From Kanadorii, a sharp right-angle turn leads to the path to Mt. Fuji. There, you will find the Kitaguchi Hongu Fuji Sengen Shrine. Don’t you think something’s off? Why does that right-angle turn need to be here? Why is there this gap between the town and its shrine?

Actually, walking up this far means you are now in the town of Kita-Yoshida. There was a time when if you walked straight from the shrine, you would arrive at “Old Yoshida”. However, there was an issue with this location. The snow from Mt. Fuji would melt and get mixed up with dirt and debris, resulting in a terrible mudslide that washed away Old Yoshida. Incidentally, this melted snow caused the jagged valleys of Mt. Fuji.

The victims of that disaster then moved the whole town to what is now Kita-Yoshida. By climbing the mountain before you, you can feel the fierce power of snow that can change topography.