Fushimi Inari Shrine in Kyoto

We visited the Fushimi Inari Shrine famous for its thousands of bright orange and black torii gates. Inari is dedicated to the Shinto God of rice, sake and prosperity and the gates are erected at the shrine to bring good fortune to your harvest or today, to your business. Each gate has the name of the family and the date on which they were donated. Founded in 711 AD it is Kyoto's most revered Shinto shrine.

Fushimi Inari Shrine Entrance

The gates were gorgeous and the higher we climbed the fewer people we encountered so we could get these amazing shots.

 After almost two hours of climbing, we reached the top! The shrines were much older and primitive than the ones below.

Once we got to the top, the guys decided to go off piste and followed this trail down the mountain. I was reluctant at first as we had already hiked up for two hours and the trail was empty. It was breathtaking - the scenery from a natural bamboo forest to the older and less cared for shrines, water falls and people's homes captivated us the whole way down!

The foxes on the shrines were there to guard the granary of rice for the people. We saw some with keys to the granary in their mouths.  These were in a remote shrine and were really eery looking.

We reconnected with the trail below and were thankful for the peaceful and picturesque descent.

As we were leaving, a family with mother and daughter dressed in their kimonos entered the shrine!

This was a beautiful day of exploring in Kyoto. We are very thankful for the opportunity to experience this part of the world!

xoxo,  Phil, Kathy & Andy