To Nikko:


(L) A right train is ready to start for Nikko at Utsunomiya station.
Left-side vehicle is a long-distance train between Utsunomiya-Zushi via Shinjuku, or Utunomiya-Atami stations, via Ueno-Tokyo.
(M) A symbol mark of the Nikko line train (R) JR Nikko railway station

(L)A train is just arrived at JR Nikko station (R) The exterior of Mikko JR station

Nikko


(L)Mishimaya sells sweets of the wise three monkeys 'see no evil, hear no evil, and speak no evil.
(M)(R) A deer eating grass has recently increased its number and causing problems.

Nikko Kanaya Hotel

　Steak-house Mihashi
A famous steak house; however, it was not satisfactory. We expected a very delicious steak. A domestic beef was very tender and
in a good quality. However, the taste was not quite fitting, at least in my mouth. Our favorite steak is cooked with a salt and pepper,
as served in the North America. For fried mussels, I do not know the good in a strange seasoning.


The Sacred Bridge crossing the Daiya River belongs to the Futarasan Shrine. This vermilion lacquered
structure is known as one of the three most beautiful bridges in Japan and is a perfect gateway for Nikko.
The bridge was registered as a World Heritage in December 1999. It measures 28 meters long,
7.4 meters wide, and stands 10.6 meters above the Daiya River.


The Sacred Bridge, part of the Futarasan Shrine

The Sacred Bridge, part of the Futarasan Shrine 神橋


Futarasan jinja (二荒山神社 ) is a Shinto shrine in the city of Nikko. It is also known as Nikko Futarasan Shrine.
It is located between Nikko Tosho-gu and the Taiyu-in Mausoleum. Together with Nikko Tosho-gu and
Rinno-ji, it forms the Shrines and Temples of Nikko, UNESCO World Heritage Site. The shrine possesses
two swords that are National treasures of Japan.


Trees around Futarasan Shrine

The outer wall of Rinnouji Shoyouen Garden　輪王寺しょうようえん

The outer wall and outside garden of Rinnouji Shoyouen

Inner garden of Rinnouji Shoyouen garden

Inner garden of Rinnouji Shoyouen garden

Inner garden of Rinnouji Shoyouen garden

Inner garden of Rinnouji Shoyoun garden

Inner garden of Rinnouji Shoyouen Garden

Nikko Toshogu Shrine:

Almost all the present-day shrine complex was rebuilt in 1636, twenty years after Tokugawa Ieyasu’s
enshrinement. Fifty-five buildings, including Yomeimon Gate (designated a National Treasure), were
completed in just one year and five months.

One of the special features of the shrine complex is the use of paths and stairways that follow the
natural topography of the site, allowing the arrangement of the shrine buildings in a pleasing balance
to create a solemn, religious atmosphere. The buildings are lacquered and decorated with vibrant colors,
and the pillars and other structures are covered in a multitude of carvings. The carvings not simply
design elements; they convey expressions of religious belief as well as scholarship and philosophy.
The shrine complex was registered as a World Heritage site in 1999.


Stone Torii Gate 日光東照宮表参道


The important cultural property Ishidorii Gate was dedicated in 1618 by Kuroda Nagamasa, the feudal
lord of Kyushu Chikuzen (present day Fukuoka Prefecture). The stone for the use of the gate was
transported by ship from Kyushu to Koyama and then manually hauled over land to Nikko.


Five-story Pagoda 五重塔　Frint Gate 表門


Gojunoto (Five-Story Pagoda) as designated an important cultural property was dedicated in 1648
by Sakai Tadakatsu, the feudal lord of Obama in Wakasa Province (present day Fukui Prefecture).
It was destroyed by fire in 1815 and rebuilt in 1818 by Sakai Tadayuki, a feudal lord of the same lineage.
Omotemon (Front Gate) as designated an important cultural property is the first gate at Toshogu Shrine.
It is also called Nio Gate because of the two guardian deity statues positioned on the left and right.

