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Fall is here with cooler air and less humidity. This means it is camping season!!! 🏕⛰🥾 We set out for a family weekend adventure in Hiroshima to explore Sandankyo Gorge. Since we wanted an early start on our gorge hike (which was gorgeous, ha), we decided to camp overnight nearby at Mt. Osorakan. The drive is about 1:45- 2 hours on route 186. Paying tolls might save you 15 min or so, and since 186 is a decent road with relatively wide lanes, it would be my recommended route.
Now, the road to the campsite is another story and not recommended for the faint at heart! It consists of 11 km of winding road of which at least half is a 2-way shared lane with little visibility. Sections of the road are in between the rocky mountain side and a precipice; talk about being between a rock and a hard place! In contrast, there are some wide sections with two lanes where we could catch our breath for a little while.
Once we made it there, the Osorakan Ecology auto campsite (www.osorakan.co.jp) was very nice and environmentally friendly. We ended up staying at a 'free' site because everything else was booked. Free sites are areas where you can pitch a tent, but there are no site delineation, so people can set up wherever they like and it can get very crowded. On the other hand, it is cheap (¥ 1100/night) and there were bathrooms and a shared kitchen area. However, western toilets were not found in every bathroom, so you may want to practice malasana (yogi squats). The shower room is located behind the main office and it is coin operated. Coins can be purchased at the office and there is a refund for unused coins.
Once we set up the campsite, we went for a hike. There are maps at the campsite office, but I would also recommend using a GPS tracking app (I use GPS Tracker because it works offline) as the trails can be confusing. We hiked the therapy road trail across from the main office for shinrin-yoku (forest bathing) from which you may take other trails.
The next morning, we headed out to Sandankyo. It only took us 20 min by car down the terrifying mountain road. We went to the main entrance and hiked the C trail (50 min each way). There are many labeled sightseeing areas along the way and the C trail ends at a boat dock where other trails continue either by boat for foot. There is an option to hike the entire gorge; it takes approximately 5 hours with a bus service back to the parking lot. Needless to say, if your plan is to hike all day, plan ahead of time to make sure the bus service will be operational by the time you are done. Unfortunately dogs are not allowed on the bus or the boats. Also, the trail is fairly narrow, so be courteous to other hikers, especially if the pups are tagging along. Enjoy the outdoors!
Happy trails with tails!
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