The National Parks of Kansai: From Mountain Trails Linking Holy Sites to Seascapes Both Rugged and Peaceful

Nakahechi on the Kumano Kodō. (Courtesy Wakayama Tourism Federation)

Mount Yoshino swathed in the pale pink blossoms of yamazakura, truly “a single glance encompassing a thousand trees.” (© Pixta)

Looking toward Busshōgatake, Mount Shichimen, Hakkyōgadake, and Mount Misen in the Ōmine Mountains. (© Pixta)

The 800-meter high Daijagura cliff at Ōdaigahara in autumn.

Tour boat and autumn foliage at Doro Gorge. (Courtesy Wakayama Tourism Federation)

Kumano Hongū Taisha, in Tanabe. (Courtesy Wakayama Tourism Federation)

Kumano Hayatama Taisha, in Shingū. (Courtesy Wakayama Tourism Federation)

The Kumano River was once a vital mode of transportation on the Kumano Kodō pilgrimage route. (Courtesy Wakayama Tourism Federation)

The Hashigui Rocks, a group of some 40 rock formations, off the coast in Kushimoto. (Courtesy Wakayama Tourism Federation)

Wind-driven ripples in the sand dunes form ever-changing patterns. (Courtesy Tottori Prefecture)

Multicolored rocks at Goshikihama. (© Pixta)

Shōtenkyō, sandwiched by the Sea of Japan on the left and on the right by Kumihama Bay, is a sandbar reminiscent of the more famous Amanohashidate. (© Pixta)

Overlooking rocky shoals from the cliffs at Hiyoriyama. The island with the pergola in the distance is the uninhabited Nochigashima, supposedly where Urashima Tarō, a character in a Japanese fairy tale, opened the forbidden jeweled box that instantly turned him into an old man. (Courtesy Hyōgo Tourism Bureau)

The Hasakari Rocks at Kirihama Beach were formed by the collapse of a cave roof that left the rock debris wedged between the cave walls. (Courtesy Hyōgo Tourism Bureau)

Sengan-Matsushima rock (center-left). The name comes from a story that a feudal lord promised to give one thousand kan (sengan) of silver to whoever succeeded in moving the pine—with rock attached—to his garden. (Courtesy Tottori Prefecture)

Camel rides await adventurous visitors at the Tottori sand dunes. (Courtesy Tottori Prefecture)

The dunes silhouetted at dusk, with isaribi in the distance. (Courtesy Tottori Prefecture)

The Naruto tidal whirlpools, which can be up to 30 meters wide, occur in the Naruto Strait between Awaji Island in Hyōgo Prefecture and Naruto in Tokushima Prefecture. (Courtesy Hyōgo Tourism Bureau)

Misaki-chō’s Sennan Satoumi Park is a mecca for water sports. (© Pixta)

Looking toward Tomogashima from the Miyama No. 1 Gun Battery lookout. (Courtesy Wakayama Tourism Federation)

The disused No. 3 Gun Battery on Tomogashima. (Courtesy Wakayama Tourism Federation)

The Akashi-Kaikyo Bridge at dusk. (Courtesy Hyōgo Tourism Bureau)

Narugashima, a 3-kilometer-long sandbar on the south-eastern side of Awaji Island. (© Pixta)