I went up to Mount Katano for the annual Clean Hike. I was worried because there was a typhoon forecast, but thanks to its quick passage, the weather was quite hot. Every year, the first Sunday of June is designated as the mountain cleaning day. Despite being in the rainy season, I don't remember ever getting rained on. Perhaps because it's a cleaning day, we always seem to be blessed with good weather. A few years ago, there used to be broken TVs and household appliances scattered around, and there was a significant amount of trash. However, recently, the amount of garbage has decreased considerably. There's hardly any trash to pick up now, and when we do find some, everyone rushes to grab it. We joked about how it felt a bit empty, but it's heartening to see that the manners of hikers have improved greatly. Around this time, many lilies bloom, but near the "Ikimono Fureai no Sato (Creature Interaction Village)," I found a "Kouhone." Nuphar japonica, known as East Asian yellow water-lily. I wasn't very familiar with it before, but despite being a water lily species, it has a round, yellow flower, which is quite cute. It's also written as "Kawahone (river bone)", when I looked up its unique name, I found out it's called that because its underwater rhizomes are white and rugged, resembling bones. It's a name you wouldn't expect from its delicate appearance. It's used in herbal medicine and is said to have effects like hemostasis, fever reduction, and pain relief. Every year, there are many tadpoles in the Shiro Hata (White Flag) Pond, but I couldn't find any this year. I wonder if it's due to the heavy rains from the typhoon? I'm a bit worried about where the tadpoles might have gone.
The summit of Katano Mountain was bustling with climbers. There were many children, and the sound of their laughter made the summit feel warm and cozy.
This year, I climbed using the Shishikutsui Temple route. Shishikutsu Temple belongs to the Shingon sect of Koyasan and is a national treasure founded by En no Ozune. The temple has a lion’s cave made of huge rocks and offers a scenic view, making it an enjoyable course.
If you’re climbing Mount Katano, I recommend this route. When descending, if you stop by Mount Kunimi, you can see Kyoto Tower, Atago Mountain, Mount Hiei, and to the west, the buildings of Osaka and even Abeno Harukas building.
Once a year visit to Mount Katano, I am glad visit again for this year, and I look forward to visiting next year.
