Ura-Hikimi Gorge

Hikimi GorgeMasudaautumn foliagehikingremote valley

Shimane · Masuda

34.5647°N, 132.0254°E

Hikimi is the mountainous inland part of Masuda, up against the Hiroshima border, and the gorge system there splits into three sections. Omote-Hikimi is the gentle one, four kilometres of easy valley you can see from a car. Ura-Hikimi is the other kind: a four-kilometre walking path running up to Suzugatake between sheer cliffs and eroded rock, with no road access along it and nothing built in it.

It is remote even by Shimane standards — this is one of the least populated corners of western Honshu, a place better known for wasabi, sweetfish and hardwood forest than for tourism. Autumn colour arrives in late October, earlier than the coast, and the cliffs near Suzugatake with the maples turning are the reason people from Masuda and Hiroshima drive up. The rest of the year you can walk the whole thing and meet nobody.

Essential Information

Opening Hours

Path open at all times | Daylight only in practice

Closed: Open year-round | Access affected by snow from December to March

Entrance Fee

Free

Best Season

Late October for autumn colour | May–June for fresh green and the wasabi streams

Visit Duration

2–3 hours for the Ura-Hikimi path round trip

Getting There

Access Information

Hikimi-cho, Masuda. Car strongly recommended. By public transport it is around 80 minutes by bus from JR Masuda Station to the Hikimikyo Onsen stop, then roughly 30 minutes on foot. From the Chugoku Expressway, take Togouchi IC and follow Route 191 and Prefectural Route 307. Free to walk. The Ura-Hikimi path runs about 4 km to Suzugatake.

Insider Guide

Premium

**Ura, not Omote, if you are walking.** Omote-Hikimi is designed to be seen from the road and is pleasant. Ura-Hikimi is the four-kilometre footpath through the dramatic section and is the one worth the drive. Do not confuse the two when navigating. **Late October, not November.** Colour here comes in earlier than on the coast because of the altitude — around the last ten days of October in a typical year. By mid-November it is over. **Allow half a day and carry everything.** Four kilometres out with no facilities on the path means a two-to-three-hour round trip minimum. There is nothing to buy once you start walking. **The onsen at the trailhead is the practical base.** Hikimikyo Onsen sits at the entrance to the area and is where the bus stops, which makes it the natural place to start, finish and eat. **Check road conditions in winter.** These are mountain roads at the edge of a snow region and the approach can be closed or require winter tyres from December into March.

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