Road Less Traveled
Breakfast this morning was a total pig out at the local Circle K convenience store. Rice balls, several sweet breads, coffee, and genki (energy) drinks. All necessary for today’s walk to Temple 27, a nansho because of its difficulty to reach. The main route that leads up to the temple continues for more than a kilometer at a slope of 45 degrees. Taking an alternative trail would be longer but less challenging as we would bypass the steep incline. After storing our backpacks near our hotel we took off on the road less traveled.
Our decision to take it easy didn’t work as planned. We got lost and ended up overshooting the temple grounds, walking higher then we would have had we stuck to the main path. However the rewards were worth it. We met a farmer and his dog Lucky, saw more enchanted forest scenery, and a Shinto Shrine which looked beautiful with its ornate wood carvings and mossy green stones. We descended onto Temple 27 (Konomine-ji) the back way via a cherry blossom road covered in pedals.
Temple 27 is impressive with its red fences and severely manicured bushes. Water flows through the temple and pilgrims can fill up their bottles from a mountain stream.
Walking back to the train we saw trees so green it looked like Mother Nature had plugged them in. At the nearby station we realized that, of course, we missed our ride. We could sit or walk two kilometers to the next platform and and catch the train there.
Without the weight of our packs our feet moved with a new freedom. No camping equipment means we carry only the lightest of necessities. However, with our heavy burdensome gear, the reassuring confirmation of shelter is always with us.
What type of burden is worth carrying?
Temple 28 (Dainichi-ji) is thirty eight kilometers away and taking a train to Noichi Station we skipped walking about 22 of those kilometers. But, getting lost from the station to our hotel this evening it seemed like we made up that distance. It felt like we walked in circles for an hour. Sixty minutes of hungry, lopsided and cranky. Tonight it was my turn to try and make an unpleasant task more tolerable. Things can change quickly. We are a good team.
April 22, 2016 - Temple 27
