The 70 Kilometer Trail to Japan's Ancient Nachi Taisha Shrine | The Kumano Kodo Pilgrimage Part 3

Japan is often viewed in the west as a technological Powerhouse sprawling with densely packed cities that have a neon cyberpunk aesthetic but outside of the city limits Japan also offers beautiful natural scenery rugged but rewarding hiking and the quiet Tranquility of rural towns one of its most incredible experiences is the kumano Coto an ancient Trail dating back thousands of years which has been used as a spiritual pilgrimage Trail for monks Travelers Samurai and even royalty on the last two episodes of Adventure archives we traveled across Japan to hike this Trail braving some of the most grueling uphills muggy summer weather and even leeches but in return we were rewarded with Incredible sits of fantastic Wilderness awe inspiring shrines and plenty of Zen join us in the final part of our three-part special as we finish out the final two days of our hike where we experienced some of the hardest hiking on the trail yet as well as some of the most incredible wonders in the world we awoke A4 6 for our third day of hiking after getting our snacks and gear sorted out we headed out the door outside on overcast Sky Mr mountains and a light drizzle greeted us to keep ourselves cool in the summer weather we decided to try out hiking with umbrellas but before hitting the trail there was one more thing we had to do visit hongu TAA the grand Shrine found in this town and wouldn't you know the first thing that we encountered was a long set of stone stairs after the past 2 days of hiking up and down steep Mountain slopes it wasn't the most welcoming site but the hungu TAA Grand Shrine is one of the three grand shrines on the kumano Coto and a must SE for any hiker on this Trail we now entered the main grounds of the shrine which contained multiple structures including three Pavilions made of natural unfinished materials bronze caps accented the ornamentation of the roof of the shrine today they stood out even more starkly against dark rain soaked [Music] wood after paying our respects we wandered around the shrine complex took in the Serene scenery and collected another stamp but hiking up and down the stairs had brought to surface a nagging pain in Brian's knee somewhere during yesterday's hike I seem to have mildly injured my leg nevertheless we headed to the station where a bus would take us to the start of today's Trail here we could discuss our plan while [Music] waiting after some deliberation we decided it would be best if Brian sat out today's hike and took the bus to the next town yeah it's one thing just being tired and sore but I don't want anyone to get injured or or end up with an injury because of this stuff that is not what we're here for at the end of the day it just wasn't worth risking a chronic injury just to partake in a single day of hiking and so while we waited for the bus to pick us up we took one last look at the giant Tory gate in the rice fields nearby a white Heron and great blue heron search for food [Music] after a little while longer the bus arrived at the stop it was the last bus that went to the start of the trail now I would be splitting up with the others to give my knee some time to [Music] recover we set our farewells and boarded the bus from the hungu taam May bus stop we would take a short ride to the ukawa bus stop where we would would start our hike with the creu split up and the Rainy conditions we were all feeling a bit of apprehension about today's [Music] hike we arrived at our stop and disembarked outside the mountain scenery and fresh air helped to raise our Spirits a bit from the bus stop we had a short JT through the small rural town at the edge of town we came to our first distance marker of the day in our second stamp which denoted a nearby OG or small Shrine and then it was up a set of stairs and back into the mountains after the initial uphill surge the trail eased up and we started making quick progress along the [Music] kumoto we passed one distance marker after the other and were shocked at how rapidly we were covering distance on the trail thanks to the flat [Music] [Music] Terrain in the damp weather conditions we spotted a couple of mushrooms including something that looked like a Chantell but upon closer inspection of its gills may have been a poisonous lookalike on the ground I also spotted some sort of white amonita mushroom which might have been amonita virgines we passed by more distance markers which indicated that we had blazed through the first 2 km of the trail are we sure that these are just a half a kilm away from each other cuz we are booking it today looking it those flat trails are so good yeah and up ahead Andrew spotted another mushroom this looks like some sort of a white wood ear fungus kind of reminds me of a cauliflower mushroom back home but uh again I don't know the species out here that well but if I were to guess I guess that was an edible one we thought that maybe the rain would deter Le there was one on my sock just now I pulled it off and you could just see it wrangling around trying to grab something normally I'd be like I really want to enjoy the trail and see everything there is to see but today if we get done before noon I'll be perfectly happy you know as weird as it seems there's something I actually kind of enjoy about hiking in the rain when that's all you have to do like filming kind of sucks in it but when you're drenched anyway and you can just get in the Zen Zone and just keep moving it's not too bad we passed by another Trail marker and saw what looked like a giant clump of spit in the dirt I would guess some sort of like a spittle bug Nest but I'm not sure we continued through the rain now having hiked 3.5 km 47 good progress just incredible progress today we now entered a stand of Cedars whose branches carpeted the ground beneath as we walk you can smell the smell of the Pines just emanating from the needles now the trail descended into a flat area carpeted with veget these were the remains of the matsua tea house which stood here in the 1800s it's hard to find any runes I see a metal thing and a little broken teapot but everything else is covered in ferns so it says this whole flat area was linked to that flat area up there with that staircase there's some stone blocks here that might have been part of the tea house a little further on the trail were some stone tablets and another Trail marker dude unbelievable progress today this is crazy yeah this is the break we all needed for tomorrow's hi we continue through the foggy Forest where the trail now started ascending into a steeper [Music] incline up ahead we entered a hilly area filled with small Cascades of [Music] water after some more uphill we came to another Trail marker that one that one felt pretty long yeah that one felt substantial and just ahead was a marker denoting the high point of this Trail just next to the peak of Mount neoo we decided to take a snack break here so the Hostile dude gave us a bag of four yogurts four slices of bread and four bananas and then he was like there's peanut butter and jelly in the fridge feel free to use it and I was like okay I don't know why but right now PB&J sounds so unappealing to me you know what it does sound appealing mystery chips cuz I can't read uh Japanese [Music] here you're like banana ocelot I have never eaten a banana on this Trail before you you I don't think so [Music] you [Music] after our break we paid respects to the mountains then continued on our way up ahead Andrew spotted some vibrant red mushrooms sprouting from the soil whoa that was just on the ground yeah this one got knocked over I'm not 100% sure I think this might be a type of amonita species that doesn't have the specs on top I really don't know what these are but they're really vibrant and beautiful and you can see this comes from an egg or in micology terms of Volva so this would have been really small and it bursts out of this sort of egg area and in most amonitas that's what leaves the little Flex on the top it turns out these were amonita Caesars or Caesar's mushroom which is actually an edible species mushrooms stood all around us as we continued through the foggy forested mountains [Music] we pass by a modest waterfall and the path led us up a steep incline leading to a bright opening [Music] [Music] at the top we were treated with a breathtaking view of the Misty Hills surrounding us this is I I have to expect to see a Dr just flying through the Hills right now this is incredible this is the place to see the [Music] dragon the feeling of Zen that we had while standing in the light rain surrounded by mystical mountains was perfectly encapsulated by the small jizo statue that had been erected [Music] nearby [Music] now we continued on that was pretty much the high point right there we'll have to do a little uphill in a bit but it's uh kind of flat now and then we'll do a sharp Decline and head into the village I remember looking at that map in 43 is where the smooth coasting happens well it's been pretty smooth [Music] already as we continued along the trail we decided to try and check in with Brian to see how he was doing okay so we have really solid signal and Brian said that will'll easily get there before him and he also took the time to map out a route for us from ukawa bus stop to kuchi where we're going on all Trails so we can see exactly where we are thank you Brian was very helpful looks like we are just about halfway there maybe a little under thanks thank you Brian while the others had been hiking I was stuck in hongu waiting for the bus that could take me to the next town which wouldn't arrive for a long while all right well there they go it's point of no return so now I just got to figure out what I'm going to do for the next 5 hours yep to pass the time I explored the kumanu hongu Heritage Center which had a diagram of the old Grand Shrine before it had moved locations so in an effort to not waste this entire day um I'm going to go check out the giant Tor gate again and look around in the um inner areas that we kind of passed by last night CU we didn't really have much time let's go check it [Music] out the sounds out here in the countryside just absolutely so peaceful The Crickets the birds I could really see the appeal of coming to live out in the country in [Music] [Applause] Japan hiking past the giant Tate I came across a tukai or a wash basin which had a model of a three-legged Crow the symbol of the kumano Coto there was also a stone slab denoting the area as a world heritage site further in was an area to make make an [Music] offering I gave an offering