Category
Mountain and Land
ActivitiesMountain and Land
Japan’s mountains and inland terrain hold the deepest well of outdoor activity on this site — hiking trails through century-old pilgrimage routes, cycling routes across the Japan Alps, campsites beside hot springs, and rivers still holding wild trout upstream of it all. Start with our complete guides to hiking, cycling, and camping in Japan for a full regional breakdown of where to go and when, or head straight to fly fishing if you’re chasing yamame and iwana in the headwaters. Beyond those, this section covers everything from technical rock and ice climbing to trail running and mountain biking across every region of the country, all searchable below.
Hiking
100 Famous Japanese Mountains: #64 Asahi-dake
It was the fourth day I had been traveling with Hiroshi Sakurai, who I had met while hitchhiking to Mt. Iide a few days before. I...
Hiking
The Bush Pig Meets The Sonic Surfer
There I was, sitting in a local coffee shop in Sapporo, face to face with this slight, long-haired, hippie-like Japanese guy spea...
Pera Pera Corner
Haikingu Ni Ikimashou!
Grab your backpack and throw on your hiking shoes! Haikingu ni ikimashou! (ハイキングに行きましょう！ Let’s go hiking!) Yes, it’ll be a leg-te...
Longboard Skateboarding
Dirtsurfer Madness
New boarding technologies always promise the same feeling as carving fresh powder or surfing. Most don't live up to the hype, but...
Hiking
100 Famous Japanese Mountains: #70 Tateyama
Right as I began to empty the contents of the tent bag on the ground, snowflakes started to come down with a flurry. “No, no, no”...
Trekking
Deep Into The Kurobe Gorge
Japan’s last secret alpine garden, the highland source of the Kurobe River, is surrounded by 2,500 to 3,000-meter peaks. Beautiful...
Hiking
100 Famous Japanese Mountains: #45 Kuro-dake and...
Although I have been known to be an ame-onna, a woman whose presence seems to bring rain, this time around the gods were taking c...
Cycling
Should I Stay or Should I Go?
Sitting inside the tent, we were in quite a pinch. We were starting to regret our decision to pitch the tent here, as it seem...