---

Lake Chuzenji, Mount Hangtsu and Kegon Falls

Lake Chuzenji is a scenic lake in Nikko National Park in the city of Nikko, Tochigi Prefecture. It was
created 20,000 years ago when Mount Nantai (2,484 m) erupted and blocked the river. The lake has
a surface area of 11.62 squareKm and a circumference of 25 km. Its elevation at the surface is 1,269 m ,
and the water reaches a depth of 163 m. The Yukawa is the principal source of water. It drains through
the Kegon Falls. Chuzenji Lake was discovered in 782 by a priest named Shodo when his group
succeeded in climbing Mt. Nantai. Considered sacred, the mountain was closed to women, horses,
and cows until 1872.


From JR and Tobu Nikko railway stations (543 M), a bus takes a tourist to the Lake Chuzenji.
It has the altitude of 1,269 M and the highest natural lake in Japan.

(L) Lake Chuzenji and the snow-covered Mt. Shirane (R) Chuzenji Temple

A mountain view from the site near Chuzenjiko-Observatrory parking lot

Trail to Mount Hangetsu from Cuzenjiko-Observatory parking lot

A rugged mountain trail to Mt. Hangetsu

A rugged mountain trail to Mt. Hangetsu

A rugged mountain trail to Mt. Hangetsu

A grand view of Lake Chuzenji and Mt. Nantai:
This photograph was taken by Junhaku Miyamoto, near the top of Mt. Hangetsu ( Altitude 1,753 M) on November 2, 2017

Lake Chuzenji and Mt. Nantai

(L) A signpost (R) Hangetsusan public parking lot: This is the final point of a mountain highway.
In the background, there was the fact that a lawsuit by natural conservation activities led to cancellation of construction of the new further mountain road.

(L) Hangetsusan bus stop (R) Lake Chuzenji and Mt. Nantai



In the middle of the Meiji period and early Showa period, many European embassies built vacation
houses on the lakeside. The former Italian villa has been renewed and is now open to visitors. Other
sites around the lake include Chuzenji Temple, and Kegon Falls. In spring, cherry blossoms are blooming.
In summer, people can escape the heat and enjoy bird watching and hiking. In fall of course, there are
the famous beautiful autumn leaves and in winter, there are the Snow and Ice Festival, plus winter
sports like skiing and skating. The lake was a favorite summer haunt of Sir Ernest Satow when he was
Britain's envoy in Japan, 1895-1900 as his diaries of that time attest. He constructed a house by the lake
which was used as a villa by the British Embassy for over a century.
Source:Wikipedia


A trail to the embassy sites: Left trail, Italian, Right trail, Britishi Embassy Memorial Park

Italian Embassy Villa
The house on the park grounds were built for villas of th Italian Ambassadors until 1997.

Italian Embassy Villa

Italian Embassy Villa

Italian Embassy Villa and Lake Chuzenji

A lakeside terrace and Lake Chuzenji

British Embassy Villa

The exterior of British Embassy Villa and Lake Chuzenji

Lake Chuzenji, the highest natural lake in Japan, at the time near sunset

Aircraft clouds crossing the lake


Kegon Falls is located at the east side of Lake Chuzenji in Nikko National Park. The falls were formed
when the River was rerouted by lava flows. The main falls had a height of approximately 97 meters, and
about twelve smaller waterfalls are situated behind and to the sides of Kegon Falls, leaking through
the many cracks between the mountain and the lava flows.


Kegon Falls and foreign tourists

Kegon Falls and a full moon over the mountain

Nikko Toshou-gu Shrine and Tobu Railway
Hotel Shikisai, Nikko
Smoke-free Hotels in Japan
A summary of smoking-room rate studied in local hotels of Japan

H
Smoking Restriction at Hotels in the World: Actual Survey
The ratio of a smoking guest room to the total hotel rooms was calculated,
based on-the-spot investigation.

Nikko 2018


日光、中禅寺湖、半月山
　 執筆 　医学博士　宮本順伯
★This Web site is link-free.
This information was provided by the Smokefree Hotel and Travel.
The article was written in Octobr 2017.
All photography was taken by Dr. Junhaku Miyamoto inOctober 2017.