Kurama to Kifune: A Day on the Kurama - Kifune Trail

If anyone is looking for a One Day Trip in Kyoto that has nature, temples, shrines, and light hiking, we would like to recommend the "Kurama to Kifune" route. It is one of the places we want to visit the most since before Kyoto.

🚃 Travel

From downtown Kyoto, take the Keihan train to Demachiyanagi Station and turn it into the Eizan Railway. It's about 30 minutes from Demachiyanagi.

As soon as it arrived at Kurama station, the first thing that caught the eye was the giant Tengu statue, which is the symbol of this place. It is said that the Snake Tens are the Phantoms of the Mountains, who protect the forest and its practitioners. All the way up the temple will be filled with souvenirs about the Snake Tens, whether amulets, masks or souvenirs.

Before entering the temple, admission is about 500 yen per person. Anyone who wants to save money can use the basket of the temple for a one-way basket of about 200 yen.

In fact, we can walk all up, but we choose to take the basket first because we intend to continue on foot from Kurama Temple to Kifune Shrine, so I will keep the force for the latter. 😆

Even after taking the basket, you still have to walk, but the distance is much shorter. On the way, there are many stops to visit, and because the temple is on the mountain, the atmosphere is very quiet. Each tree is so tall that it can feel how long the forest has been.

One of the important points of the temple is the "Kongosh," a circular courtyard in front of the main temple that many believe is the receiving point for the power of Mount Kurama. Everyone often stands and spreads their arms for power here before going into worship inside the temple.

After paying homage, we started a hiking route from Kurama to Kifune. It takes about 1.5 to 2 hours and is a popular route for tourists.

Along the way, it passes through the "Kinone Michi," or the wooden root corridor that is a memory of Kurama; and also through the "Okunoin Maoden," a small shrine in the middle of a forest whose legend is that it was also the place where the guardian deity from Venus descended to Earth millions of years ago.

For us, walking in the forest is my favorite time. It feels like leaving a busy world in another world. The sound of wind, bird noises, leaf noises, and the smell of pine trees around us makes this hike a resting time without trying. The deeper you walk, the calmer you feel like charging yourself with the journey.

When it was near Kifune, it started to go down. I honestly confessed that my legs were shaking. 😂 But when I started to hear the water flowing, I knew it was near my destination.

⛩️ Kifune Shrine

The most unique thing here is the sound of water that is constantly heard. This shrine is a shrine that worships the water god "Takaokami no Kami" and is the center of more than 2,000 water gods throughout Japan.

Another highlight that everyone has to try is "Mizuura Mikuji" or Xiamzi. When they buy it, the paper seems to be empty, but when they float on the sacred stream, the letters gradually appear. It is a very exciting experience.

Also, something that can't be missed at all is various amulets and "Go Shu In ()," a seal with a hand-written paintbrush pattern that many shrine collectors intend to ask for here.

After a long day's walk, we sat down and took a cool break in the shrine area. It was a simple moment but one of the best memories of this trip.

If you have time, you can also stop by the restaurants and shops in Kifune, especially the very famous streetside restaurants, but the day we got there was quite cold, so you didn't stop.

At lunch, we chose to try a temple vegetarian meal at Kurama instead, which was another very interesting experience.

✨ Summary

If anyone has the opportunity to come to Kyoto, we would like to introduce the Kurama to Kifune route as a natural, temple, shrine, hiking and one day break.

Maybe a little tired, but for us...Worth every step you walk. 🍃

# Lemon 8 Club # Travel Club # Japan trip # Secret travel # kyoto