to the shrine praying for Robbie Andrew and Thomas to have a safe safe hike today despite the sudden change in plans there was definitely an upside to having the time to really take in these sacred grounds so last night we were in a bit of a rush to beat the sunet so I didn't really get to enjoy the Serenity and the beauty of this area area really really [Music] calming in the meantime we continued along the trail at a good Pace 42 not much longer I'm really curious what these little side trails are for cuz it's not the kumano Coto I wonder if at one time there was like little area to rest for the pilgrimage or something interesting eventually the path led us to a Street crossing where the opening in the canopy LED in some bright [Music] light funny what a boost to your morale something like this is you know what else is 6.6 km oh baby that's like uh 3 or 4 miles of them on the forest floor ahead I spotted some small mushrooms now these little guys are in fact Chantels and the US there's a species called canellis minor I don't know if this is exactly that but on the underside you can see that these gills are not in fact gills but little wrinkly ridges and that's how you know that this is an edible species now of course especially in a foreign country you want to make sure you know for sure that something's edible before eating it but I'm 99% sure about this amid the leaf litter the small mushrooms popped up with their bright neon orange coloring one thing about the rain is the droplets will hit the leaves on the ground and make them bounce and every time I see that I think there's a leech waiting to grasp my ankle up ahead we came to a large pile of rocks in front of another gizo statue there a bodh uh bodh satva bodh satva a being that compassionately refrains from entering Nirvana In order to save others before moving on WE contributed our own small addition to the pile of rocks and then we came to a different kind of Trail marker all right we're coming up on a 5k now yeah you guys ready to that's 3 miles wow walk a 5k in the rain I'm ready down a mountain let's do it that's less than an hour right I for sure for sure less than that past the distance marker was a small Pavilion at the sight of the remains of the ishido Gia Tea House a granite poem Monument also stood here there was a vending machine up here get another coffee that' be great all right let's see if we can get Brian on the horn Brian will probably be like I wanted to save data I didn't need to talk to you guys video call to Brian did not go through but we can drag in in a bit but first some cookies P Co chips very good chip Le Hoy you know one nice thing about being the last person on every Trail is everybody's already gone from the rest stops by the time we get there this is pretty great these are milk Wafers with calcium kind of taste tastes like vanilla hopefully it'll strengthen the bones milk flavored for you have you guys found that sleep has been coming to you very easily every night yes under normal circumstances I could not have slept in that heat and then I think just the tiredness got knocked me out and then about like 4:00 a.m. I woke up I was like oo I'm kind of cold this has been a nice little easy hike I think this was like a much needed break for all of us going to get to that town early have a whole afternoon to just relax tomorrow maybe we get up really early cuz we'll all probably need a substantial amount of time to get up that hill yeah after chilling out for a bit we noticed Brian had at least received some of our text messages while we rested we collected another stamp we were about to head out but decided to give ourselves a little bit more time to relax given how much distance we had already covered this is the first real break I've taken on this entire Trail is that right yeah we stopped a little bit here to look at the views but never actually took our packs off to sit down on something yeah it's much needed yeah how long have we been here like 20 minutes maybe probably not long enough this feels very nice this is very peaceful trying to estimate how difficult tomorrow is going to be some of us have placed it as one of the hardest hikes we'll ever do then some of us are like H it's going to be tough but not that tough so we shall see I'm preparing mentally for the worst always prepare for the worst but I'm also going to try to be in this moment and enjoy the lack of suffering that I have now there's only now event it was time to move on we passed by the sign marking the ruins of this Tea House you know I got a theory we've been seeing these broken pots since we started this hike and we've been trying to figure out what they are do you think that they are teapots that people have broken to pay homage to the tea houses that were at a certain location that makes sense interestingly this location was known for its highquality wet stones used to sharpen knives as we hiked we noticed a change in the weather we hadn't been accustomed to I think this might be the first time this entire trip I felt a little chilly besides in the air conditioning yeah yesterday I was saying what does winter feel like I can't even fathom winter right now and this is just like the faintest hint of like maybe a little bit of chill it's so hard to grasp that what you're experiencing right now is all there is the pain and suffering you experience is temporary cuz it's like when it's cold and winry I have no idea what this stuff feels like and vice versa and when I'm going uphill I have noide idea what this sort of Trail feels like 38 I'm going to restack these rocks for Good Luck Good arms there we go [Applause] balanced we pass by more shrines with coins scattered around them through the trees we could see distant Misty Mountains as we hiked along the trail [Music] and further up was a sign of caution posted on a tree landslides can't occur it looks like something happened here Yik long as it isn't raining we should be good the path brought us up a short but Steep Hill at the top a hobble together sign informed us that we were 466 M from Sakura pass [Applause] before long we reached the pass with the corresponding po Monument we were now just 3.8 km or 2.3 mi from the town of kuchi so we've actually been hiking for 4 hours already and we've done a little under 6 miles and it's 1:00 now and the sun sets so early here that it already feels like we're kind of nearing the end of the day I guess we got started so early yesterday that it makes a little bit of sense that it already feels so [Music] [Applause] [Music] late in little time we were already at the next distance marker where the stone foundation of an old Tea House lay the tea house was used into the early 1900s in its place a covered rest area now sits nearby but we had had enough rest so we continued on through the pouring rain you know whoever has a adventure archives bingo card you should always put rain on your center block yeah that's the free space we passed by another Shrine and up ahead on the trail was a treacherous decline these rocks are very slick right now just have to step between [Music] them a kilometer and a half just about a mile so one of the detriment to wearing waterproof shoes is that when the water gets in from the top it can't escape out in a puddle well maybe not much there there it is oh y it's all in my socks my dad told me that one of his friends from France once said that American coffee tastes like sock juice anyone want to test somewhere not me the forest canopy opened up further down the trail exposing us to the bright but overcast Sky [Music] wow we came to another marker where I spotted something interesting so I just realized something is that we hiked Mount kumatori and right here this says small kumotori and then this is go which I just think means pass so small Cloud taking pass which I guess makes sense from the views that we've seen especially today right now when we're just walking through a rain cloud although today's hike had been relatively easy treacherous sections like this combined with the Rainy conditions reassured us that we had made the right decision to not bring Brian with us in his injured State as we hiked onward Andrew had one of his own observations about the writing on the signs I just realized that the do in Cotto is like the same as in jundo or in uh Judo and stuff it means way it's also the same character as the Dao in dosm in fact kumano Coto can be translated literally to Bare wild ancient Road and nearby Andrew noticed another mushroom yeah that's another one of those poisonous amonitas it's got a bunch of uh flaky speckle stuff on the cap and I imagine as it grows those will kind of spread out and look a little more like the Speckles on you know the the mushrooms you're used to seeing like Mario mushrooms yeah yeah except it's all white obviously that sort of color ation and pattern of pieces is usually a really good sign that that's going to kill you if you eat it the terrain kept changing and we are now at a flat almost Dam like path and there's just this swampy area here there's a like a tiny deer skull or something here whoa what is that if we hadn't been so close to town we might have taken the skull as an ominous portant but luckily the trail was flat and easy and we had even gotten an update from Brian and uh he's still doing okay at the bus stop Daryl said that dinner at this place is at a set time usually between 5: and 600 so hopefully well he should get there before then so we can all have dinner together up ahead was yet another Trail marker the last we would see before reaching civilization we at 30 which means the town is just around the corner hopefully I know the 29 is south of the town so we are at least less than a half kilometer by Far and Away the easiest day yeah despite the rain which is unfortunate because this is the one day I think Brian could have enjoyed the hike a little bit more that injury okay we have uh made it to the town it seems like some houses up ahead just got to slide down these treacherous wet Boulders first guys look at the river oh wow oh the river is Flowing the river at the other place was basically dry yeah that's I wonder what it looks like now yeah interesting use these roofing tiles as a little curb oh the moment you step out of the forest you can feel that heat without question one of my favorite things in hiking ever is that threshold between the trail in Civilization oh it's just like one of the best feelings yeah yeah look at this little Overlook pain wow that's just straight out of a painting we were met with a palpable feeling of relaxation upon entering this area a cool shelter hot showers and a warm meal were