Road trip to Nikko, Tochigi. My dad and I have been to Nikko before, but there were a few places we didn't get around to visit. Also, my mum went for the first time. Our primary purpose for visiting this time, was to enjoy the natural surrounds of Nikko.
Day 1
Took the Iroha zaka to get there. This stretch of road featured in Tokyo Drift. Having said that, we were a bit more careful with the rentacar.
On the way, we came across a fleet of Ferarris.
A quick stopover for some mushroom soup, made from mushrooms sourced locally.
On the other side of Iroha zaka, we were greeted with this beautiful scene...
And beautiful dishes like this. I ordered roast rainbow trout, caught in the lake featured above (which so happens to be right next to the restaurant where we ate lunch at)
After lunch, some hiking around the highlands. Arguably, the landscape looks better in spring or summer.
"Dragon falls". Can you spot the dragon?
Next stop, Yudaki Falls. Vehicle entry cost 500 yen, motorbike entry cost 100 yen, bicycle and pedestrian entry was free. For the way they kept and managed the site, the contribution paid was almost too little.
There was a 40-minute hiking course around the surrounds of Yudaki falls. Apparently there are deer and bears in the area. They say if you come across a bear, don't make any sudden movements. And definitely don't approach a baby bear, or else be prepared to fight for your life with an overprotective mother bear who is bound to be nearby. Fortunately we didn't come across any bears. Unfortunately, we didn't come across any deer either.
It actually started lightly snowing while we were hiking. After coming back, we indulged in some more of the regions specialty, mushroom soup.
At night, we stayed over at the Sachinoko Hotel. I loved it. It was right next to the lake, and although at night we couldn't see anything, the view that greeted us in the morning was excellent. And the early morning lakeside stroll before departing was refreshing.
What topped it all off was the dinner time menu.
Nikko is famous for its "Yuba" - simply put, tofu skin. In the dinner menu, there was Yuba in virtually every possible cooking form included - deep fried yuba, yuba sashimi, yuba in miso soup, yuba and crab meat roll, stewed yuba, you name it. There was even a rainbow trout thrown in for kicks. They didn't hold anything back. And we didn't order it specially either - this is what they offer to all their guests apparently. Which got me wondering - if you played all your cards in the dinner on the first night, what do you do about successive nights? I actually asked them that question, cause I wanted to find out. The person serving us sheepishly replied that they just make do by changing the variety somehow. Something along the lines of using the same ingredients to make different dishes. Having said that though, most of their guests tend to be one nighters anyway so it's not that big of an issue. We also only stayed for one night. And I would be happy to come back and stay here again.
Day 2
This was a part of the view that greeted us from out the window when we woke up the next day. Red leaves right next to the lake. The lake was behind me in this photo.
After leaving the hotel, our first stop was Kegon falls. It's famous for its size. Apparently a hundred metres long.
There is a free viewing deck where you can look at it from a distance from the top down, but in order to view it close up, you can purchase a ticket to ride the lift that takes you to the bsae of the waterfall. I don't think they offer a walking trail to get down there. To build the lift, they actually drilled 100m down into solid bedrock. There must have been a reason to bother with so much effort.
We didn't know till we arrived, but apparently if you go around 8-9am, you can see a rainbow formed by the angle of the sun coming in and the spray from the waterfall. We were glad we visited early in the morning. The rainbow was already beginning to dip, but we caught it just in time. It was amazing.
After that, we went to another waterfall, Kirifuri falls.
For some reason, this is the closest vantage point you're allowed to reach. The view was spectacular, though. And also, entry was free :)
On our way back we stopped over at this amazing site. It's the Grand Kinugawa tateiwa suspension bridge. It actually connects to several other popular sightseeing spots within walking distance, but due to recent avalanche activity, the road was blocked off.
Picture taken from the bridge. Can you see the face formed by the rock feature?
While looking around for places that appear good to visit, we came across a place called Edo Wonderland. Just the name itself sounds pretty exciting, doesn't it? We decided to check it out, and see what exactly makes it a Wonderland.
Still doesn't give away much about what it is, does it. We found out that in fact, this place was more like a theme park. Think Disneyland or Universal Studios. The theme for this theme park, was Edo Japan.
We would have gone in, except the entry ticket was priced comparable to (although considerably cheaper than) Disneyland. Even with a price like that, during the 15 minutes or so we wandered around, a lot of people purchased tickets and entered. I guess there's value for money. After a bit of research, I discovered that you can do dress ups and become a ninja, common townsfolk, samurai, rounin, geisha (women), daughter of a warrior class family (women), and many more. There are performances, DIYs, and various attractions. It appears that this is a place where you come to not so much for rides and an adrenaline rush, as much as to experience traditional Japan. By the looks of the visitors, it's popular with Japanese and foreigners alike.
Outside the theme park was a place selling various merchandise. I got a photo with the shopkeeper who was dressed like a townsfolk from the Japanese olden days.
A little tip for those driving to Edo Wonderland. The parking fee the site charges is 870 yen. It's not unreasonable, but there's a cheaper option just down the road. Look for the Palladium giant maze. From memory, parking there was 300 yen. It's literally just down the road from Edo Wonderland. I don't know how Japanese people work out their economics. To a foreigner, from a competition point of view, the price difference in parking fees is just nonsense. There's no obligation to go visit the maze if you park there, by the way. Although by social etiquette, it makes sense to drop by if you use their car park. The entry for the maze is 800 yen for adults. I would much prefer paying 800 yen for participating in a maze than for using a car park. They have a challenge where if you can complete it within 20 minutes, you get a prize. The next time I go by car, I'll park at the Maze site, complete the maze in 20 minutes, then go to Edo Wonderland.
So that's a rundown of our trip to Nikko. Aside from the places we went to this time, Nikko is famous for its three World Cultural Heritage Listed sites. We've been there before, just that I never posted about it.. Hope to gather the photos together from the previous visit some time.
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