The history of the
Rokujurigoe Kaido Pilgrimage
Rokujurigoe Kaido: the etymology
Rokujurigoe kaido 六十里越街道, literally: "the Highway that goes past the 60 ri", comes from an old unit of distance, the ri 里 (around 654 meters, 0.4 miles); one ri was defined at the time as six chō 町(with one chō equal to about 109 meters).
By this measure, the distance between Hondoji Temple and Oami was exactly 60 ri—about 39.2km (24.36 miles). Because the route also required crossing many mountain passes, it came to be known as the “The Crossing (-goe 超) Road of the 60 Ri” :Rokujurigoe Kaido.
Pilgrims resting at the Kobochaya teahouse on the Rokujurigoe Kaido.
The Oami village seen from the Juotoge crossing on the Rokujurigoe Kaido
The Rokujurigoe Kaido pilgrimage trail is believed to date back to the founding of Churenji Temple in 833 and Dainichibo Temple in 852—Mt. Yudono’s two principal temples, located in the village of Oami (Asahi-mura suburb of Tsuruoka City, Yamagata Prefecture).
According to the Dewa Fudoki (出羽風土記), a scroll compiled in 1792, pilgrims were already walking the Rokujurigoe Kaido to reach Mt. Yudono as early as the Nara period (8th century).
While the trail mainly served as a sacred route connecting worshippers to Mt. Yudono, sacred mountain in Shingon Buddhism (and later part of the Dewa Sanzan sacred peaks in the 16th century), its function extended far beyond religious devotion.
Linking the inland areas of Yamagata Prefecture (nairiku 内陸) with the coastal region of Shonai (shonai 庄内), the road also played a vital strategic and practical role. It offered a convenient passage for military movement, enabling Shonai’s soldiers to access the interior and, thanks to its narrow and rugged terrain, helped defend the coastline from major invasions.
During the Emishi uprisings in the late 8th and early 9th centuries, the Rokujurigoe Kaido also served as a military route. In 792, General Sakanoue no Tamuramaro was dispatched to the Dewa region to subdue the Emishi tribes and is believed to have taken the Rokujurigoe Kaido to reach their northern settlements.
Centuries later, during the Edo period (1603–1868), the trail remained a vital artery of travel. The lords of Shonai and their retainers regularly used the route to fulfill their sankin-kōtai obligations, journeying to the shogunal capital of Edo (modern-day Tokyo) every two years. In addition to warriors and officials, the trail also saw the steady passage of merchants and farmers, who used it to transport and sell goods in the inland cities of the nairiku region.
Why has the Rokujurigoe Kaido
popularity declined with time..?
Since its earliest days, Mt. Yudono has been deeply influenced by Shingon Buddhism, a major school of Esoteric Buddhism. According to legend, the sect’s founder—Kūkai (also known as Kōbō Daishi)—personally sanctified Mt. Yudono in the 9th century, establishing it as a sacred site of esoteric practice. Over the centuries, pilgrims from across northern Japan flocked to the mountain, recognizing its profound significance within the Shingon tradition. In 1733, official records noted an astonishing 157,000 pilgrims visiting the site.
In the late 16th century, between 1570 and 1592, Mt. Yudono was formally incorporated into the triad of the Dewa Sanzan, replacing Mt. Chōkai as the third sacred peak. This decision was primarily driven by geography: Mt. Chōkai lay too far from the other two mountains—Mt. Haguro and Mt. Gassan—while Mt. Yudono formed a more natural continuation of the same mountain range. Despite significant differences in spiritual character and tradition from Haguro and Gassan, the temples of Mt. Yudono accepted this new designation, believing it would not harm their practice or standing.
That harmony was disrupted in 1868, when the Meiji Restoration replaced the Tokugawa shogunate with a new central government seeking to construct a unified national identity. This effort placed Shinto at the heart of state ideology and led to shinbutsu bunri (神仏分離), the enforced separation of Shinto and Buddhism. Religions considered “primitive” or “superstitious,” such as Shugendō (Japanese mountain asceticism), were outlawed, and in 1869, the government ordered the whole Dewa Sanzan mountain group to be converted into Shinto sites, starting with Mt. Haguro.
