Kumano Sanzan - Kumano Hayatama Taisha and Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the
Plan this ride
Recorded distance
137 km
Riding-time estimate
1 h 44
Journey
Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
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Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
137 km from Shingū to Shingū, about 1 h 44 of riding. On the way it passes Pilgrimage Routes - Kumano Sankeimichi - I, Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the and back through Pilgrimage Routes - Kumano Sankeimichi - I. It was put together for the scenery rather than the shortest line.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Kumano Sanzan - Kumano Hayatama Taisha
Shingū sits where the Kumano River meets the Pacific, and Hayatama Taisha stands in the middle of the town, a vermilion shrine among tall trees, so close to the ordinary streets that it feels like part of daily life. It is one of the three grand shrines of Kumano, and the legend of its founding is tied to a great rock above the town, Gotobiki-iwa, where the deity is said to have descended before moving to the shrine below. The rock is reached by a steep stone stairway through the woods and the view from it is wide and quiet.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Kumano Sanzan - Kumano Hayatama Taisha is where the day begins. Next is Pilgrimage Routes - Kumano Sankeimichi - I.
2. Pilgrimage Routes - Kumano Sankeimichi - I
The Iseji is the eastern branch of the old pilgrimage roads to the three great Kumano shrines, running down the coast of the Kii Peninsula from the Grand Shrines of Ise to Kumano. For centuries, pilgrims followed it through forests and over passes, and stretches of its stone paving still survive in the hills, laid to keep the path usable in one of the rainiest parts of Japan. Owase, a little up the coast, regularly ranks among the wettest towns in the country, and the moss on the stones and the dripping cedar forests show it. The Iseji forms part of the UNESCO listing of the Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the Kii Mountain Range.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Pilgrimage Routes - Kumano Sankeimichi - I comes up about 21 km into the recorded legs. Next is Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the.
3. Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the
The Kumano Kodō, the ancient pilgrimage routes, link it with two other great shrines, Hayatama in Shingū and Nachi with its tall waterfall, and with the sacred mountains of Kōyasan and Yoshino further north. UNESCO listed the whole network in 2004 as one of only two pilgrimage routes on its register, the other being the road to Santiago de Compostela.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 69 km into the recorded legs you reach Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the. Next is back through Pilgrimage Routes - Kumano Sankeimichi - I.
4. back through Pilgrimage Routes - Kumano Sankeimichi - I
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at Kumano Sanzan - Kumano Hayatama Taisha. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Kumano Sanzan - Kumano Hayatama Taisha to Pilgrimage Routes - Kumano Sankeimichi - I
Kumano Sanzan - Kumano Hayatama Taisha → Pilgrimage Routes - Kumano Sankeimichi - I is 21 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Pilgrimage Routes - Kumano Sankeimichi - I to Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the
Pilgrimage Routes - Kumano Sankeimichi - I → Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the is 48 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the to back through Pilgrimage Routes - Kumano Sankeimichi - I
Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the → back through Pilgrimage Routes - Kumano Sankeimichi - I is 48 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Pilgrimage Routes - Kumano Sankeimichi - I to Kumano Sanzan - Kumano Hayatama Taisha
back through Pilgrimage Routes - Kumano Sankeimichi - I → Kumano Sanzan - Kumano Hayatama Taisha is 21 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.