Kumano Kodo - Kohechi
熊野古道 小辺路
A tough mountain pilgrim path of about 72 km between the Buddhist centre of Kōyasan and the Kumano Hongu Taisha shrine in Japan's Kii Peninsula.
At a glance
- Starts in
- Kōyasan
- Ends in
- Kumano Hongu Taisha
- Length
- 72 km
- On foot
- ≈ 3–4 days
- Countries
- Japan
About the trail
The Kohechi crosses three passes above 1,000 m and links the sacred mountain of Kōyasan with the Kumano shrines, making it the steepest and quietest of the Kumano Kodo routes. It passes remote villages and follows old stone paths.
Many walkers begin with a night in a temple lodging on Kōyasan. Villages are few and far apart, so most people take four days, book small family inns ahead and send heavy bags on by courier. The passes can be under snow in winter.
Trails it meets
No source gives the days on foot, so they are worked out from the length at 20–25 km a day.