In 1873, Mt. Yudono was forcibly transformed into a Shinto shrine, despite fierce resistance from its main temples, Chūrenji and Dainichibō. Buddhist icons and statues were removed—some preserved in the temples, others destroyed. Buddhist monuments along the Rokujurigoe Kaidō were damaged or desecrated; statues were beheaded or smashed. For countless pilgrims, this marked a devastating loss. To them, Mt. Yudono and its sacred trail had been stripped of their spiritual essence.
With the mountain’s Buddhist identity erased, the pilgrimage along the Rokujurigoe Kaidō gradually faded. Today, the trail is walked mostly by hikers, history enthusiasts, and nature lovers—its once vibrant role as a living path of faith now remembered in silence.
Hike the Rokujurigoe Kaido to walk upon the history of Buddhist segregation in Japan!
Mt. Yudono's torii was built in 1993.
Beheaded Jizô statues near the Dokko Chaya Spring, on the Rokujurigoe Kaido Pilgrimage route
Sources:
Asahimurashi gekan ("Asahi village's history, last volume") 朝日村史 下巻, Asahimura murashihensan iinkan 朝日村村史偏さん委員会, Asahimura 朝日村,1985, p.65-69, p.72-73.
TOGAWA Ansho 戸川安章, Dewa sanzan shugendo no kenkyu ("Studies of the Dewa Sanzan Shugendo") 出羽三山修験道の研究, Kosei Shuppansha 佼成出版社, 1973.
Asahimurashi jokan ("Asahi village's history, first volume") 朝日村史 上巻, Asahimura murashihensan iinkan 朝日村村史偏さん委員会, Asahimura 朝日村,1985, p.145-155.
Inishie no kodai kara gendai made o tazunete: Rokujurigoekaido いにしえの古代から現代までを訪ねて—六十里越街道の歴史, 社団法人東北建設協会, 1992.
Ministry of Land Infrastructure Transport and Tourism Tohoku Regional Development Bureau webpage: https://www.thr.mlit.go.jp/sakata/road/60history/002.html
Climate & geography
The Rokujurigoe Kaido is a 34km (21 miles) long trail that crosses Tsuruoka City and Nishikawa Town in Yamagata Prefecture. The elevation gain reaches 1200 meters (3937 feet). The starting point of the first course runs from Hachiman Shrine in Tsuruoka City (see on Google Maps) and the ending point of the full course ends in Shizu Onsen in Nishikawa Town (see on Google Maps). The temperature at the highest point of the trail (Mt. Yudono's Yudonosan shrine) is 7°C lower on average than the temperature in the plains so please pack warmer clothes with you when hiking the trail.
The area has a continental climate, with snowy winters and warm summers.
The snowy season last from December to early June, the fresh green leaves season starts in May, the hot season starts in mid-June and ends in late August, and the red leaves season is generally expected from early to mid-November.
Hiking season:
JUNE 10TH - NOVEMBER 3RD*
*Please don't attempt hiking outside the hiking season without one of our guides.
10-22°C
What to wear:
Light hiking clothes, rainwear, fleece vest
MAY - JUNE
25-37°C
JULY - AUGUST
What to wear:
Light clothes, insect repellent, hiking boots, hat
5-16°C
SEPTEMBER- NOVEMBER
What to wear:
Warm hiking clothes, hiking boots, rainwear
-5-7°C
DECEMBER - APRIL
What to wear:
Skiing gear, snow boots, snow grips.
DON'T ATTEMPT TO HIKE OUTSIDE THE HIKING SEASON WITHOUT ONE OF OUR GUIDES
The Bandai-Asahi National Park
Mt. Yudono and sections of the Rokujurigoe Kaidō pilgrimage trail are part of the Bandai-Asahi National Park—the second-largest national park in Japan. Spanning 1,863 km² (719 mi²), the park stretches across three prefectures: in Yamagata, it encompasses the sacred peaks of the Dewa Sanzan and the Asahi mountain range; in Fukushima, it includes the Azuma Mountains, Mt. Bandai, and Lake Inawashiro; and in Niigata, it reaches into the Mt. Iide area.
Bandai-Asahi National Park is protected not only for its breathtaking landscapes and biodiversity but also for its deep spiritual and cultural heritage. The area is home to rare and endemic plant and animal species, along with ancient beech forests that have stood undisturbed for centuries.
We kindly ask all visitors to help preserve this natural and sacred environment. Please carry out all trash, avoid picking wild plants, and refrain from disturbing local wildlife while hiking in the Bandai-Asahi area.
Mt. Haguro's entrance torii gate in front of Mt. Gassan