NAKA-HECHI is one of the KUMANO KODO PILGRIMAGE ROUTES in Wakayama.
We started walking at Hosshin-mon Oji.
*Photos were taken before the typhoon in Sept. 2011.
A signpost is located about every 500m, so you can know rough distance.
Beehives for local bees can be seen there.
Unique shaped local house to protect from rain. Kumano district is one of the places where it rains a lot.
Photo spot!? Wooden dolls say "Welcome to Kumano Kodo."
Natural landscapes are very beautiful.
Long pilgrimage route.
Tea field.
At Fushi-ogami Oji. This area was used for shooting "Honma-mon," a NHK morning drama.
It is only a halfway...!
Finally arrived at KUMANO HONGU GRAND SHRINE. It is one of the Kumano Sanzan in the UNESCO World Heritage site "Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the Kii Mountain Range".
The main deity enshrined is Kumano Gongen (熊野権現). All of the ancient Kumano Kodō Pilgrimage routes lead to this Grand Shrine.
The gateway to the Kumano Hongu Grand Shrine.
