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Nature Spots in Nara Area

Area

  • Mt. Takami
    Travel / Tourism
    Mie Pref. Matsusakashi Itakachoufunato
    This 1,248-meter-high mountain on the border between Matsusaka City, Mie Prefecture and Nara Prefecture, is at the north end of the Daiko mountain range. When looking north-south on the mountain, it has a gentle appearance, but from the east/west it appears quite sharp, earning it the nickname Matterhorn in Kansai. In winter it features beautiful sights of hoarfrost and rime-covered trees. It's a short, 90-minute hike to the peak from the Takami pass or Otoge pass trailheads, so climbers are common.
    Mt. Takami image
  • Katsuragi Kogen
    Travel / Tourism
    Nara Gose-shi Kujira 2569
    A plateau spreading across Mt. Katsuragi nearly 959 meters above sea level in Kujira, Gose City. From the foot of the mountain you can ride the Mt. Katsuragi Ropeway and from the peak of the gentle sloping terrain you can look over the scenery of the Yamato Basin and the Osaka Plain. Famous for azaleas, it's said you can see a million azaleas in a single glance and in the fall you can admire the pampas grass and in the winter the frost covered trees.
    Katsuragi Kogen image
  • Lake Tsuburo
    Travel / Tourism
    Yoshino cho, Yoshino gun, Nara prefecture
    This lake is a great place to enjoy fishing or a ride on a sightseeing boat. The lake is home to bass, Japanese pond smelt, white crucian carp, common carp, rainbow trout, and other species of fish. The lake is a popular destination for aquatic leisure, including rental boats and pleasure cruises. A number of events are held at the lake all year long, making it a fun destination regardless of the season. In winter, you can enjoy Japanese pond smelt fishing. In spring, there are a number of festivals to enjoy, including a Sakura (cherry blossom) festival, Suijin (water god) festival, and Momiji (autumn foliage) festival in fall.
    Lake Tsuburo image
  • Momonoo-no-Taki Falls
    Travel / Tourism
    Nara Pref. Tenrishi Takimotochou
    This 23 meter-tall waterfall is one of the largest that lies along the Kasuga fault scarp. Long beloved by locals as Furu no Taki, the falls are a popular place to escape the summer heat. The falls are also famous for the Fudo Sanzon Magaibutsu carved into a stone wall on the left side of the plunge pool. This image of the Fudo Trinity is considered to be an excellent example of mid-Kamakura period Buddhist wall carving.
    Momonoo-no-Taki Falls image
  • Mt. Misen and Mt. Hakkyogatake
    Travel / Tourism
    Tenkawa village Yoshino gun, Nara prefecture
    Hakkyogatake is one of the 100 famous mountains of Japan and is the highest peak in the Kinki region. It is well-known for Oyama magnolia, which is a Nationally Designated Natural Monument. Oyama magnolia blooms from early to mid-July and until recently only mountain ascetics and some mountain climbers ever set eye on it, leading the illusionary flower to be called the celestial maiden flower. It has a splendid aroma and beautiful, white petals.
    Mt. Misen and Mt. Hakkyogatake image
  • Miya Waterfall
    Travel / Tourism
    Nara Yoshino-gun Yoshinocho Miyataki
    "At this waterfall, Empress Kogyoku conducted water rituals, and Empress Jito also made official imperial visits to it several times. Located in the water-rich area of Yoshino, which even appears in the ancient ""Man'yoshu"" poetry anthology, the Yoshino Imperial Villa was built to its west. Palaces were repeatedly rebuilt on the site and accordingly it is conjectured that this place had special significance."
    Miya Waterfall image
  • Lake Futatsuno
    Travel / Tourism
    Nara Yoshino-gun Totsukawamura
    This beautiful, emerald green lake is a dam lake. One of the country's most prominent wintering spots for mandarin ducks, it is said around 5% of all mandarin ducks who migrate to Japan come here. On the left bank, there are neither roads nor human settlements, and the forest which sprawls on this side consists of beeches and evergreen oaks, trees whose nuts are a favorite of mandarin ducks and also their primary food source when overwintering. Additionally, the lake's water level and temperature are quite stable and visitors can enjoy fishing here during the fishing season.
    Lake Futatsuno image
  • Mt. Sanjogatake (Mt. Omine)
    Travel / Tourism
    Nara Yoshino-gun Tenkawamura Dorogawa
    "This mountain is the center of Omine mountain worship. The top of the mountain is a vast plain and in summer there is a beautiful field of alpine plant flowers. There is a ridge on the north side a short distance below the peak with steep rock cliffs on its east and west sides, and there are two spots called the ""Nishi no Nozoki"" (""West Lookout"") and ""Higashi no Nozoki"" (""East Lookout"") which are used for ascetic training purposes by adherents to the Shugendo syncretic religion. As befits a sacred mountain, there are many legends concerning the peak."
    Mt. Sanjogatake (Mt. Omine) image
  • Nabekura Valley
    Travel / Tourism
    Nara Yamabe-gun Yamazoemura Oshio
    This valley is located at the foot of Mt. Kono in a prefectural nature park. The valley is 650 meters long and 25 meters wide on average. Boulders of various sizes made of a hard, black rock called gabbro fill the valley, looking like a veritable lava flow. In terms of both terrain and geology, the valley's scenery is extremely unusual. The valley is illuminated at night each year from early to mid-August, and visitors can take in the mysterious scenery this engenders.
  • Ryuo Ke Fuchi
    Travel / Tourism
    Nara Uda-shi
  • Muro Dam
    Travel / Tourism
    Nara Uda-shi Muro-ku Ono
  • Kurondoike
    Travel / Tourism
    Nara Pref. Ikomashi Takayamachou
  • Mt.Hakkyogadake
    Travel / Tourism
    Nara
  • Mt.Gyojagaeri
    Travel / Tourism
    Nara Yoshino-gun Tenkawamura
  • Mayoidaki
    Travel / Tourism
    Nara Pref. Gojoushi Otouchoushinohara
  • Mon Tani Notaki
    Travel / Tourism
    Nara Pref. Yoshinogunkamikitayamamura Shirakawa
  • Chihiro Taki
    Travel / Tourism
    Nara Yoshino-gun Kamikitayamamura Shirakawa
  • Kakuretaki
    Travel / Tourism
    Nara Pref. Yoshinogunkamikitayamamura Kawai
  • Surikodanisamataotaki
    Travel / Tourism
    Nara Pref. Yoshinogunshimokitayamamura Shimokuwahara
  • Surikodaniumataotaki
    Travel / Tourism
    Nara Pref. Yoshinogunshimokitayamamura Shimokuwahara
Nara
Nara City Ikaruga / Yamatokoriyama Asuka Kashihara Yamanobe Road / Sakurai Yoshino Tenkawa Village / Totsukawa Village Ikoma
Travel / Tourism Nature
Mountain Coast / Beach Waterfall Lake Plateau Valley Sea Island Cave Special Terrain River Pass Cape Wetland / Marshland Rock Whale Watching Peninsula Dune Other Natural Terrain

Nara Areas

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With a reputation almost as stellar as that of Kyoto, Nara is a must-visit for those searching for the remains of "traditional Japan." The largely green Nara city holds the majority of the prefecture’s treasures, such as the iconic Todai-ji Temple, in which a 15-meter tall Great Buddha sits, and Nara Park, where deer flock to befriend passersby. While mountains are by no means hard to come by in this area, for hiking with a reward, head to the Kii Mountains’ Yoshino district in spring, when the hillsides put on an impressive display of white and pink cherry blossoms.

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