大山 [oo-yama] - Part 1

Ooyama in central Kanagawa prefecture is a rural hiking spot. The mountain is about 1,200 meters high and offers great views to the sea once reaching the top. I wasn't busy on a Saturday, and headed out for a quick hike to the half way point on this mountain.

At the base of the mountain, lie numerous shops featuring food famous in the vicinity -- deer / wild boar stew, tofu, mushrooms. In addition, small wooden tops for spinning are also built in this tiny town.

Ooyama entrance sign:

Walkway showing the spinning tops -- a famous toy in this area:

Passing through the shop area, I followed the sound of a river, over a bridge, making my way closer to the mountain. The photo shows the river:

My friend said: "Okay cutenekko, you take the cable car to the temple, I'll meet you there."
I asked: "You're not taking the cable car? Aren't you coming up the mountain too?"
My friend: "I'm going to run (up the mountain). I'll meet you at the temple." o_O O...K....

I made my way to the cable car. The ticket was really expensive! ¥420 ONE WAY!! Once I got in, and realized how steep the mountain was, taking the cable car was much better....I wonder how my crazy running friend was doing....

Inside the cable car:

 Cable car station sign:

 After arriving at the end station (about half way up the mountain), there is a nice temple. I took a photo of the stone lanterns and path which lead up to the temple itself:

 Halfway down the temple path, I came across a map which showed my current location, the cable car, and surrounding hiking trails. There are many things to do and see on Ooyama!

Map:

I reached the stairs to see my friend waiting for me. Holy sheep!
"How long were you waiting?" I asked. He said: "About 5 minutes." I applauded his amazing strength and handed him a bottle of water (which I picked up before boarding the cable car).

The temple had a secret, my friend said, and offered to show me. Do you want to know the temple's secret? I'll share that with you tomorrow. ^_^

The Ooyama wiki page is HERE. From the map above, the path my friend ran took about 30 minutes.  The cable car took 15 minutes, but doesn't leave the base station very frequently. I had to wait 20 minutes after buying a ticket until the departure time. There are also two paths up: one for women and one for men. The women's path has stairs which are not as wide and steep. The men's path is steeper and the steps are a wider distance apart.