Aso City and Takamori, Kumamoto Prefecture

Aso through the seasons

From the Milk Road along the outer rim, I caught sight of the towns and rice fields spread across the caldera floor all at once. "I didn't know Aso was this vast," I heard myself say. Along with grassland scenes from every season, I've gathered stories of Aso Shrine's tower gate, rebuilt after the Kumamoto earthquake, and the legend of Ugetoiwa, the enormous opening through a mountain.

A woman sits in the open doorway of a red convertible, watching flames and smoke move across a distant grassy slope.

SpringFrom February to around April

Aso's Grassland Burns

A line of flames was creeping slowly across a distant slope. I was about to open the door and step out, but instead I curled up in my seat with my knees hugged to my chest and couldn't move.

I couldn't see them, but there had to be people walking beneath that smoke, checking whether the fire had gone out. Thinking of them, simply calling it beautiful didn't feel like enough.

SummerJuly to August

Kusasenri-ga-hama

At Kusasenri-ga-hama, I tried a guided horse ride for the first time. The horse was much taller than it had looked from the ground, and even with the guide holding the reins, I gripped the saddle with both hands.

My friend teased me about my serious face as she walked beside me. I laughed and finally lifted my head. Only then did I notice smoke rising from Nakadake across the pond.

At Daikanbo before sunrise, a woman wrapped in a blanket yawns before Aso's Five Peaks, which rise above a sea of clouds. Some distance away, her friend tosses her a can of coffee; a red car and a yellow car are behind them.

AutumnAutumn through winter

Sea of Clouds at Daikanbo

Early morning at Daikanbo. The caldera was full of clouds, with only the outline of Aso's Five Peaks floating above them. In the car park behind us were the red and yellow cars we'd driven up in.

Wrapped in a blanket, I was trying to make out the head of the sleeping figure in the mountain silhouette when a huge yawn escaped me. My friend tossed me a can of coffee, and somehow, even mid-yawn, my hand caught it.

Amid the snow and rime at Kusasenri in winter, a woman crouches to photograph a frost-edged branch with her phone.

WinterUntil around mid-February

Winter Rime at Kusasenri

In winter, even the pond at Kusasenri had frozen over. I'd come to photograph the mountains in the distance, but the moment I spotted a slender branch edged with frost, I was already crouching down beside it.

Every time I tried to focus, I caught myself holding my breath. I was afraid even my breath would melt the frost, so I turned my face away to exhale. That may have been a little too cautious.

History

Aso Shrine

The tower gate at Aso Shrine was reassembled over several years after it collapsed in the Kumamoto earthquake. Looking up at it, I saw it was much larger than I'd imagined. Thinking that it had fallen once and now stood again, I could hardly bring myself to take the first step toward it.

According to the shrine records, it was founded in the 9th year of Emperor Kōrei's reign (282 BCE). The shrine has more than 2,000 years of history.
The tower gate is the largest in Kyushu and has long been a symbol of Aso Shrine. It stands in the middle of the approach that runs north to south.
Reassembly of the tower gate, which collapsed in the 2016 Kumamoto earthquake, was carried out from fiscal 2019 through fiscal 2023.

Spiritual Sites

Kamishikimi Kumanoimasu Shrine

Rows of stone lanterns lined the approach at Kamishikimi Kumanoimasu Shrine. Beyond them, Ugetoiwa had an enormous opening through the mountain, and I couldn't help staring up at it with my mouth hanging open.

Nearly 100 stone lanterns line the approach. Leaves from the sacred nagi tree are hard to tear across. It's said people wore them or gave them to daughters when they married, believing the leaves would keep their bonds from breaking.
Behind the main sanctuary, Ugetoiwa has an enormous opening through the mountain, more than 10 metres tall and wide. It's said that Kihachi Hōshi, a follower of Takeiwatatsu-no-Mikoto, kicked it open. I found myself seriously wondering just how big his foot must have been.
The great opening through the rocky mountain has become a symbol of achieving difficult goals. It's believed to bring good fortune in passing exams and winning.

Official Sources

Explore More Places

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