogi Toge pass. Then it’s a descent steep enough but pleasant: undergrowth, with roots showing up and making natural stairs. I gain some speed, my legs hold steady, it’s a bliss.
I get to the bottom of the valley, it’s the countryside. And it looks a bit like some places found above Alès.. I cross the Takano river and I keep going to the mountain ahead in order to change valley. That part of the route is so-so, the road is never far and the undergrowth is ordinary. I arrive in another countryside area, not so different than the previous one, where I sit down to eat the sandwich and the potato chips bought this morning. Then I go through a nice residential neighborhood and I am in the forest again to change valley one more time ! The pass is steep, and abandoned houses come into view.. Gloomy.
I get to Kurama at last, it seems very small. There are big stairs leading to Mount Kurama, where a whole set of temples is to be found. A sign post says the main lodge is 1km away… I would be ready to give it a try, but the entrance of the place is charged. So it will be for another day, when I will still have the energy to visit it all.
The train (2 cars) arrive at the station. It goes back a few minutes later towards Demachiyanagi and downtown Kyoto. I wouldn’t have believed that this kind of hike and elevation would be just 40min away from my place.