I have been meaning to do this hike since the first weekend I had moved here. It’s so close to my place I can walk there! I cheated and took the bus to the other side of the mountain though. On the way up I saw a rice vending machine for the first time since living in Japan! I didn’t realize how fast Fukuoka can get rural. The trail up was really beautiful though.
I think Aburayama gets a bad reputation for being family friendly, but it’s so huge and there is so much to explore I can’t imagine getting bored of it fast. Like Takao San in Tokyo, just because its accessible doesn’t mean its not interesting! I rarely go to visitors centers when hiking but it was nice to check out. They have nature exhibits, local mushrooms for sale, relay courses, and nice views of the city.
Despite its popularity, Aburayama is the worst marked mountain for trails I’ve been on in Fukuoka. My main goal was to find this waterfall and not a single person I ran into had heard of it or been there. After a few wrong turns I did find it, with this funny little statue in the middle of it. Waterfall was a bit of a strong term, but it was cute.
I got a few more nice views near the end at Mount Katae・片江山. City view aren’t usually my favourite but it’s fun to try to find places (could not find my place) and the ocean is a beautiful backdrop.
I decided to walk home from the mountain and found a cute little grocery store where they had local produce and sweets. I just love the eggs in a bag! And here is the view of the mountain close to home. It always looks easier from far away.
And of course no day is complete without a sweet. I found this uguisu dorayaki in the local grocery store. This is meant to look like uguisu, the little green bird that signals the start of spring, you can see its eye and tail feather markings. Inside was more zunda-an (green bean paste) which was amazing.
That was the last hike I’ll have before my super big, exciting ones coming up this week!
And of course here is my course on Yamap.
Tea, Sweets and Trails 