Ehime: Mt. Ishizuchi Rewards Climbers with Spectacular View, Writer Experiences Pull of Mountain Firsthand

By Ryusei Maruyama / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer

11:13 JST, August 23, 2025

SAIJO, Ehime — Straddling Saijo and Kumakogen in Ehime Prefecture, Mt. Ishizuchi is the highest mountain in western Japan, standing at 1,982 meters above sea level.

As a rookie reporter who started this past spring, I took up the challenge of climbing this sacred mountain, which countless people have revered since ancient times.

The annual grand festival to open the mountain was held on July 1. At 7 a.m., men wearing white garb were in high spirits at Jojusha Shrine, one of Ishizuchi Shrine’s four shrines. Meanwhile, devotees were divided into three groups and ready to carry three divine statues to Chojosha Shrine, which is located at the summit, while chanting “Wasshoi.”

Children around elementary school age took the lead, energetically running up the mountain while shouting. In stark contrast, I was quickly out of breath, having almost no mountain climbing experience.

A worshipper I spoke to on the mountain trail said he had come all the way from Oita Prefecture. Realizing Mt. Ishizuchi attracts people from all over the country, my excitement to reach the summit grew.

About an hour after my climb started, I took a break and bought a sweet drink called “Chikara Ameyu” at a shop. I was surprised to hear that the shop owner carried drinking water and other products up the mountain on his own.

After the break, I faced the first hurdle: the 33-meter-long first climbing chain. The men at the front carried ropes and used the chain to climb the cliff. Following them, devotees carrying the divine statues on their backs, climbed up quickly by using the ropes, which had been thrown down.

I somehow managed to climb the first chain and the 65-meter-long second chain. Then the 68-meter-long third chain appeared before me. It hung down from a sheer cliff, with almost no place for climbers to put their feet.

I made up my mind to climb and grasped the chain. Fear and fatigue made my arms tremble. I could not see the ground when I looked down, as it was covered with the mist.

At that time, I heard people cheering me on from above and below, saying things like, “Be careful and take your time but keep trying.” These encouraging words gave me the strength to grip the chain again.

I was wondering how much time had passed since I began climbing the third chain, when suddenly the sky spread out wide, and I realized that I had reached the summit.

The shrine at the summit looked like it was floating on the clouds. Mist surrounded the peak like a sea of white, and the devotees, who had arrived earlier, placed the divine statues at the shrine and offered prayers.

“Every time I come here, I feel cleansed,” said Keisuke Shiimori, 39, a comedian from the Yoshimoto Shinkigeki company who used to climb the mountain whenever he returned to Kumakogen, his hometown, where he currently lives.

U.S.-born Benjamin Gross, who lives in Seiyo in the prefecture, said he is interested in Shugendo, a fusion of mountain worship and Buddhism, and has climbed the mountain multiple times.

“Last year, it rained heavily, but this year was perfect, with sunny skies,” he said.

During the ritual, the devotees celebrated reaching the summit by lifting each other up in the air.

People with different origins, professions and ages encouraged and supported each other and finally reached the summit. The sacred mountain draws people to it, gives them challenges and rewards them with a spectacular view from its summit. Even for me, who had never been interested in mountain climbing, this experience has become one I will never forget.

On that day, I experienced the “pull” of the mountain firsthand.

Mt. Ishizuchi

The mountain has been worshipped as a sacred mountain since ancient times and is considered one of the Seven Holy Mountains of Japan, along with Mt. Omine in Nara Prefecture and Mt. Fuji. En no Ozunu, the founder of Shugendo, established the mountain as a site of worship in 685. It also flourished as a training ground for mountain Buddhists.Jojusha Shrine is located about 70% of the way up from the base to the summit, and to get to the shrine, take the ropeway up to Sancho-Joju Station, which is at an altitude of 1,300 meters, and then walk for another 20 to 30 minutes.

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