Travel with Blueginger: Special Edition : My "off the beaten track" memorable trip to Nagato(長門)

Nagato is located on the Western coast of Japan's main island of Honshu, in the northwest of Yamaguchi Prefecture. There are actually 13 towns inside of Yamaguchi and Nagato is 1 of them. It is actually made up by 5 smaller towns of Senzaki, Yuya, Heki, Misumi and Fukawa. The main station is Nagatoshi and reachable by train.

Nagatoshi JR station

The main motive for us to visit Nagato is to visit Motonosumi Inari shrine.

I saw her picture in a magazine few years back and just by the photo itself, I find this place so captivating that I promised myself to visit this enchanting place one day.

And this day finally arrived on winter 2018. Together with my hubby and son whom I affectionally called them Boss and BF respectively.. BF means boyfriend. We will visit Kyushu, Chuguoku and Kansai. I know my chance is here.

Through the help from Nagato Tourism Convention Association, we booked a taxi for 4hr service at JPY20,000. Going deep into Nagato is a challenge, it is strongly to encourage to get a car or taxi when visiting the attractions.

It took us 2.5hrs to reach Nagato-Furuichi station from Hakata.

My smart looking driver is holding my name on a placard alongside with a sparkling clean Toyota Crown. Wow, I was thinking to myself that this is such a wonderful start in this humble town.

Merely 15 minutes scenic ride from Nagato-Furuichi station, Motonosumi Inari Shrine is one of the most beautiful place in Japan. Surrounded with 123 red torii gates and the blue ocean. It has the most amazing feel that you will ask yourself that "such place really exist?"

She stood at the most west edge of the whole Japan and she just appear from the middle of nowhere, she just blended into the nature surrounding.

For the start, we walk through the torii gates up to the shrine. Walking through these 123 torii gates was so fascinating that I felt the sense of spiritual healing of nirvana running down the spine.

At the viewing point of the shrine, I looked on and realised the answers of making Motonosumi Inari Shrine so unique. It is due to the far western location, the breathtaking endless view of the blue sea and being surrounded by thick white cotton candy clouds against the stunning contrast of these 123 red torii gates stretching out from the edge of the cliff.

A legend goes around the construction of the shrine. It is believed that;

A white fox appeared at the bedside of a local fisherman in 1955
“Who do you think you should be thankful to for your successful fishing?” the fox said.
The fox related his story and recounted his relationship to this land.
“You need to have a religious ceremony in this place,” said the fox.

The shrine was built after this divine revelation.

Visitors are here to wish for success in business, education, romantic relationship, etc

Beside the stunning scenery I had mentioned above, there is also another interesting one..

Normally at the shrine, a donation box is placed on the ground but at this shrine, the donation box is placed at the top of a five-meter tall torii gate at the entrance of the main approach to the shrine.

It is believed that if you successfully throw money into the box, your wishes will come true.

We gave it a try, it indeed is challenging! After a few attempts Boss and BF succeed in throwing in the money into the box.

At the end of our visit to this shrine, we walked down through the torii gates once again. Walking down is different from walking up. When I was walking up, I felt the spiritual healing but when I was walking down I felt the serenity that is welcoming me ahead...

At the end to the 123rd torii gate, the path will lead you to Ryugu no Shiofuki (Dragon Palace Geyser) This is a phenomenon where waves break against a hole in the cliff and the compressed air shoots the water up into the air. It can reach to the height of 30m during the period of Autumn to Winter. The sight of water shoot up resembles a dragon soaring up the sky so this is how the name come about.

Apparently we did not have a chance to see it but I managed to found a photo from the internet.

Beside this Ryugu no Shiofuki, along the cliffs you get a gorgeous view of the ocean. The rocky faces of the cliffs were being "poked" holes which are due to corrosion. This is particularly impressive when the waves crash against the cliffs.

I am glad that we make a point to visit this one of the most beautiful and yet mostly unexplored sites in Japan, here we are being rewarded with a fantastic backdrop of ocean and an unforgettable experience.

Unfortunately, there is no public transport access to that point since the path is pretty narrow. If you are not travelling by car, only option would be take a taxi from JR Nagato Furuichi station (approx 20mins/ 2200JPY).

Address : 498 Yuyatsuou, Nagato City,Yamaguchi, Japan

Our next destination for our tour is Senjojiki.

360 panaranomic endless view at the height of 333 metres on a hilltop meadow. The wind is big, air is cold, waves is loud, grass is fresh.

There is a cafe, picnic tables, windmill, white torii gate, cliffs, clean restroom, playground and camping ground against the blue ocean, white clouds and green lush grass.

Blue + White + Green = Awesome

This place is very relaxing with the sound of waves crashing behind and the chirpings of birds. How I wish I have a dog beside to run about on the grassland.

However, same like Motonsumi Inari Shrine, you can only access to this place by car.

Address : 1138-1 Heki-naka, Nagato, Yamaguchi Prefecture 759-4402

After all the running in the green, basking in the cold air it is the time to fill up our tummies.

Lunch at Country Kitchen which is located in Senjojiki itself, this petite cozy cafe is located on the hill with breathtaking view. It is managed by 2 young hunks. hahhaha

I like the decoration of this café very much, most of the walls are glass where you can chill in the café while enjoying the wonderful view outside.

The interior decoration is very cozy yet country theme.

This is not a big place and usually you have to queue to dine but we are lucky as there is less visitor during winter and the café was almost empty.

There is even a rooftop too on this café. A fine place to relax.

The menu offer a wide range from local Japanese food to hamburger to waffle to coffee to ice-cream!

Price is a bit steep but it is well worth. The bread is homemade and they use good ingredient to prepare the dishes and it is delicious!

If you are coming during Summer and Autumn, do expect for long queue here as Country Kitchen do not take in any reservation.

Our last stop before we end our trip, we visited Soreine Café & Coffee

Address : 5799 Hekikami, Nagato-shi, Yamaguchi-ken 759-4401, Japan

5 minutes walk from Nagato-Furuichi station. The outlook of this café is rather standout, unique and modern compared to the rest of the building around which are much traditional feel.

Upon entering, the feel of coziness over-whelmed me. The interior decoration is simple yet warm.

Even the toilet is not spared, it is so welcoming that everyone who goes in sure feel great.

The menu is simple yet satisfying!

Managed by old couple who are very friendly and they are surprise to have visitors from Singapore!

BF, Akemi san, owners , me & Boss

So nice that the boss help us check the train's timing without we asking. Japanese are so helpful.

Our day trip to Nagato end here. Leaving this peaceful place was pretty unbearable. How I wish I can go back to Motonosumi Shrine again. The skies is turning dark, we still have another 2.5hrs of journey before we can rest down for the day. I hope I will have the chance to visit Nagato again. By then I believe this place will be thriving with visitors from local and worldwide.

My family and I are avid travellers to Japan for the past few years. Out of 9 regions, we left Shikoku region, Tohoku region and Ryukyu island untouched. Sooner or later we will definitely pay them all a visit to spread our footprint across Japan.

Here are the links to my blogs to other parts of Japan, please pay them a visit: