16‏/01‏/2013

Hiking Kobe's Mount Maya

Natural beauty right on the city's doorstep

By Peter Sidell

Community writer

The reservoir partway up the mountain

The approach to Shin-Kobe station, with Mount Maya behind

The first waterfall, a nice spot for lunch in warm weather

The walk attracts a variety of local characters

It's easy to forget you're close to the bullet train station in one of Japan's largest cities.

Another falls, further up the mountain

Visit Mount Maya in autumn and it's ablaze with color

A view of Kobe from the mountain

And a view of the harbour

A bridge where the path splits at a stream

More autumn colors

Twilight on the walk back down

I often marvel at how easy it is to escape into nature in Japan. Shin-Kobe station may be a characterless slab of concrete, but the tunnel beneath it is a gateway to another world; within five minutes you're in a totally different environment of forested slopes, gentle streams and waterfalls, and a picturesque reservoir.

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Peter Sidell

By Peter Sidell

Community writer

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