Yamadera

 This hole in the rock face (above the greenest leaves) was apparently a place for meditation. Throughout Japan many temples have such holes where a monk could go and meditate for long periods, often days, without having to contact other humans.

 This stone lamp post seems to be wearing a stone straw hat.

 This is a tree trunk that is completely covered with pieces of bamboo, apparently for protection against the snow which is very deep here every winter.

 This is the view down through the branches to the next level. If you look carefully, you can see at least three or four people.

 Here the stairs narrowed to not much more than the width of two shoes as the path passed between to large boulders.

This is a second trail that comes down from somewhere above. The next time I visit Yamadera I will follow this path just to see where it goes.