Lantern stairs
Red and green.
nobu3withfoxy from Iga,Mie, Japan — CC BY 2.0 · nobu3withfoxy from Iga,Mie, Japan — CC BY 2.0 · nobu3withfoxy from Iga,Mie, Japan — CC BY 2.0 · inunami — CC BY 2.0 · くろふね — CC BY 3.0
Kifune Shrine is a Shinto shrine in the mountain valley of Kibune in Kyoto's Sakyo ward, about 12 km from the city centre in a straight line and close to Kurama-dera. It enjoyed imperial patronage from the early Heian period, and in 965 it was among the first sixteen shrines to which Emperor Murakami sent messengers to report important events to Japan's guardian spirits. The shrine is linked with water, and people come to pray for rain. Its best-known sight is the stone stairway to the main hall, lined on both sides with red wooden lanterns beneath maples and cedars, red and green in summer and red and gold in autumn. A small river runs through the valley. In summer the valley's restaurants set up wooden platforms over the river, where visitors eat in the cool air. Get there by Eizan train and then a bus or a walk, or combine it with the forest trail from Kurama.
Red and green.
Summer platforms.
Cedar and maple.
Kibune, Sakyo ward, Kyoto, Japan
Yes.
Kurama-dera.