waiting for us at tonight's Inn but these small towns were still rustic enough affording us both the relief of civilization without being too far removed from the beauty of the surrounding Wilderness as we meandered through the town we realized our destination was a bit further from our grasp than we realized so our Inn is still 1 km away actually but we're in the town it feels like it doesn't count at this point it's paved we crossed a long bridge that spanned over the aagi river we pause to take in the view before moving on across the river was a small rest area we took a moment to get our bearings little town map here and a vending machine so we still have a kilometer yep down this way this is not the town that we're staying okay well if it's another kilometer I'm going to use the bathroom real quick before heading to the bathroom I collected a stamp from a nearby kiosk since we still had plenty of time before we had to get to the in we decided to sit and rest under the shelter area nearby and enjoy some Vending Machine drinks cheers Kai all right this one's for you Brian I'm not pouring it out on the floor I'm pouring it in my mou aloe and white grape I like the aloe chunks 5 hours 42 minutes 8.3 miles not too shabby still kind of a long day for us but only by our normal standards [Music] MH from beneath the small Pavilion we took in the mountain scenery surrounding Us in the distance a pair of black kites ped to top a utility [Music] pole [Music] as we rested our eyes fixated on the nearby Kaz bus stop and we wondered how Brian was doing okay I'm on the bus that goes to K bus station and from there I'm going to have to transfer another bus that takes me to kuchi station and in kuchi is where I'm going to rendevu with Andrew Robie and Thomas it's been a long day um but all things considered I cannot complain obviously I think it was good to have a rest day I think it'll help me uh be more prepared for tomorrow's hike the final hike and I'm looking forward to meeting up with you guys the bus now left the town of hongu passing by the entrance to the Grand shrine the first bus arrived at its destination a small town several miles Northeast of where the rest of the crew was now [Music] waiting just got off the bus at Karu bus stop and I'm going to wait here for 30 minutes now but these Misty Mountains are just an absolutely gorgeous site just iconic Japanese landscape [Music] unbelievable meanwhile I had just finished using the nearby restroom okay I got to show how nice these bathrooms are look at [Music] this great clean bathroom here there are no trash cans and everybody has been respectful and not thrown trash everywhere in here well stocked with toilet paper even got extra rolls and then here we have like the full full toilet you even got the butt the soft and the bedet I don't know the difference exactly but it is appreciated with more time to kill we chatted a bit about how our memories of recent trips are paradoxically less clear than the trips from our youth in 2009 I can remember every little thing that we did I can remember every stop I can remember every Hotel almost what we had for dinner every day yesterday I saw something I said this is so cool I want to remember this but I know I'm not going to remember it and I can't remember what it was yeah a lot of these earlier memories because it was so fresh and so new it's like you're viewing it through that childlike sense of wonder yeah you know how when people are in a sense of danger time slows down and every detail is like they remember it it's the same type of thing because if you didn't know what you were already doing this would be a very like nervous situation and because it's such a nervous situation you remember every single detailing like I remember the way it tasted smelled looked everything you get that experience and then you're just kind of like you know what to expect yeah and it's the same thing with everything in life it feels like it's been a slow burn too because 2009 seems so vivid yosity seem so vivid and then ever since then it's just kind of been a little less and a little less there is a sense where we've seen mountains so many times that it's not as new and fresh but I also do think there's factors with this Trail where we're just zoned in on getting to the next point cuz we have to by a certain time that might be taken away from that sense but in general I I do think a lot of life is chasing that original like pie of life where when you're a kid even the next neighborhood over seems like a completely new realm yeah and international travel I feel like is often a way to get that sense even though you're doing the same things like you're eating and drinking and stuff it's in such a drastically different environment that it feels completely fresh we want to be surprised and we also hate being surprised yeah yeah you're trying to find that accidental surprise while you think you're in control yeah those are the ones that you really the juiciest it's that middle path yeah yeah if everything goes according to plan it's like being spoiled on your life experience yeah yeah yeah somebody gave you a spoiler and was like and you're like oh I already knew what was going to happen I guess the question then is where is that balance and how do you find it you just keep doing things until you stumble upon it I think that's all it is probably and you you try not to kill each other in the process this a good moment though okay now our pre-arranged mutually benefit get into this oh yeah oh yeah oh that's no don't squeeze oh you don't want yeah you got to like okay I like squeezing yeah there you go yeah what we'll do is we'll do this first and then we'll turn around and then we'll do the other direction uh this is true Zen yeah do like do do presses like that yeah tell me what you like yeah just that's kind of flat fingers you know not like with your tips but yeah oh yeah and Andrew you need to tell yeah whatever you're the squeezing is good for me maybe a little less rhythmic I can really squeeze if you want me to that's still rhythmic not that much sque hold I'm getting distracted by his extra hard squeezing he says he likes to squee started doing syncopated jazz on my shoulder he's like okay after our synchronized massage train we decided to finally get up and make our way to the end as we hiked we took an a myriad of strange little details when you're in a foreign land you really do start experiencing life through new eyes again everything is so fresh and so different that even the tiniest things seem wondrous yet again as though you're a child experiencing life for for the first time eventually we found ourselves on a path that led off the road and strangely enough through the back Gardens of some residential homes by the river the sign pointed us this way this doesn't really seem like the trail this seems like somebody's backyard the paved path that we were following turned into a stone staircase that led to a cemetery this looks equally uphill it's a nice peaceful Cemetery though the sign said that this is the kamano Coto I think this is right no but it said it was to the going oh on Google Maps there's a path that goes up to but it looks like it gets back to the road yeah this is a long way okay let's just take the road take the road okay we were about to turn back and take the main road but a man tending to his garden told us we could take this way to get to the Inn okay this dude said that this is the way and there is a path this might be the same path the cemetery I think it just leads back to the road but I'm not sure but if this was the right path it had definitely not been traveled much it was pretty overgrown with vegetation and compared to most of the trail it wasn't very maintained eventually after some more strenuous uphill we came to a sign that confirmed we were on the right path dang still over half a kilometer away well now I'm glad we took such a long rest I thought it wasn't worth it but man wow there's the tunnel I think we're going over the mountain the tunnel goes through oh there are some shrines here you got as we descended the hill we passed by a small cemetery and the patch of woods opened up into kuchi the next town over in the distance we could see our Inn which was in a repurposed School building it is on an island you see what do you think that maze is over there I don't know oh W do you think we can squeeze in a lunch and a dinner today although we were now in an open part of the town there were multiple paths and it wasn't quite clear which one we should take to get to the end either way as we confusedly hiked around I spotted a grasshopper in a bush grasshopper here it's a big grasshopper I'm just going to pick a direction we just stay as a group that way if we're going the wrong way we all go the wrong way I think it's just around there there were some arrows drawn on an old building that indicated we were going the right way but this part of the trail still felt off literally just through someone's yard eventually we found our way onto the streets leading to the Inn as it turns out we could have just continued following the road and passed through the tunnel we had seen earlier for a much more direct route to the in yep to the Koto is right where we're supposed to be I think our Trail for tomorrow is going to be that way and I think we're going to the lodging area right over here this water is Flowing today that wouldn't swim in that no let's get off this bridge this bridge has low railings it's kind of nerve-wracking okay so Daryl was telling us this used to be a school and they converted it into a guest house my understanding was that it was the only guest house here but on the map there's actually another one listed so I'm not entirely sure but this one looks quite big and I guess has space for everybody we got a little stage going up oh yeah wow okay we're going to go check in and uh we'll check back in after that hopefully Brian can actually find this place that wasn't the easiest to get to finally we had found refuge in the Inn we got checked in eager to get to our [Music] rooms we were LED through the dining area to a pair of rooms in the back know do we each get our own these both rooms 12 and 13 oh my beautiful I'm going to change into that robe hanging on the wall immediately was there a robe yeah looks like we get dry clothes nice towels how do you feel about uh so much better this place compared to last so much better we've got our own rooms this is exactly exactly what we need for the big hike [Music] tomorrow after hanging up our clothes to dry we changed into the robes provided by the in it was absolutely refreshing to be in