A rest house built specifically for Ohenro-san. Ian and I sat inside and had snacks and something to drink as well as a rest. We were not able to stay as long as I would have like because 5 o'clock was approaching fast, and five is the witching hour for Ohenro-san. That is the time that the temples stop stamping the books. If you arrive after five, you can not get your book stamped until 9 a.m. the next morning.

The path was steep but there were stairs, not just loose rocks. However, I my rate of climbing it was looking more and more like we might not make it by five. Finally, we made a decision: Ian, who is a lot younger and stronger then me, would go on ahead and get both our books stamped. He would then wait for me to arrive and we would explore the temple a little, very little, before going on to our accomodations for the night.

It was a very strange, but nice, feeling to be completely alone on the side of a mountain - a long way from the nearest people. However, I proceded faster than I expected and arrived at the temple gate just a little before five.


The approach to the gate at Temple #22The main gate at Temple #22. The trash cans and fire buckets added a certain charm to the scene.
Inside a window in one of the buildings was this carving of animals fighting. It was extremely well done.
The white things are some kind of offerings that were hung on a cross beam in a building. I have no idea who put them there or why, but they were obviously put there be the local members of the temple.