Aichi · Asuke, ToyotaNo.484★★★Open in map →

Korankei Gorge

natureThe classic — done right

A short run of the Tomoe River in Asuke, the old post town at the eastern edge of Toyota, and the best-known maple valley in central Japan. The trees were planted rather than found, which is why they line the whole length of the walk.

FromNagoya Station
~2 hrMeitetsu bus, ~70 min
Get off atKorankei bus stop (Meitetsu Bus, Okazaki–Asuke line)
On foot
Korankei Gorge

Directions ↗

Where it is

27 more notes in Aichi · open the map →

What to look for — in walking order

Machizuki Bridgethe red-railed bridge from the road to the wooded bank, and the picture most people carry of the place
The Tomoe River patha level walk beside the water under mixed maple and cedar, easy in any season
Kojakuji gatethe mountain gate of the temple above the valley, where the planting started
Mount Iimorithe hill rising behind the temple, with paths through the trees to the top

How to actually get there

Meitetsu Nagoya → Higashi-Okazaki (Nagoya Main Line).
Higashi-Okazaki → Korankei (Meitetsu bus, Okazaki–Asuke line, ~70 min).
Check the last return departure on the timetable at the stop before you walk in.
Korankei stop → Machizuki Bridge → riverside path → Kojakuji gate → Mount Iimori.

Meitetsu train and bus via Higashi-Okazaki: Meitetsu Nagoya →(Nagoya Main Line, limited express)→ Higashi-Okazaki, then the Meitetsu bus on the Okazaki–Asuke line towards Asuke, about 70 minutes to the Korankei stop. On weekends in November the bus can run far behind schedule, so treat the timetable as a hope rather than a plan.
Return from the Korankei stop: The same Meitetsu bus runs back to Higashi-Okazaki from the stop you arrived at. Check the last departure the moment you get off: on weekdays there is nothing back after early evening, which means the November light-up does not fit this route unless you have looked at the timetable first.

Directions from my location (Google Maps) ↗

About the place

The gorge is a short stretch of the Tomoe River where it runs below Mount Iimori, at the edge of the old post town of Asuke in eastern Toyota. From the road the Machizuki Bridge crosses to the wooded bank, and a level path follows the water to the foot of the hill before climbing to the gate of Kojakuji. Eleven kinds of maple grow along it, mixed with cedar. Because they turn at different rates, the valley is never uniformly red — one slope colours while another is still green.

How to enjoy it

Through November the Momiji Festival lights the valley from sunset until 21:00, and the crowd shifts into the evening with it. That leaves the early bus as the quiet slot, and on a weekday it also beats the traffic that thickens through the afternoon. Outside autumn the walk still earns the trip: katakuri flowers carpet the slopes of Mount Iimori from late March into early April.

Background & history

San'ei, the eleventh abbot of Kojakuji, began setting maple and cedar along the path between the river and his temple in 1634. He is said to have planted one tree for each recitation of the Heart Sutra. Villagers kept adding to the planting over the following centuries, which is why the maples run the length of the valley instead of clustering at the temple. The name Korankei is modern by comparison — a newspaper man coined it in the last century from the incense of Kojakuji and the mountain air off Iimori.

Before you go

Cash: The gorge itself is free to walk and has no ticket gate. The car parks around it are paid, and the rate goes up through November. The Meitetsu bus is paid on board.
Good to know: There is no gate and no closing time, but the riverside path is unlit outside the November light-up. Sections get slippery after rain, and the climb to the temple is steep in places. When the road into Asuke backs up in autumn, drivers are turned back at Asuke Ohashi and walk the last stretch.
Another way: From central Nagoya the subway Tsurumai Line runs through onto the Meitetsu Toyota Line as far as Josui, where the Toyota Oiden bus on the Sanage–Asuke line takes about 60 minutes to Korankei. From Toyota-shi Station the Meitetsu bus on the Yanami line reaches the same stop.
After you get off: The Korankei stop sits on Route 420 beside the river. The Machizuki Bridge is a minute away, and the temple gate is a further walk up the valley on a made path.