Mt. Nenotomari

Mt. Nenotomari (Nenotomariyama, 907 m) rises in the northwest of Kiho Town, Mie Prefecture, and is the highest peak in the town and one of the 100 Famous Mountains of Kansai. It carries a first-order triangulation point.
From the summit there is a sweeping view of the Kumano Sea to the south and the Kumano River and the ranges of the Kii Mountains to the north. The mountain is climbed as a loop from the Kirihara trailhead, with a steep climb of iron ladders and scree, taking a standard 2 hours up and 2 hours down. By public transport you reach Kami-Kirihara from JR Shingū Station on the Kiho Town Bus Aionodani Line, then walk the Kirihara-Asari forest road to the trailhead.

The start is the Kirihara trailhead; an iron ladder right at the trailhead leads into a steep scree climb, then a wooded ridge to the summit, with the descent usually looping down the Kirihara ridge.
Mt. Nenotomari is a peak of Kumano in the far south of Mie Prefecture and the highest point in Kiho Town. Its summit has a first-order triangulation point, with the Kumano Sea to the south and the Ōmine mountains to the north. The best season is spring to early winter; watch for leeches in summer. The Kirihara-Asari forest road is closed on the Asari side by a landslide, so enter from the Kami-Kirihara side. The trail is steep with much scree and is slippery after rain.

*Information last checked: unverified

1. [Outbound] Shingū Station → Kami-Kirihara (Kirihara trailhead)
2. [Return] Kami-Kirihara → Shingū Station

1. [Outbound] Shingū Station → Kami-Kirihara (Kirihara trailhead)

To reach the trailhead, take the Kiho Town Bus Aionodani Line from JR Shingū Station to its terminus at Kami-Kirihara (about 35 minutes, flat fare 100 yen), then walk the Kirihara-Asari forest road to the Kirihara trailhead. The Aionodani Line runs six times a day each way; for a day hike the early weekday 7:20 departure from Shingū Station gives the most time. There is an unpaved forest-road walk from Kami-Kirihara to the trailhead, so to skip it you can take a taxi straight to the Kirihara trailhead from JR Shingū Station. Shingū Station is a main station on the JR Kisei Main Line (Kinokuni Line).

Bus (outbound): Shingū Station → Kami-Kirihara (Kiho Town Bus Aionodani Line)

Taxi: from JR Shingū Station to the Kirihara trailhead via the forest road is about 20 km and 40 minutes, roughly 6,000–7,000 yen. Kumano Daiichi Kotsu Shingū office (tel. 0735-22-6311) can be used. By car: from National Route 42 at Narukawa take Prefectural Route 35 to Kami-Kirihara, then go up the Kirihara-Asari forest road to a car park (about 10 spaces) at the Kirihara trailhead.

Reference: [Kiho Town Bus timetable (Aionodani Line)]

2. [Return] Kami-Kirihara → Shingū Station

After descending, walk back down the Kirihara-Asari forest road from the Kirihara trailhead to the Kami-Kirihara bus stop and take the Aionodani Line to Shingū Station. The 13:15 and 15:20 departures from Kami-Kirihara are convenient, with the last bus at 17:00; if the timing does not match, descend by the taxi you booked on the way in.

Bus (return): Kami-Kirihara → Shingū Station (Kiho Town Bus Aionodani Line)

Reference: [Kiho Town Bus timetable (Aionodani Line)]

Photo by Yama0904