Fukuchiyama 福智山 & Takatoriyama 鷹取山 hiking in Tagawa rainy edition! 2019/7/14

Fukuchiyama 福智山 & Takatoriyama 鷹取山 hiking in Tagawa rainy edition! 2019/7/14

For my third trip to these wonderful mountains in Tagawa in central Fukuoka I decided to take a friend and brave it on a rainy day. We had good matches of light rain and brightened up as the day went on. The views from the mountain were completely masked in mist and clouds. However it gave us a great change to focus on the details and enjoy the journey more than the end. 

Access: The route was the same as my first trip and can be found here 

Gear: Obviously if you decide to go on a rainy day make sure you take a pocket umbrella for the walk to the trailhead and pack a raincoat. I also got the chance to test my pack cover (Great value from Amazon!) and trail gaiters. With the end point being the Onsen it really helps you worry less about getting wet or muddy on the journey. 

Below are some of the highlights from the hike: 

Fungi: As the weather gets warmer and more humid there was a fantastic variety of Fungi to be found in the mountains. 

Views: Although the wide landscape view from the Summit of both mountains was obscured almost entirely there were plenty more views of the forest which can only be seen on a rainy day. The atmosphere is wonderful and worth the hassle to see. 

The streams and river: For a large part of the hike you need to effectively follow the mountain stream up. There are plenty of crossings which on a dry day are simple. On this day they were a lot more hazardous as the stream was rushing with a high volume of water. But it also provided us with some of the best shots and added to the adventure. 

The creatures and wildlife: Most animals were hiding from the rain. However there were plenty of frogs and crabs (One was even attempting to climb a tree!) along the route. Also there were plenty of insects, bees and huge ants at the summit. 

The waterfall: The waterfall at the end of the hike was wonderful the last time. But with the increased water flow it looks even more stunning and easily one of my favourite mountain waterfalls in the area.