- Time of past OR future Camino
- 2012, 2015, 2018, 2019, 2022, 2024
We have just come back from Japan having walked part of the Kumano Kodo - it is a network or routes linking several shrines and holy places rather than a route or routes to one destination like the Camino de Santiago. I walked the Nakahechi, by far the most popular and best-known, and the Kohechi, less well-known but also quite well-travelled, in particular by Japanese people.
There are a couple of other differences as well, so for the benefit of any of you thinking of walking the Kumano Kodo, here they are:
Having said all that, it was a great experience. The landscape is beautiful, and all the people we met were extraordinarily kind, patient and helpful, even more than Spanish people and that is a pretty high bar. We plan to go back.
There are a couple of other differences as well, so for the benefit of any of you thinking of walking the Kumano Kodo, here they are:
- Accommodation - there are no albergues, not even a system of refuges and shelters. You have to book in advance. There is high demand, especially in Spring and Autumn so you need to do this well beforehand. There are two ways to do this, either through the Kii Tanabe Tourist office (which apparently is maddeningly slow and cumbersome) or through an organised tour. We chose a self-guided tour. Kumano Kodo Travel are the biggest. We used an Australian company called 'Home Comfort's Hiking' and they were excellent. The accommodation was mainly in Minshukus, i.e. homestay, a room in someone's house so you get a very real introduction to Japanese lifestyle and culture. They provide dinner, breakfast and if there is nowhere to get lunch, a bento box for later, all absolutely delicious. Wild camping is technically illegal in Japan, but it goes on. A lot of the Japanese pilgrims we met or passed were camping out. It is quite wild terrain so they all very well-prepared and equipped. I wouldn't advise it.
- The track - the Camino de Santiago is mainly a walking track or path. The Kumano Kodo is much more of a hiking trail. It is often uneven or slippery, and a lot of it is very steep so parts of it put a lot of strain on your stamina and your knees. But the Nakahechi is doable for anyone with a normal level of fitness. The Kohechi is a different proposition. The Kohechi is mostly a straightforward hiking trail. However, it is very steep with up to 900 mts of ascent in a few kilometres of distance followed by an equally steep descent down the other side. It is very hard work. There are also one or two sections where it can be treacherous. The trail traverses slopes so on one side there is a very steep drop-off. The path is also quite narrow - wide enough for one person to walk but not for two to walk side by side or pass each other. Most of of the slopes are wooded, so if you slipped and fell you wouldn't fall very far, but you could injure yourself quite badly if you were unlucky. Unfortunately, there are sometimes also landslips where there is nothing but loose scree between you and the bottom of the mountain. This is very challenging if you get vertigo. Even without vertigo, you need to be very careful. The waymarks were good. There are not little yellow arrows every 100 mts or so but there was clear signposting at every junction, not that there were many, and although I had wikilocs trails downloaded, I never used them and was never lost or even unsure of the way.
Having said all that, it was a great experience. The landscape is beautiful, and all the people we met were extraordinarily kind, patient and helpful, even more than Spanish people and that is a pretty high bar. We plan to go back.
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