A Walk Around Shodoshima Day 7
The North Coast
Sunday, February 7th 2016

I take the first bus out of Tonosho Port and get off in front of the Great Kannon. The bus has climbed steadily all the way and the road now drops down towards the coast. Looming above the hills the 50 meter tall statue of Kannon is all pink, orange, and golden in the light of the sunrise, but the warm colours belie the bitterly cold wind that is blowing.

The Great Kannon of Shodoshima catches the first rays of dawnThough it promises to be a sunny day, this is the first time I have felt cold here on Shodoshima and so spend a few minutes sheltering from the wind in a bus shelter. Heading down the road, the coast of Okayama is clearly visible across the water, illuminated by the golden light of the sunrise.
It's not far to the first temple of the day, number 75, a fairly substantial temple with several small halls and a concrete main hall. Still in the shadow of the mountains, it's cold and there is no-one around so I don't tarry. I cross over the main road and head down a narrow lane and then a path to reach Sangyo-an Hermitage, the okunoin "inner hall" of temple 76 lower down in the next village. I like these hermitages -not at all austere and very welcoming.

This one has a spring with a statue of Kobo Daishi, the focus of this pilgrimage. The spring and statue has a natural roof of some kind of dense bush. I carry on downhill but before reaching 76 I follow the hill around and head up t...