Kuju in February

Mountain scenes with a late winter palette

Tristan Scholze Apr 25, 2013 - 1 min read

Mt. Yufu with Yufuin hot spring resort town in the foreground

The Chojabaru Plateau along the Yamanami Highway (Rt. 11) with a steaming Mt. Hossho in the background

On the plain, brown leaves still cling to the deciduous trees; Mt. Mimata rises in the background

Also in Chojabaru, a brook winds under the patches of evergreens on the mountainside

A hiking path leads upward from the Makinoto Parking Area to the Kuju mountains

Looking back toward Chojabaru and Mt. Yufu's distinctive twin peaks 20km away

A final view from the trail near Makinoto, now facing Mt. Mimata

Visit Aso-Kuju National Park in central Kyushu once—anytime of year—and you’ve seen great beauty. But if you make the time to return again and again over a full year, you begin to know the character of this diverse region.

The Kuju mountains in the north side of the park combine with plateaus to offer scenic landscapes linked by the Yamanami Highway (Rt. 11). The namesake, Mt. Kuju, reaches 1787m (5,863 ft.) and is just shorter than Mt. Naka, the tallest peak on the Kyushu mainland at 1791m (5,876 ft.).

These images offer a glimpse of the area in late winter.

Name in Japanese
阿蘇くじゅう国立公園—aso kujū kokuritsu kōen—Aso-Kujū National Park

Tristan Scholze @tristan.scholze

I'm also known as Faer Out. I love learning about people and nature. I've traveled around the world and throughout Japan, and I hope to continue seeing and experiencing the wonder of this planet as long as I live.Based in Japan for nearly two decades, I'm a Japan Travel expert for Fukuoka and Sag...