Located in the south of the Osumi Peninsula in Kyushu, Japan, Yakushima Island, also known as the “Alps of the Sea”, is listed as a UNESCO World Natural Heritage Site since 1993 for its rich natural environment and extensive, primitive forest area. Yakushima Island is also the place where acclaimed animation director Hayao Miyazaki visited for inspiration for his popular film “Princess Mononoke”. You can’t afford to miss this place if you are fond of nature photography and hiking!

The Shiratani Unsuikyo Ravine, our destination this time, is located in the northeast of Yakushima Island. It is a forest area with rich species of huge trees and covered in green, unique ground plants like ferns and mosses. Its beauty has attracted director Hayao Miyazaki to come and visit this place several times for inspiration in order to faithfully reproduce the moss-covered forest setting in his animated film “Princess Mononoke”. The hike takes about 4-5 hours round trip including rest time. It is a very popular hiking course as it is a relatively easy one suitable for beginners and intermediate hikers.

Located in the southwest of Kagoshima, Yakushima Island is surrounded by the sea. To visit, we can take direct flight from Hong Kong to Kagoshima, followed by ferry or plane. A cheaper option for travelers with a tight budget is to take Jetfoil from Kagoshima Port to Miyanoura Port of Yakushima Island, and the travelling time is around 2 hours. Alternatively, you can travel by direct flight from Fukuoka, Osaka or Tokyo, and the flight time is around 1 hour 10 minutes to 1 hour 40 minutes.

The three main bus routes on Yakushima Island, namely the Nagata to Oko-no-taki Waterfall Route which runs round the island, the Miyanoura to Shiratani Unsuikyo Ravine Route and the Yakusugi Shizenkan Museum to Arakawa Tozan Route, can take you to almost all major sites on the island. Accommodations are mostly located in Miyanoura or Anbo. To visit the Shiratani Unsuikyo Ravine, you can take the Miyanoura to Shiratani Unsuikyo Ravine Route directly to the terminus if you stay at Miyanoura, and the journey time is approximately 30 minutes. If you stay at Anbo, you need to take the round-the-island route first to get to Miyanoura, followed by the Miyanoura to Shiratani Unsuikyo Ravine Route. For the bus timetable, please refer to http://yakukan.jp/trans/index.html (You are also advised to get the most updated bus timetable at the Tourist Information Centre upon arrival.)

The Shiratani Unsuikyo Ravine offers a number of hiking courses for you to choose from, based on your own physical fitness level and sightseeing interests. There is clear signage everywhere so it’s not easy to get lost. Just bring enough food and travel light as you can have as much mountain water as you want on your journey. If you are physically fit and wish to see more, follow the course 1→2→5→4→6→7→8→9→10→11→13→14→15→16→13→11→12→6→4→3→2→1 as shown on the map above which will take you to all the sightseeing points within the Shiratani Unsuikyo Ravine. The way up to the Taikoiwa Rock is the most difficult section in this course. Just skip no. 15 and 16 if you are beginner in hiking.

When it comes to outfits, in addition to wear according to the season of visit, some extra items are also necessary due to the high humidity and rapidly changing weather of Yakushima Island. Bring a raincoat with you as rains may come suddenly even on a sunny day. Wear clothes with materials that wick sweat away and dry fast, and put your extra clothes, camera, mobile phone in a ziplock plastic bag. Besides, wear a pair of anti-slip, waterproof hiking shoes as some sections of the course are covered with mosses and you may need to cross some streams. If necessary, you can also bring hiking poles to aid your walking.

There are a lot to photograph within the Shiratani Unsuikyo Ravine - from the wide-angle view of the beautiful scenery underneath the mountain when you are at the top of the Taikoiwa Rock, to the close-up shots of moss-covered stone steps and the enchanting green forest of climbing vines and cedar trees. A high-quality, lightweight standard zoom lens such as EF 24-70mm f/2.8L II USM can ensure easy capture of different topics as well as high mobility. Covering the commonly used focal range from wide-angle, standard to mid-telephoto, this lens can meet your various shooting needs from sweeping landscape to anything that happens within close range. In addition, this lens offers a large aperture that is favorable for shooting on the go in dim ravine where huge trees reach into the sky.