clean dry clothes oh man I didn't even shower yet but I already feel so much better yeah now we're now we're riding in style as the others got settled in I was on the bus to kuchi eager to join back up with the crew once he was near I waited for Brian outside the inn and spotted him making his way over you guys uh beasted that trail yeah was uh by far the easiest day yeah I looked up like that particular section on all trails and when you don't squish everything down it looks a lot more manageable good news is the rooms are super nice wow look at that that's awesome oh here comes Andrew this is what Andrews needed for like three years to complete his look now I am now I'm ready for anything G to just start speaking Japanese to you thinking that you speak Japanese how was it I mean it was what can I say right here's how I will brighten the narrative is the hike was easy enough that you shouldn't feel like you missed out but there were some slick wet rocks that could have caused some bad inj rain the whole time for you guys uh I don't know or was it really light at some point it stopped raining where I was for a good is a personal bathroom yeah and ours too yeah yeah well clearly an old school is the perfect building to turn into a guest house they got this whole dining area too yeah going to close this you need your close the yeah you close either okay maybe two layers of security there's laundry machines and dryers the shower is a group shower with a big bath so you can shower up and sit in the bath all of the rooms are next to each other except for ours like for some reason we got the cool private wing we got lucky next to the cafeteria it turns out the AC is 100 yen for one day that's 70 cents yeah that's nothing got this 100 yen coin ready to get this party started after cooling off in our rooms we stepped out into the dining area where food was being prepared and made our way to the bath okay this is the bath right here best little communal bath right here and then you can get in the shower right there oh yeah we are definitely using that I'm ready how is that oh it's fantastic I didn't think that being warm would actually be a good thing we're going to have to censor this oh yeah oh yeah who would have thought a hot F feels so good I guess today was a bit of a cooler day yeah yeah it cooler day Sate muscles oh man this is some great levels of reprieve man that shower was great but could stay in that hot tub too longer I've had enough of hot and wet for one week now that we were clean it was time to do a load of laundry all right laundry I guess it is good to wash these so that you can uh they don't stink oh yeah well this is exactly what we needed yeah after 3 days of hiking in wet muggy conditions showers fresh clothes and relaxation were just what the doctor ordered everything about this Inn just tells me this is exactly what we needed right before tomorrow yeah how's your knee feeling well it's hard to tell when I go because it's when I go up and downstairs it was pretty sore or whatever earlier when I got on the bus I'm sure it'll be fine by tomorrow we are thankful to have had such a nice place to freshen up before tomorrow's big hike which was looking to be one of the hardest sections yet but until then we took in the Serene Ambiance of the inn and tried to stay in the present [Music] moment [Music] okay me and Thomas are going to go get groceries because they close at 6:00 we want to be back before dinner and they will be closed by the time we're on the trail well around then this is uh heck of a place we really are on an island we are yeah we headed over to The Rustic grocery store that was in town after we were done shopping we heard a strange sound in the [Applause] [Music] distance just now there was some sort of jingle coming from I think the school building it sounds kind of like a an old school bell or jingle to announce that class is starting not sure what it's trying to signify though I know dinner is soon but I don't think it's yet that might be our dinner B I think that's possible no it's 5:00 I know dinner's from 5:00 to 600 don't they have like community centers here where they just let people know these are the events that happen these are maybe I don't know time like when we I wish Daryl were here man that Raging Water that's raging I wonder how high that River gets because feel like this school is not that much higher up so in other news we're talking with Daryl which by the way if we haven't mentioned it Daryl has been an absolute godsend even from afar he's still communicating with us helping us plan things out day by day so that's been really great but breakfast tomorrow here starts at 6:00 a.m. so if we don't want to miss that we'd have to stay and eat that and then head out after we were kind of thinking of leaving even before that just to get a really early start so we have lots of time allotted at least for that first uphill which is 4 km I would love to a lot at least 1 hour per kilometer just to play it on the safe side because we have to then catch a bus and then get to our train on time at the end of the hike Daryl thinks that uh we'll be fine but you know we'll see if we do decide to leave early though uh we might want to consider getting some breakfast at the grocery store and Robbie and Thomas are there right now doing that and moments later we were back at the in grocy stor ship was was successful moderately I got ice cream which is one of the perks of going with Robbie cuz he buys you ice cream I'm going to eat these Zoo cookies so they just announced on the speakers in our rooms that dinner is ready yeah that was weird was like dinner is ready smells really good smells incredible [Music] actually [Music] our dinner looked absolutely amazing and the dining hall was filled with chatter and activity we took it all in and grab some beer to enjoy some saporo beer that Black Label that's the fancy one I [Music] think are you ready for dinner Thomas son I am so ready for dinner one of us looks at home in this Rob one of us like cultural [Music] appropr we had an amazing spread for dinner miso soup tempura roast beef pickled cucumbers migiri Sushi fruit um pickles and of course [Music] rice you give about so much stuff this is plenty of food yeah we dug in trying each dish up first with the skewers of deep fried tastiness shrimp Tora next we sample the tender slices of roast beef oh it's got a nice sweet Jammy sauce really good I am in a totally different Cloud right now I feel like today was just a continuation of yesterday and this is the first break that we really have had is this is what I call a substantial meal like I I was not expecting something this great so good totally unearned but still happy to have it never disappoints [Music] that's better than pretty much all the sushi I've Had State Side that's crazy we continued chatting and enjoying our generous meal into the evening and after all the hiking none of us had anything left in our bowls that was an amazing dinner cheers to that after dinner we retired to our rooms to sort through our laundry and plan out tomorrow's hike in detail so in order to to make sure we're pacing oursel well I think we should pre-plan our breaks so I'm looking at the map we got this huge uphill tomorrow first break that should happen should be at the first Plateau oh that Plateau is about um maybe 3.4 miles so that might be enough of a break for me if you guys are think you'll be fine yeah then halfway up the mountain again we take another 10-minute break and then last break we take is at the top of the mountain another 10-minute Break by the time we get to the down Hills will have a good idea of our pacing well for sure no breakfast tomorrow nobody even likes eating breakfast in the morning anyway right I'm good well Thomas is shedding a tear so get up at 5: out the door at 5:30 getting out at 5 o' is not going to happen I know you guys too well I know myself yeah and let's make sure all our stuff is basically completely patched yeah yeah everything should be done tonight get your poops out tonight to go to sleep it's 5:00 a.m. I don't want to hike I slept like the most peaceful rock that has fallen down the kumoo doesn't sound peaceful it's true it doesn't sound I slept like a leech that found Robbie's [Music] thigh ready actually this is the worst morning of all the mornings we've had previously I've been like oh this not too bad this is it though maybe I psyched myself up too much for this uphill yeah I might have too but man tomorrow we're going to be at at an onen we're going to sleep in and then we're going to do one thing that involves minimal walking and moving [Music] got we made our way out of the school and into the cool Dawn air before leaving we took one last look at the end our rooms were uh right over there cafeteria is right there main office and then there was rooms all the way lined down there and the showers are like right there and actually that little offshoot is the one but now it was time to leave the sanctuary of the inn and head out into the [Music] mountains on our way off the grounds of the Inn we passed by the akagi river which was still raging rapidly from the previous day's rainfall our anxiety about the start of today's hike was briefly quelled by the picturesque rural scenery around us we crossed the river then navigated the town's nrow streets on our way to the trail [Music] even in a remote rural area small towns retain a uniquely Japanese quality with their narrow Alleyways and overall aesthetic we crossed over another section of the river where we found a small rest area and our first distance marker of the day this time we were counting down to zero with the staircase it begins but before starting our hike I grabbed some coffee and Robbie dabbed another stamp and then the ascent [Music] began the path led us to the outskirts of the Town set higher on the hillsides ushering US up steep Stone [Music] staircases after a short bit of hiking it had already felt like we had gained a massive amount of elevation but with 800 M or about a half mile in elevation we had a long way left to go we passed by an old littered Hearth and in the distance we saw a tall damn structure the trail now led into the forest where the bulk of our grueling climb through the mountains would take place and already we were feeling the burn so far I would say we were right to be wary of this uphill I'm not even going to bother looking at the distance for a good while here cuz it's three miles three miles uphill that's a long way we now entered another section of Trail covered in fragrant Cedar branches it had been a long hike already but we had only just reached the