A Walk Around Shodoshima
Day 6, To the Great Kannon Part II
Saturday February 6th

After a delicious lunch with mostly female company it was time to press on. As pleasurable as lunch was, it had taken almost two hours out of a very short winter's day, and if I was going to get where I needed to before dark I had to pick up the pace.

A kilometer or so up the quiet narrow lane and I arrived at the small village of Takinomiya where I enjoyed a drink while exploring the local Yasaka Shrine. Nearby was Takinomiya-an, a small hermitage and number 71 of the pilgrimage. The bell tower was moved here from the Yasaka Shrine when the government separated the Buddhas and Kami in early Meiji.

Approaching Kasagataki, ShodoshimaI take the well signed footpath that heads up towards the top of the ridge. I have been climbing gently since mid-morning and so the last stretch to the ridge is quite quick. The ridge is very narrow and every now and then I pass a statue. As the trail starts to get steep I come upon a curious circular room of concrete and above it a statue of Fudo Myo. Down below, the valley I walked down on day 4 stretches away into the distance.
The trail now starts down the opposite side of the ridge. It is very rocky and the trail is not at all clear but it's fairly obvious where I'm heading. Soon I reach a wide path and a bell tower and then lines of statues. I've reached Kasagataki, the okunoin of temple 72, Ryukoji, which is located lower down at the base of the mount...