Journeys in Japan - 2012/09/11 - Forest Sanctuary - Shirakami

Sep. 11, Tue.
Forest Sanctuary - Shirakami

Our reporter David Bull travels to Shirakami-sanchi, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in northern Japan. Nature guide and botanist Hajime Makita takes him around. Shirakami is recognized for its primeval broadleaf forest of mostly beech trees. David experiences the heartbeat of this vast, undisturbed forest. He later enjoys swimming in a beautiful river, just outside the preserve.
For his next stop, David boards a train, heading west. He alights at Fukaura-machi in Aomori Prefecture where the water from Shirakami-sanchi flows into the sea. He observes the deep ties of Shirakami-sanchi with the sea.

Shirakami-sanchi
Shirakami-sanchi is a mountain range located in northern Honshu with peaks towering 1,000 meters high. The World Heritage Site is divided into the core zone and the buffer zone. To protect the forest's fragile ecosystem, entry into the core zone is restricted. From Nishimeya village in Aomori Prefecture, David walks along paths built in the buffer zone. There are a number of trailheads into Shirakami-Sanchi. They can also be accessed from the adjacent Akita Prefecture.
Information of Nishimeya village
http://www.kumagera.net/ (Japanese only)

Guide
Guides are not required. But their knowledge of the forest is helpful.
Matagi-sha (Hajime Makita is a member guide)
http://www.geocities.jp/matagisha/ (Japanese only)

JR Gono-line
The resort train connects the coastline in Akita to Aomori. The train slows down at scenic points for passengers.
http://www.jreast.co.jp/akita/gonosen/ (Japanese only)

Hotspring inn "Furofuhi Onsen"
The Fukaura inn is popular with tourists. The view of the Sea of Japan can be enjoyed from all the rooms. The open-air bath is one of the inn's star attractions. It is also available for day-use.
http://www.furofushi.com/index_e.html

Sightseeing division in Fukaura
The office provides information on access, lodgings and sightseeing routes.
http://www.fukaura.jp/ (Japanese only)
Please ask after tours that appear in the program, such as the fisherman's breakfast.
Access Map

Access:
It takes about one hour and 15minutes by plane from Tokyo to Aomori. From there, it's about two hours by non-direct buses to reach Shirakami-sanchi points.
Date :
Aug. 6 - Aug. 10, 2012
Traveler :
David Bull, Wood-block printmaker (Canada)
During the course of making this episode of Journeys in Japan, I was taken by a guide into the deep recesses of the beech forest, where we walked side by side among the old trees. I felt the rain on my upturned face, I saw how this water nourished the new soil that was being created from the fallen beech leaves by the action of many insects and small creatures, and I immersed my body in the fresh mountain stream.

I learned through my skin - through the contact with the rain, the soil, and the river - that I too am a living part of this process. When we came down from the mountains and saw the endless vista of rice paddies flourishing under the hot sun, we understood where their nourishment came from. And still further along our journey, out on the wide surface of the Sea of Japan, we saw that even there - far removed from the outstretched branches of the beech trees catching the rain - their effect was still being felt. The fish we ate that day had been nourished directly by the nutrients supplied by that forest.

And I - the big pink monkey who was your travel companion for this program - this animal drank the forest, ate it, swam in it, slept in it, and thus now directly understands in his bones the importance of such things. I hope that I and the program producers have helped the viewers understand what a wonderful place this is, and how important it is to preserve, protect and maintain it.

Thank you for coming along on this Journey. I hope you have enjoyed it!

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