In part two of our two-part story (read part one here), Great Walks heads further into Japan's Okinawa region and discovers wonderful people, food, customs and walks.
In line with Okinawa’s celebrated longevity, nourishment and fitness also align synergistically on the Motobu Peninsula. At Mijukumono Café in Nakijin village, choose to dine on a banquet of shikuwasa-marinated roast pork, sashimi, sea grapes, shitake mushrooms, red cabbage and local beans, all sourced from the island.
And in keeping with how things work on this island, you can hike direct from your table with local, Kazumi Yokozawa.
Walk guide Kazumi leads satiated diners along the nearby Banta Hike, an ancient trail considered sacred. Crossing a stream, walkers are asked to acknowledge the shrine entering the forest, to respect the spirits that may be present in the trees.
The stone-paved mountain path journeys through braided vines, fig trees, sunlit ferns and shaded webs spun by the joro spider. Sharp eyes might spot the endangered ground-dwelling Okinawa rail. Expect an eardrum-bursting cacophony of cicadas sounding their sirens. Unique to northern Okinawa, these amorous insects are larger in size and sound than in the south.
Saru no koshikake (monkey seat shelf fungi) sit high on dead trees, while healthy green elephant ears clothe the woody toes of banyan trees. Okinawan folklore claims that if your heart is pure enough, you’ll see the little kijimuna tree fairy hanging around the large banyan trees (I’m not sure what I did wrong in life…).
Okinawa’s tall prefectural tree, the Ryukyu pine, sports ovoid brown cones. Below, ramie nettles grow. Traditionally, they were used to make crease-free, silk-like clothing, fishing nets and upholstery. It’s non-stinging. But hikers mustn’t touch the butterfly larvae resting on it. It’s a skin irritant. What they can touch, however, are the delicious butterfly-pea cakes that Kazumi might unearth for afternoon forest tea (pure heart-depending).
The UNESCO World Cultural Heritage site of Nakijin Castle ruins eventually appears. Wandering between the mortar-free drystone walls of the 13th-century-built castle reveals ammonite fossils embedded in limestone. A roofed shrine faces north-east in the direction of Kouri island, towards which, locals pray.
This offshore island is accessed from Motobu Peninsula’s Yagaji Island via the 1,960m-long typhoon-proof Kouri Ohaashi bridge. The causeway tracks across a glass-flat body of water rippled only by reef shark fins and sea turtle heads.
The easy walk leads to Kouri Ocean Tower, which rises like a whitewashed lighthouse above manicured gardens. From here, completing the island’s 1km circumference leads to coves with eye-catching rock formations. The twin heart-shaped sea stacks at Tinu beach are the main geological drawcard on Kouri, dubbed The Island of Love.
For more info on hiking on Okinawa or other parts of Japan click here.
Words and photos_Marie Barbieri