first half kilm marker the woods teamed with life and we saw this flat-backed millipede that had an interesting blue [Music] coloration we trudged up an exhausting set of stone stairs and saw some symbols carved into a rock the three symbols from left to right AR Kanon yakushi and amida the bodh of Mercy medicine Buddha of healing Buddha of compassion and wisdom all three of those are what I need right [Music] now the unending moss covered stairs were unforgivingly steep to give you an idea of the steepness this is straightforward right here it is sweltering out here today proof that I can sweat actual Sweat Beads gross all [Music] [Music] right we now passed the second distance marker and soon after came to the first PL plau in the huge uphill feel like there's some metaphor to be had with that steep uphill followed by this easy flat part followed by more steep uphill I don't know what it is though it's a 617 we may have just been finishing breakfast at this point but we get that first legga uphill out of the way already so first third we've done one kilometer you all right yep woo sure yeah let me just take a moment to heal my uh butt I'm fine well those slippery rocks are really annoying but we've done our first kilometer in under an hour at least let's stop saying that cuz everyone keeps hurting themselves when we say that from that one fall my tailbone achd with pain every time I took a step uphill but we had no choice but to continue on and we made quick work of the flat section hiking our second kilm much more quickly than our first naisan 12.4 km we've done 2.1 since kuchi rest anyone I say keep going what do you guys think quick bite to eat I can keep going but I'll go with the group majority he let's keep going keep going we now entered a foggy section of the forest where birds chirped all around us is this some sort of Tea House room P or something I know what that's [Music] about before long our precious flat Trail veered upward into the foggy void it was back to the uphill climb for [Music] us yeah I thought that was the trail and then I saw this I had that same thought Buddha why have you forsaken us all right so far we have hiked for 1 hour 1.56 Mi which is halfway up to the top of this uh brutal uphill which is very good we should feel good about that yeah if it had been like a smooth uphill or just stairs one or the other it would have made sense but they somehow found like the worst in between a smooth uphill full of big [Music] rocks up ahead we approached the kusu nobo lodge remains I'm guessing these flat areas are where the lodgings used to be if it was as forested back then or if it was more like the towns we have been going [Music] through we continued on meditatively focusing on simply moving forward step by [Music] [Music] step that's 1 and a 12 km to the top of this big part it doesn't get super easy from there but and that just means about one mile less under a mile I'll take it so yeah yeah I'll take it we got some little muffins that we bought at the grocery store yesterday that I'm using as my reward for getting to the top just like I'm eat those muffins feels a bit cooler up here I don't know if it's cuz we're in a place that's funneling the wind or we're higher in elevation or if this trickling water is somehow cooling the place but it's a great Breeze right now yeah a great Breeze further up we came to some pools of flowing [Music] water if you were one to believe in healing water this would be healing water right here that's a nice cool water we had hiked about 3 km now and had 1.8 km remaining this would be the final stretch of the brutal [Music] uphill as we climbed the sun broke through the clouds its bright light bringing hope to us in our most desperate time of need wow it feels so good up here there's a breeze sun's coming out truly [Music] incredible absolutely Relentless Relentless uphill this is on par with any mountain we've done I think it's like 2,800 ft in 3 miles which is very steep this is like the pathway to heaven or something it was easy to fall into an almost trans-like State as we climbed on the Endless Sea of towering Cedars the Heavenly morning lights and the unrelenting uphill perfectly captured the sense of struggle and serenity found in a meditative [Music] state it does feel like this is the passage to some other realm we say that a lot but this time I really mean [Music] it with that mile marker I think this is actually the final stretch of the big uphill and uh taking a quick snack break there is not just sweat dripping off of me there's sweat pouring off of me this is not persperation this is precipitation Brian and Andrew are down there Thomas is way up there we've all just become pretty much silent and just putting one step in front of the other is all we can focus [Music] on with every step I'm more and more glad that we got an early start today we're going to need all the time we can get anytime you think there might be hope of an end or a flat section you get to the top of a little Hill and you see even more stairs this is the most Relentless uphill we've done we we passed by another distance marker and saw a colorful Toad Lily growing from the forest [Music] floor a misty Haze rolled through the cedar trees giving the forest an ethereal [Music] aura we all advanced uphill at our own pace gradually getting separated from each other as we climbed I just caught a glimpse of Thomas he's like an apparition in the forest he's like a time trial ghost and I'm steadily making progress towards oh my goodness oh it's flattened out Tommy Boy Tommy that was maybe the longest uphill of my life there's a little marker up ahead I don't see Thomas though I would have thought he would have stopped here Thomas whoop whoop nothing maybe Thomas knows something I don't and it's not the end of the uphill yet yeah there's some more uphill up here but who knows how long this is going to last moss and lyen covered everything in this part of the forest as though emphasizing how ancient this Trail [Music] was once again the trail had given us false hope and presented us with yet another steep incline but we climbed on and at the crest of the hill we finally found Nirvana that was the most religious experience I've had in a long time as the great poet said this route is very rough and difficult it is impossible i to describe precisely how tough it is somebody from 12:01 had the same thoughts as us I think we've earned a well-deserved snack I'm actually cold I think that means you need a little breakfast I think you're right boy do I have a breakfast for us it says delicious cake lemon cake on the front oh I'll take it seven out of 10 yeah say maybe a six for me put it in like this is the driest give me a give me a popey's biscuit instead that's a little moisture oh this was supposed to be my reward oh man too funny it's still pretty good how are they doing I left them behind at some point some actual flat ground and there's the first poem Stone so I think where we are pretty much close to the top we right at the top I waited a bit for Brian to join me before continuing on is that flat feel on your feet it's more a mental relief than it is physical relief that was a real test of faith go up that hill and keep looking up and seeing more and more and more and try not to lose faith that might have been the hardest uphill we've ever done it was definitely the hardest uphill we've ever done and I would be fine never doing that again in my life One path to Enlightenment is enough for me they they literally were just like all right you know what just you're going to go straight up the mountain4 miles just straight up constant I don't know about you when we were going up that I had so many false summits I go and I go and I go and I say oh there's a flat spot up ahead I can just see it and turns around I get there and it's like a maybe 10 ft of a flat spot and then another straight climb up after that and you going to go again and you're like oh another flat spot you're like no there's still about another 200 ft higher I have to climb but it was a really good almost like meditation and like we'll let you know when you're done you just keep walking until we tell you to do you know why I didn't have that that experience no cuz you were ahead of me and I knew if I didn't see you we were not at the top yet I will say it's a lot easier for me to go up than it is for me to go down though well I got bad news for you then right welcome that was the most Relentless uphill we've ever done but was it very rough and difficult and impossible to describe precisely how tough it is I think I have walked the eight-fold path I'm ready for the ninth one are we in heaven yep it's time to go to hell over there okay bust out those muffins so we can oh yeah how disappointing they are so disappointing take small bites otherwise we'll chill oh milk is better the lemon flavor is good let me try the milk they're about the same texture yeah just the flavor is a little better well timing wives were right on the money I think I can just imagine everybody eating breakfast getting started on this hill right now because I just did it isn't it weird how it's just done now I mean that part I wrote a little haou false ends May steal Joy focus on what lies in front soon will our joy come our joy it has come in the dirt nearby we saw some brightly colored spindle fungi though the large uph until was done we still had 10 km or 6 M left to [Music] hike the downhills are pretty steep too yeah this is this is just as bad going up this way still glad we're going down instead of up oh yeah the rough Rocky terrain mixed with the slick mud made the downhill that much more difficult to navigate but all around us were beautiful cultural and natural [Music] scenes [Music] we came to another poem monument and Trail sign just ahead was a flat concrete bridge which led to a small pocket of open space that had the feeling of a Japanese [Music] garden now we entered another section of Cedars which also greeted us with an uphill albe at a much more manageable [Music] one though we were no longer going uphill it felt like it had taken a while to get to the next distance marker but soon after that we seem to be picking up the pace this marker felt like it showed up way quicker I just saw that one careful here with the wet rocks the terrain around us kept subtly changing here the moss covered Boulders and stone slabs almost felt like Decor in an overgrown [Music] Courtyard and of course the trail presented us with even more uphill yo this is straight up part two this is exactly the same this the beginning of today this the last really hard one Thomas what's it look like up