Kushimoto/Nachikatsuura in Hobby / Cultural experience

• Age 6～Age 60
• 4～5 hours
• 14:30

Deep in the mountains of Kumano, the village of Irokawa (also known as Irokawa) may seem like any other rural area, but it's a slightly unusual place, with over half of its residents residing in the area. Though the population is small at just over 300, many families have settled here, and the village is filled with the lively voices of children. Irokawa is actually home to more deer, wild boar, and other animals than people. In recent years, as food supplies in the forest have become scarce, there have been a series of incidents of deer descending into the village and eating the vegetables and rice cultivated by farmers (a phenomenon known as animal damage). Irokawa is home to several hunters, each with their own goals, from protecting the fields to eating the meat. While their goals vary, they share a common commitment to not waste the lives they capture. In addition to using the meat for food, they also craft deer antlers into art objects and tan deer leather for artists to create accessories. This experience begins with entering the mountains with a hunter to search for signs of wild animals. You'll then be given an explanation of how to capture the animal, and even get to experience butchering and eating it. *Depending on the capture situation, you may be asked to butcher the animal from a carcass. ~Experience Schedule~ ⚫︎2:30 PM Meeting/Orientation. First, we'll break the ice and explain precautions to take when entering the mountains. ⚫︎Enter the mountains with the hunter and search for signs of wild animals. Patrol with the hunter! They might be caught in a trap. ⚫︎Deer butchering experience. We'll butcher the deer together until it's ready to eat. ⚫︎BBQ of butchered venison. Don't miss the hunter-style eating experience. ⚫︎18:30 End. *I can't speak much English. Communication will mainly be via a translator.

• In Door Activity
• For Groups

• Age 13～Age 99
• Within 1 hour
• 10:00 / 11:00 / 12:00 / 13:00 / 14:00 / 15:00

This is a high-class kimono dressing experience offered by a long-established rental costume store. After the kimono dressing experience while you are explained about the types and uses of kimono, you will be photographed in a colored uchikake at the store studio (men will be photographed in a crested hakama). The photographed data will be sent to you by email within two weeks.

• For Rainy Days
• In Door Activity

• Age 18～Age 60
• 2～3 hours
• 09:00 / 11:30 / 14:00

An outdoor sauna experience with a water bath in the Ota River, a clear stream whose water source is Nachi Primeval Forest, just like Nachi Falls, the best waterfall in Japan. The venue, Daitaiji, is a 1,200-year-old Yakushi sacred place where you can experience zazen and sutra copying. Listen to a staff sermon about the close relationship between Zen and the sauna, and write your wishes on a wooden stick. Throw the gomagi into the wood stove by yourself and make a wish to Jizo-san. A resurrection experience that looks at the state of mind through Zen. 30 seconds from the tent to the river. The shortest class comfort in Kansai! The river is so deep that you can soak up to your head, and there are shallows where you can lie down. No need to pour water because it flows. Dive directly from the sauna to the river surface is also OK. ~ Flow of the day ~ ① Check in at the reception at the main entrance 5 minutes before the meeting time. Confirm the location of the sermon and changing clothes. ② At the venue, receive a sermon on the deep relationship between Zen and sauna. ③ Write your wishes on the gomaki and visit Yakushido where the principal image of worship is enshrined. Change clothes and go to the river. ④ Throw the gomagi into the wood stove and make a wish to Jizo. ⑤ When it gets hot, dive into the river without pouring water. ⑥ Purify yourself in the Ota River, which has the same water source as Nachi Falls. ⑦ Once your body is in order, listen to the gentle breeze blowing and the chirping of birds, and prepare your mind together.

• For Groups