After deliberating for all of one minute on whether to stop for lunch in the sanitized souvenir shop with a vantage view at the foot of the falls or not, I decided to set off for Shobugahama Beach. Locating the starting point of the hiking trail involved some marching on the spot as I tried to get my north-south bearing correct without a compass. Finally found an obscure footpath snaking into a field of knee-high grass that brought me past power generators and uphill into a grim and forsaken path littered with dry brown leaves and parched grass strewn all over it. Somehow it wouldn't surprise me to come across a dead body along the way.

The beginning part of the hike could be quite bleak at times, with the hostile face of steep rocky hills glaring unflinchingly down at you on one side and an inviting vertical plunge into Lake Chuzenji on the other. Still, the enchanting hue of an elfish green Lake Chuzenji as peeped through a foliage of morose brown bark and mud offered some respite. After tip-toeing my way past rock-slide ravaged terrain and escaping unscathed from an annoyed snake for stepping over its slithering form in a landscape largely overcast by tree silhouette, I eventually arrived at a short stretch of beach overlooking serene Lake Chuzenji.

The coarse sand coalesced with weedy deposits wasn't much of a scream though there was a stretch of powdery silver sand further up the shore that glimmered prettily in the sun. Kneeling down on the sand to rest those tired legs of mine, it was quite a sensation to feel the onrushing gust of breeze caressing my face whilst listening to the water lapping gently onto shore and the leaves whispering behind me as the wind rustled past them. In fact the experience moved me enough for me to get back on my feet, arms outstretched and head slightly bowed in the best impersonation of a magus I could muster, as I cast an imaginary spell over the lake. Then the wind grew stronger, and with tree branches swaying wildly around me and a course of ripples brewing in the lake, I decided to banish my Loch Ness monster whence it was coming and continued with my journey.

A short walk later and I found myself on a long stretch of beach with a wooden pier just stretching into Lake Chuzenji that offered a first-class view of the clear waters shimmering in the sun and the mystical mountains in the horizon shrouded partially by clandestine cloud cover. Near the shore the water was virtually transparent, with the ripples formed around an embedded stem not unlike spasms of electricity surging across the lake.

After sunning my shoes on the pier, the hike continued towards Lake Sainoko. Deciding to leave the irregular bus service to its own devices, I walked the 1.5km stretch along tarmac, where I read a sign in Japanese warning hikers of wandering bears in the vicinity. The idea was to carry a bell along to make your presence heard so that the bears would stay away from you. But then there was always the possibility that a Yogi Bear would mistaken the chime for that of an ice-cream van’s and sprint ravenously towards you instead.

Lake Sainoko was reached after a detour around a broken wooden bridge and a wavy stroll across a red suspension bridge. The river under the bridge had long since dried but fret not, there are no ugly trolls hiding underneath so you have no need for strong mountain goats for companions. The water level of Sainoko changes throughout the year and the lake was about a third dried-up on my visit. I could just make out the straw left behind by Yogi on the opposite bank...

The hike should have ended here, but since Sainoko is tucked away in a corner of Nikko National Park and local buses run as irregularly as an Arthur Anderson account, I foolishly decided to walk all the way back to the Odashirogahara Grasslands, a 4.8km trek away. Well not that foolish anyway, since no buses overtook me on my way. As I trudged uphill towards the mountains feeling the distinctive chill of the mountain air rushing towards me, I did wonder if I had lost my way a little. No matter, for I did eventually arrive at Odashirogahara, though I had barely taken in the sights before the bus came along, prompting a mad dash to hop onto it to be whisked away to Akanuma. Finishing off my Uncle Toby's rations and downing two cans of Aquarius drink (Pocari Sweat, Amino Supli, Aquarius... they all taste like H20), I caught the next bus to Chuzenji Onsen.

Kirifuri Falls

Although it was the official monsoon season in Japan, my first three days were spent basking in bright glorious sunshine. However when the weather began to turn foul from the fourth day onwards it got very wet indeed--- overnight rain dragging into the early morning a sign of things to come.

Checking out of Tamozawa Hotel at 9a.m. to accommodate a hearty breakfast, I caught a bus to the train station and managed to squeeze my backpack into one of the rental lockers there. It seemed that Japanese lockers were designed primarily to hold gold bars, given their squarish opening and elongated depth.

Beaten to the queue by a huge group of 50-somethings sprinting from their just-arrived train, I took a Kirifuri Highlands-bound bus and alighted midway through the journey to take in Kirifuri Falls. There was supposed to be an arduous 8km hiking route running all the way to a mountain top but the trail was closed for some reason or other--- not that I was planning to go on any more long walks. Instead I settled for admiring Kirifuri Falls from an observatory platform some 800m from the main road, and what a view it was!

The falls was by far the loudest I had heard. The muddy trail leading to it, coupled with dense vegetation either side of the path and a wispy cloud of mountain mist, all added up to form a dreamy setting for trekkers. The majestic sound of the plunging falls could also be heard way before you saw it, serving as a teaser of sorts, and there were few if any dragonflies around (after the past day I didn't know if all that buzzing in my ears was real or imaginary any more), which was a bonus in itself.

For all that (non-buzzing) sound that it made, Kirifuri Falls was as splendid was anticipated. Embedded in the midst of an imposing backdrop of mountains, the spectacular waters crashed down decisively, cleansing the souls of any spellbound onlookers. In contrast to the stone cast certainty of the unrelenting mountain face peeking out from under a dense tree cover were the susceptible canopy swaying gently in the wind and thin wispy clouds lending an aura of mystique to the scene.

My original plan was to visit two other falls in Kirifuri, Chojino and Tamasudare, with a bus-ride further up into the highlands. Returning back to the bus-stop, I discovered to my dismay that the next bus was not due until 50 minutes later. One could practically watch spiders weaving cobwebs in that time, which was what I did, marveling at the intricate work of a greedy arachnid spanning four generously-spaced stems.

Still, you could only watch webbed palaces in construction for so long, so I indulged myself in a little stone age Olympics at the bus-stop a while later.

Game #1: Football (what else?). With the correct approach and angle of deliverance it is amazing how far your stone can be kicked across the road. If you happen to be wearing a pair of Adidas Predators, try bending your shot under passing cars and making them dip over roadside kerbs to fall precisely into the dustbin at the opposite side of the road.

Game #2: Rugby! With a ready-made road sign (those towering ones at roadside hanging over the road with a gap between the sign and the post), you’re all ready to go.

Beginner: Practice your passing by hurling projectiles through the gap. A miss is usually greeted with a resounding "Boooooom" reverberating through the highlands air at the sound of stone meeting metal sheet.

Intermediate: Volley a dropping stone through the gap. The bigger the stone, the more your foot will hurt.

Advanced: Ditto; but do it with your left foot.

When the bus did arrive on time a few successful conversions later, I felt like Forest Gump looking for a seat on the packed bus. Eventually squeezed my way onto the backseat where a state of inertia saw me traveling all the way to Kirifuri Highlands.