Rurikei

On the other side of my town is Rurikei, roughly translated as 'azure cliffs'. Located up in the mountains through narrow, windy roads, Rurikei is locally famous for its onsen, or hot spring. There's also trails and temples along the way. Last Sunday the Kyoto International Society held an event at Rurikei. We went for a hike before stopping at a pavillion to cook lunch. Here's a farm at the start or the trail:


We followed a path along a creek for a mile or two. Along the way were waterfalls and signs describing the plants placed by elementary students from one of my schools. Here's one waterfall:


Towards the end was a retaining wall holding back a reservoir. There was a thin but steady stream of water flowing down the side. At a couple points there were tunnels that led back further through the wall:


At the other end of the wall (and quite a bit further up) was the reservoir. A lot of people were fishing from piers or boats. The area around the dam was roped off to make sure no one strayed too close to the edge: