The heavenly Adachi Gardens

What better to do on the “Mountain Day” than to hike up the steep mountainside up to the Yamadera temple in Yamagata. The temple was founded over a thousand years ago in 860 AD under the official name Risshakuji but people generally know it by its more popular name “Yamadera” which means mountain temple. But to get there first I need to conquer a thousand steps, is it a bit more than I bargained for..

Lake Chūzenji is a scenic lake in Nikkō National Park in the city of Nikkō, Tochigi Prefecture, Japan. It was created 20,000 years ago when Mount Nantai erupted and blocked the river.

We take a hike along the Goshiki-numa trail in Bandai-Asahi National Park, that runs along five mysterious ponds each with its own tinge of blue water. These ponds were created by the lava from the eruption of Mt. Bandai in 1888, where one can witness the volcanic minerals dissolving in the water, imparting each pond with its own shade of color ranging from green to whitish blue.