there yeah at least these uphills do [Music] relent we came to the top of the uphill ishikuro pass where we saw another poem monument at top of the monument someone had placed a single Stone and nearby was a jel statue covered in Moss well let's take a decent little break at this jizo Gia te house they got a toilet there maybe vending machines if we're lucky from the past we descended down a hillside that seemed to have been demolished by a landslide leaving behind a rocky muddy mess this section is extremely [Music] treacherous yeah unfortunately this is not the time to let your guard down cuz even though it's downhill man it's so slick it's either Moss water or both we continue down passing another distance marker which was built in a different style for whatever reason our progress had been fairly slow thanks to the constant difficulty of the trail it's hard to say what the most difficult hike we've done is I don't think that this one is the most physically demanding but the time constraints combined with some of the intense uphills and the conditions like the Heat and the rain this is certainly in the top five thankfully though the trail was finally easing up on us there you go at this Pavilion we collected a stamp representing the jiza Gaia Tea House remains then we explored a nearby mountain hut style building built in the early 2000s this welcoming rest area for passing hikers was made of cedar and constructed in the style of the original tea houses along the trail first thing that hits you when you walk in is that very Woody smell There's an actual Kitchen in here meanwhile Andrew and I were just finishing up the treacherous section of downhill with my knee situation I was taking extra care along the Slick rocks thank God that's done hopefully we can get back to a more normal trail that might have been the worst downhill we've ever done we joined the others at the rest area ready to take a much needed break welcome welcome I'm about to indulge in this Dao vending machine same man we went through the most rugged Wilderness and now we're on a paved road with vending machines what is this what is Japan we took a moment to relax and take in the calming natural scenery surrounding us some nokki snow Bo ferns Grew From the top of the rest area and Asiatic Day flowers grew beneath the vending machine well cheers everyone cheers by I got some sort of peach drink mine looks like apples mangoes and orange is I am just in love with this little black coffee they're so cold they taste so good try oh yeah sure try this this like syrup these ones yeah oh that's good do we make the right choice yes anything cold and liquid right now is the right choice that hike would have been a lot easier had it not been as wet as it was yeah you could have just walked down that mountain the Slick rocks yeah we got more than half left right we have like 8 km left have a little more than half left it's still pretty flat we haven't hit the downhill yet we got a little bit of uphill but it's not like we're doing that uphill again that big uphill right yeah we got one more F you uphill and then it's downhill the whole way yeah but downhill is not necessarily fast either how long do you want to stay here cuz we've been here for 15 minutes not much longer yeah you've been here for 15 minutes but yeah I'm [Music] fine after our break we paid our respects at the nearby [Music] Shrine so we did all this nonsense right here so we got all that thing here yep I don't think the scale accurately represents what it felt like most definitely [Music] not so that was actually the first time that I actually timed one of our stays at a rest area and that was was just about 22 minutes from the time I got there and it did not feel that long so I can imagine that we stay at those rest areas much longer than what we realize throughout the trip good rejuvenator though this portion of the trail followed a smooth paved Road in the woods nearby we saw an older Shrine nestled behind the trees as we hiked we noticed some sections of the road were wet a a bit further ahead we passed by some small Cascades of water you guys noticed how crystal clear the water is I almost wish we had our water filter could try it out man it's probably so refreshing just Ice Cold Mountain Water I bet Upstream you could even just drink some of it straight just wouldn't risk it on this long [Music] hike this road is so well paved and the line is painted so clearly but then you get parts where it's just overgrown with moss weird how the road can feel feel so new and yet so old at the same time this whole place is a place of like contradictory dichotomies we are walking almost from one end of Japan to the other it's like a little Peninsula as you said but we mapped it out before on Google Maps and you look at it you're like wow that really does go across like from coast to coast we're not going quite Coast to Coast but this is what it feels like to really travel across the planet you know and I mean all the variety we've seen this feels the most like some sort of Journey or Adventure out of any of our trips I think it also makes everything feel very tangible if you're taking a train or a car you don't pay attention to every detail but this you get to know every step and one of those details we noticed was a little Japanese Firebelly n traveling by foot also meant that we noticed the subtle shifts in the weather so I'm looking at the sky I'm feeling the wind and I took a look at the weather and we've got a 30% chance of rain at 11:00 which is in 45 minutes and that is going to continue to be a 40% chance of rain until 9: I hope you enjoyed the morning cuz we're in for some rain and just as we mentioned the rain we passed by a section of the road that had been washed out by a landslide W that's bit disconcerting but on the plus side we passed by another distance marker only 7 km what that's like 4 miles 7.5 back to where we started so we're more than we've done about a kilom in change on the road I think this this uh whole road is supposed to be like a [Music] mile a car had passed by us just as the path led us off the road and back into the [Music] forest here an underst story of Sasa bamboo grew amid a winding reveal let and triangular Stones pointed our way [Music] forward we emerged from the forest and the trail crossed another Street we were getting ever closer but our journey still had challenges ahead what there's more yeah that wasn't the last of up pill no one more big one we're entering the section right before the Abode of the Dead I understand the now a white Mist rolled through the area as we navigated through the forest just as we approached the next distance marker the wind suddenly picked up 6 km I'm resigning myself to rain right now I feel like getting the umbrella out now it's probably a good idea we got our backpack covers on and had our umbrellas standing by for the imminent rain we followed the trail through the fog and up some Stone steps that took us to the crest of a small hill just past the top of the hill was a small jizo Shrine we just went through this hill that was carved out by someone through this into the foggiest clearing I've ever been in just to see a handmade Tor and a shrine with two trees behind us right there regardless of where your faith is you can clearly see that this is like a sacred ground right [Music] [Music] here [Music] the path led us out of the forest for a brief moment where we saw another distance marker so I want to be respectful I think this area here is a boat of the Dead on the map it wasn't very clear where it was there's no stamp or anything like it just the overall area just kind of makes you want to stay quiet here we now followed the street for a short while taking in the spectral atmosphere around us the path now guided us back into the [Music] forest it's amazing how quickly going uphill will make everybody extremely quiet I think what's most stunning of all is how quiet the environment is there's no birds no cicas nothing except the the rustling of the leaves and the wind the wind started to pick up again and the thick air of around us was wet with moisture it's definitely raining now I mean it's so hard to tell when you're in a cloud like ow Jesus why has the [Music] for never mind who cares what I I don't even know if I'm going to bother with a rain jacket the rain jacket will just make me sweat even more yeah no point we're already soaked just ahead we had passed another distance marker all right so was that the end of the uphill yes that is the end of the last major uphill from now on it's just going to be little chunks and then downhill this is one of those moments where you just remember that you're alive because you have no choice but to take in all the sensory [Music] experiences we continue downhill passing by a small Shrine and another marker that's the ninth Milestone so now we are in the single digits baby it doesn't feel like we're that [Music] close at the top of a small incline we passed by another Trail sign near the funami Gia tea house this is kind of unreal this is definitively where the downhill starts I'm gonna go up and take a look at the Tea House take a [Music] look if we had the time this would be a great little lunch spot and if we had sunny weather that'd be a great [Music] View we now made our descent down a steep Stony path we passed by what looked like an electrical insulator from an old power line and another distance marker all the while the rain fell harder and harder man this is pretty sucky it's cold wet and windy it feels like we're walking through a typhoon that could be what is happening right now in fact a tropical storm was just about to hit Japan on that same day we kept on and we could now see a road running parallel to our Trail the rain continued falling and with it fell the temperature I didn't think there'd be any moments where I'd be cold on this trip few minutes ago that was actually kind of chilly that's the only reason I'm wearing this rain coat cuz it's not protecting me from being wet but a tank top is not the thing to wear in this weather wow so that's 3 km right yep distance is relative when it's flat it's just the further we hiked the more it felt like we were stepping into another realm it feels like we are stranded on the middle of a tall tall Foggy Mountain in the rain we got a rest area in 1.4 km it has been quite a while since we took a break so I think we are definitely going to have some lunch over there 2.5 km the trail continued winding right along the road the tempestuous weather continued on as we neared the final stretch of our journey Thomas has entered his final form he's often Never Never