Ontake Kodo

Ontake Kodo is a trail to the sacred mountain “Ontake,” which has been worshipped by people since ancient times. Located on the border between Nagano and Gifu prefectures, Ontake is one of the 100 most famous mountains in Japan and has been the object of mountain worship since ancient times.

Ontake Kodo

Of the four hiking trails, this article introduces the tour of shrines and waterfalls at the entrance to the Otaki Village route. The easy hiking route is from the Ontake Shrine Satomiya located above Otaki Village to Shintaki and Kiyotaki waterfalls. If you are short on time, you can enjoy just the route around Shintaki and Kiyotaki waterfalls.

This WEB site has detailed information for this route, but it is in Japanese.

Ontake Shrine Satomiya

The Ontake-jinja Satomiya Shrine stands against a high rock face after climbing a long stone stairway through a dense forest of giant cypress and Japanese spruce trees. In the Edo period, Ontake-jinja was worshiped as a shrine of Zao Daigongen, which is the deity enshrined on the summit of Mt. Ontake. This shrin was a sacred place for Ontake worship.

Kiyotaki Fall

The Kiyotaki Fall was once a place where priests would spend upto 100 days in ascetic practice. You can see the Kiyotaki from the road. Kiyotaki Fudo Myoo and Kiyotaki Benzaiten are enshrined here. The waterfall is 30 meters high, and the volume of water is so great that huge icicles appear during the cold season. A steep, winding path across a vermilion-lacquered bridge just below the waterfall leads to Shintaki Falls.

Kiyotaki Fall

Shintaki Fall

Shintaki Fudo Myoo and the eight great dragon kings are enshrined at Shintaki Fall. There is a small rock shrine behind the waterfall. You can see the waterfall from the back. There is a rock cave near the waterfall, which is a sacred place.

Shintaki Fall

Ontake Kodo walking

Ontake Kodo is located in the deep mountains. It takes time to reach there. So you may need a full day to visit there. Tours are available from Nagoya, Nakatsugawa etc. You can combine a visit to Ontake Kodo with Magome and Tsumago visit. Another option is the combination with Naegi Castle ruins.

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