VIDEO: Japan's Takayama Inari Shrine, a power spot worth exploring near Misawa Air Base

If you live near Misawa Air Base and travel to Kyoto is not on the itinerary this year, you don’t need to travel too far to enjoy a shrine similar to the old capital’s famous Fushimi Inari Shrine. Every year thousands of visitors head to the shrine in Kyoto to get a closer look at the stunning sight of lush forest and mountains with a path covered in bright orange torii gates.

About a 2.5-hour drive from Misawa, you can visit Takayama Inari in Tsugaru City. The shrine is dedicated to the same god as the one in Kyoto. This location is also considered to be a power spot, which are shrines or temples Japanese people hold in high regard as places where their wishes are more likely to be granted and where you’ll find an abundance of healing energy.

Take a walk under the 202 gates which stand at 6’6-feet-high and are believed to ward off evil, illness and bad luck. Once on the grounds of the shrine, you’ll find many fox statues as the fox is the familiar spirit of the Inari God.

Climb to the top of the hilly path and be rewarded with a wonderful view of the shrine grounds and surrounding landscape. This is also a good place to get a view of the autumn leaves, so make plans to head to this power spot soon as it offers a familiar sight without the travel time required to go to Kyoto!

Takayama Inari Shrine
Location: 147-1 Washinosawa, Ushiga Town, Tsugaru City, Aomori Prefecture (a 2.5-hour drive from Misawa AB)
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Tel: 0173-56-2015