Land whenever we're like less than 2 miles from the end of the hike he's like just flies all the way to the end gets on the earliest bus to go home we see a note on the trail made of sticks that's like went back to Tokyo went back to United States although we were on the final 2 km we were all worn down and another sudden uphill definitely had Brian feeling dejected as he dragged his hiking poles behind him this Trail has beaten us to our Whits End actually I was going to say every time I take a step the tailbone that I landed on kind of hurts a little bit in this last stretch the wind and the rain the Relentless struggle and The Surreal Mountain views reminded me of our time spent split up in the Smoky Mountains all those years ago [Music] we continued hiking and the end of our journey was Upon Us 1 and a 12 km left it's time to get excited you know the other thing about having extra time is we can then go into a bathroom and change into some dry clothes M instead of being like this on the bus good [Music] point such a different feel today because the last couple of days we've constantly had hikers pass us this time I think we've seen a total of six people it's been a very lonely mysterious ethereal hike yeah it's it feels like a very quiet pensive sort of day for reflecting I think I see the rest stop up head Thomas is already there he texted us a few minutes ago not a moment too soon [Music] okay w wow this is surreal it is one of the most famous and most difficult [Music] sections wow that's a lot of walking [Music] aren't you glad you're not seeing these with a thought that you have to go up there let's get to that shelter [Music] yeah we were now at the entrance of Nai kogan Park where we met up with Thomas I am willing to bet you that I can show you the best view of your life go to that shelter over there and sit and just look out [Music] we settled in the shelter to take in the amazing views around us enjoy some well-deserved snacks and talk about our journey the past few days all we need is some hot tea and I actually would enjoy hot tea right now I really didn't think we'd feel any cold weather on this trip but here we are we felt everything yeah heat cold happiness sadness I have never felt more ups and downs both emotionally and physically on any trip we've ever done yeah this trip has been definitely one of the most difficult trips that I've been on okay well Daryl no you can't be here so I got your favorite calorie mate I usually have brownies for you guys in our darkest hour and this time I got you this chocolate flavored cardboard at our brightest hour go not bad if it's supposed to be a calorie mate why can't they make it a little sweeter it's a good point this view right now is unlike anything I've ever seen well you know how you grow up with this archetypical idea of Japanese painting that's what we are looking at right now yep these clouds are just moving so fast I will never look at another Japanese painting the same way after this you can also see why someone would have imagined dragons flying through the air CU it almost looks like that with these clouds the absolute Mystique that it just gives this whole area it really defines what you think of when you think of Japan Landscapes so did anyone have any Revelations on this Trail CU on the one hand we had lots of time to think lots of inspiring sights and shrines to see and on the other hand there were times where it was such a tough hike that you don't even it's it's hard to think about anything deeper than just wanting to go forward I think mine ultimately is that I want to be something that brings Joy to the World those uphills were so excruciating but when you get to those inss and you have people giving you a warm meal and a warm bed and a soft so usually a soft pillow that is some of the best moments in life I do know that this trip has probably pushed me to my limit but this is a one one-of a kind trip you know you can't really say no to it I think my takeaway here is that you got to find the right balance between knowing when to just look down and keep walking and knowing when to look up and appreciate what's around you because if you always look up you'll trip and if you always look down you won't know where you're going we all definitely experience this on this trip in particular when you do international travel not only are you jet lagged and in a new place where you're trying to figure things out all the time but you're doing it with other people and there could be many challenging moments where you're like dude why do I why do I bother doing anything with anybody else and you're just like I should just be a a lone wolf but when you have gone through something like this and you experience all the ups and downs together and in the end all we really have is each other cuz like you can live on a rock by yourself but what's the point you give each other meaning by witnessing the same things together and you're like that really happened we did it yeah and now we can go home amen and Hope home we will go indeed these past several days had been a whirlwind of experiences spent with close friends and now we embarked on the last stretch of our journey along the kumano [Music] Coto the wind rushed through the air as we quietly reflected on our time along Japan's ancient spiritual [Music] Trail now we would follow the the path one more kilometer through Nai kogan Park from there we would take the final steps of our pilgrimage and make our way towards our final stop the kamano Nai Taisha Grand [Music] shrine [Applause] we made our final descent down a stone path and entered the shrine grounds situated halfway up NACI Mountain these grounds are homes to various temples and shrines that blend Shintoism with Buddhism but the most iconic parts of the kumano Nai Taisha are the Majestic Nai Falls and the sanudo Pagoda and here amid this incredible display of beauty we reflected on the past five days of Adventure that we had experienced it was a journey unlike any other a perfect encapsulation of the dialectical nature of the world exhaustion and rest separation and unity Wilderness and structure but these things are not contradictions in our effort we find renewal and solid Solitude we find Oneness in nature we find order and though we sometimes struggled and suffered on the trail the memories that Linger The most clearly in our minds are the many moments of joy we had along the Kumo [Music] codo but before our journey completely wrapped up there was still a lot to explore on the shrine [Music] grounds holy cow first up was nachi Tia's seant G Temple the main Buddhist temple whose natural wood finish was an impressive site and around the temple were a variety of statues and shrines [Music] outside was a large camper tree set in front of a traditional style [Music] building [Music] we continued exploring the grounds and the bright red paints on the buildings with quite a sight to behold outside the shrine visitors were burning prayer sticks in a large [Music] braier paper Shinto prayers also hung from strings nearby Robbie collected his final stamp last [Music] stamp a gentle rain fell as we continued exploring close to the shrine was a giant 850 year-old camper tree big enough to go inside test of faith too you can actually get through [Music] there better than that cave now just as the weather cleared up we headed back to take a closer look at the sanjid do Pagoda outside was a statue of budai a famous Chinese monk in Zen Buddhism often confused for the [Music] Buddha built in 1971 this pagoto was a recreation of the original which burned down in 1581 now now it was time to go inside fourth floor we can just walk [Music] [Music] down [Music] [Music] visiting the Nai TAA Grand Shrine was the perfect ending to a long and Incredible Journey we were all exhausted and ready to return to the city for some well-deserved rest and relaxation but our time in Japan wasn't over just yet we still had many fun and exciting Adventures ahead of [Music] us so we have some people to think first up is straight back games they sponsor this episode and they are a small indie game Studio that made a game called devour but thank you so much could not have done this without you next up we got to thank Daryl he planned this whole trip we would not have done this we would not have even known that it was a trail to be done without him thank you darl darl thank thank you so much wish you were here and not only did Daryl helped plan it during the trip he kept he was like a little bird in the sky he was like here's like a satellite The Man Behind the computer thank you both so much seriously thank you thank you to Michael and his family for hosting us when you did and then thank you to all of the different hostiles and ins and all the people who hosted us throughout this I know we paid for it but thank you anyway shout out to Ike especially Ike yeah and then finally thank you for watching yes to all our patrons thank you so much thank you so much thank you all right we got a mountain to get down we got plenty of time let's go let's go hope you enjoyed the episode once again huge thank you to our patrons we really mean it when we say that we could not do these episodes without them doing a trip like this takes an enormous amount of time money and energy and it is almost entirely thanks to our patrons that were able to do this at all if you enjoyed the episode and you'd like to also be a patron patrons get early access to the episodes and they also get bloopers commentaries live streams and special patreon only updates and at some of the higher tiers you can get your name in the credits you can get copies of the soundtracks from the episode you can get copies of high quality photos we take on the trips and at the highest tiers you can get the special shoutouts that you see at the end of every episode we also have the soundtracks available to listen to and buy at our band camp page and if you want to use any of the hiking gear that we use we have affiliate links in the description below but as always thanks for watching Thanks for liking the video and subscribing we'll see you in the next one if you want even more Adventure archives in your life you're in luck cuz we've got all sorts of t-shirts and merchandise including a whole variety of stickers mugs and some brand new shirt designs like the ones you're seeing now and we've still got all our original and classic designs from before too so share your love of Adventure archives and visit the link on the screen or in the description below thank you so much so guys guys great job still about another 15 mil to the coast you guys ready yeah you who's driving though got to drag my dead body over there so that's the actual Trail right here wow wait it keeps going yeah saying all the way to the coast oh we're going to go in an onen I'm going to be in an Onsen bath for the rest of my life until I shrivel into a perun on sends are like the real life back to tanks jump in one and then suddenly all [Music] [Applause] [Music] heels [Music] oh I mean like uh this close to renting a car learning how to drive on the left side of the road I can't remember anymore CU that new hat this is one of those things that if you've done it you might recognize this and be like oh yeah I I know what that is but if you haven't you like that's weird what is [Music] [Applause] that you guys ready to sleep forever something like that am I even hungry yet I don't think I'm hungry hungry I am ready to move to the flattest state in the country we were originally planning on climbing a mountain the day after tomorrow that that would that's not happening I want to live my life like on that cruise ship in Wall-E where the chair just carries me around where [Music] [Music] br [Music] everybody's ready to like die I'm ready to kill all of you if I have to go down one more stair after this [Music] like foree foreign [Music] [Applause] spe [Music] 3 hours in another 3 hours to go sry it looked like it was the most filling Oni giri and a KATU sandwich and a tea that I just dropped [Music] all right everybody we made it great job see you tomorrow Thomas you naked come here for us yeah you guys have a little more leg room prob we just got out of the taxi right there and it walk directly into the door they opened the door for us they no when I came here the other day like we were just going to check it out look at the menu and then the lady came out and she's like come in come in like okay we got to go in now got oh oh yeah yeah [Music] oh oh that's a nice looking salad some actual vegetables you have never had an orange ltic it's like orange juice but like creamier a like a settle settle orange flavor but still very good so happy that's delicious Mom oh yeah I to dip it in there so it does seem maybe a little weird that we're not getting a Japanese restaurant after our Japanese trip but two things one we're internationally traveling and one of the interesting things is finding International restaurants in other countries like that's always an interesting thing and two the birthplace of Buddha was in Nepal and we are eating at a nepes restaurant and three it's delicious oh oh man wow that this is decadent dude oh this is a quadal with non bread how have I never thought of that before all right Pua Indian restaurant highly recommended okay this is Leo Leo nice to meet you hey what's up okay so tell us about this what is this when you come to Japan this is your hangover prevention right here you can get this one there's a bunch of different brands literally a li on hyper liver it tastes like ginger a little bit pineapple oh no no it's good yeah and the tradition is you drink it at the convenience store you bought it at before you go to that's my tradition Okay so we've just discovered that Leo is actually the average of all of us his interests include martial arts boring business speak video games and cinematography and he half Asian Filipino we out here Blended all of us into person okay there you go go I'm so glad that I forgotten a lot of it this is butter with granulated sugar on it okay Le more for competitive Su now it's an American Japanese fried and sugared and buttered we'll go to another place where they're bigger go this really cool bar right here goodbye Adventure archives we get a photo oh no le let's get a photo [Music] together [Music] I got nothing for [Music] you Tokyo aworks back to office fraying which I don't know why I didn't have it because it's popular and because in the country it coming off that if you go somewhere [Music] else more coming I know this all right I will see you guys in the morning and we will start our trip Brian I will see you when we get back home see [Music] you thank you once again to straight back games for sponsoring this episode we are once again playing their game devour this time we are on the town map interestingly they said that this is the most light-hearted slf fun map so we shall see Thomas you lead the way yeaha folks while welcome to a town called Mercy howy partners howy and you can hide in the closets oh what that what something's happening miss you both keenley sometimes I wonder if Bonnie remembers her father's Jesus your your face just glitched through the cabinet and suddenly there a j scare I was no that's terrifying key found a key something happened my screen just went dark Thomas are you still hiding in the closet like always was that there's claws on the ground were there claws oh that looks new Dead oh oh [Music] uhoh I can't see it I can hear it it will even be sent oh hey I found them uh it was just a a regular ghost never mind they're ghosts do you hear something I hear something yeah dude he sounds like he's right here oh it's like a Resident Evil 2 guy he doesn't apparently if he he won't hurt you if you just um if you're nice to him I see him walk around down oh you're literally behind I think when you stun him he calms down oh oh yeah he's missing an eye though maybe it's like motion that do he he turns around and looks at me occasionally yeah thank you once again to straight back games you can check out devour on Steam using the link in the description below it is a ton of fun and we had a great time with it and if it gets too scary for you you can always hide like [Music] Thomas there's Spice in the tent when I breathe in the spice I have dreams and Visions at times I'm back home training with Salvador Gonzalez other times I see myself wandering the vast Dunes of sanir 1 the people there they call me by a title the Christina Alvarez chrisa Alvarez Christina Alvarez chrisa Alvarez sometimes I see sanir 1 filled with vast stretches of water where Barron sand dunes once lay there are now Great Lakes watercraft decom all right folks today we're going to make my favorite drink we call it the patreon Negroni today we're going to start with a classic but necessary Gavin Ryan we're going to do one part gav and Ryan and then we're going to mixx it up here a sweet sweet Aussie Yamagata and a Brian Yamagata there we go thank you Brian and Aussie and then lastly just to add a little bit of that classic Kari taste we've got sanhan hang here you're not going to do much with it you're just going to stir it get everything nice and cold top it off with a nice Ice Cube in there and pour it right on top and that's how you get my favorite drink patreon Negroni cheers I missed a lot of that rth in there my name is George Smith VA I perform a much needed job here in the city of Amnesia everyone here in paradim city has no memory of what happened prior to 40 years ago I live with my butler Dan vulin and an Android named Douglas Jackson as long as people keep calling me by my name I'll be George Smith VA Big O show [Music] time so I was all ready to go outside and shoot a skit but then this happened so what we'll have is just a nice little shout out with the comfortable sounds of rain and thunderstorms in the background I want to give a shout out to three people first is meline Holly thank you so much the next Jake buer thank you so much finally I have a shout out from rent an event they actually wanted to shout out Adventure archives they wanted to say that no matter how busy or crazy life gets they always find time to slow down and relax and sit on the couch and watch our episodes and really just enjoy it all reny vet I really appreciate that you're the Imperial ecologist Charles Karen bowling thank you for the still suits they are Su and ton make the best now with your permission Sir Jasper caps I need to check the Integrity of your still suit you've worn a still suit before no this is my first time your desert boots are fitted slip fashion at the ankle who taught you how to do that seemed the right way Leon and Lou Lyn they said it couldn't be done some said it shouldn't be done but thanks to acclaimed designers David and Jennifer Dickerson introducing the hiking jort the reviews are in you'll never be the same again Steve Hogan an Abomination Sarah Wright I regret everything [Music] sinin Sarah and Brian K would like to give a shout out to me and my bride they send their congratulations and hope we have many blessed years together thank you very much all right John truit as a new hire of expedition Research LLC we need you to work security someone's been peeing on our property my boss Marys cavage thinks they've been doing it out by the dumpster so you should check there first [Music] H H I wonder who the perpetrator is you turn around and tell me what your name is [Music] H my name is James ritky I'm simply playing some classical music ah sorry you there reveal yourself huh my name is May Bay and I've just been been watering this plant H you distracted me and in the one second that I took away from watering it the plant's already wilted what that's not possible you turn around Sorry boss I can't do that busy relieving myself don't you know you shouldn't pee in public what do you have against it you should try it sometime it's the most freeing thing in the world I'm not a public menace like you what did you say about me punk don't make me fight [Music] you it's wrong to pee in public please forgive me the truth is I pee anytime I get anxious recently I've been stressed out because I borrowed money from my friends Joey and Mela I needed the money to pay for my kids school supplies but I haven't been able to pay it back yet so these days I just have to pee uncontrollably all the time I'm sorry I know what I did was wrong you can take me to the police no I'm not going to do that nobody should be punished for having a medical condition but maybe you should consider wearing depend adult diapers that's so shameful peeing in public is even more shameful besides what if the police caught you and you had to pay a fine on top of everything else you're right I'm going to go home and reconsider my life there's no shame in wearing adult diapers and it's nothing to be embarrassed [Music] about he'll be all right so a little behind the scenes the last time we saw the tripod was at the bus stop yeah my bad grum

Channel: AdventureArchives

Views: 104,123

Keywords: bushcraft, backpacking, hiking, camping, wilderness, survival, outdoors, travel, outdoor recreation, prepping, nature, 4k, wild, survival skills, ray mears, les stroud

Id: JBDB44urHv4

Length: 121min 56sec (7316 seconds)

Published: Mon Apr 01 2024