Mount Minejimi located near Unnan City is the site of Mineji Temple, which once served as the original Izumo dojo. Nearby is the Mineji Traveler's Mountain Cottage. During the spring you can gather mountain vegetables, and in the summer there are monthly rhinoceros beetle wrestling competitions! In October, as fall sets in, the Mushroom Picking and Cuisine Get-together is held. Visitors from far and wide come for a taste of fall. When you're out mushroom picking, you'll need to keep your fluids topped up, keep an eye on your physical condition, and be well prepared for the cold. The fall colors are a wonderful sight to behold, but you may run into wild animals or bugs. In order to enjoy yourslef, it's important to observe the 'Rules of the Mountain'.
Well then, let's head off on our mushroom picking adventure. All the mushrooms along the mountain paths will have already been picked. To find big and rare mushrooms, we'll need to look around the trees, where they tend to thrive. Coming across an entoloma sarcopum mushroom. Experiencing the healing power of negative air ions in the woods as you admire the fall colors and flora, is just one enjoyable aspect of mountain hiking.
After an approximately hour long walk, we gather the mushrooms we've collected as a group and pass them over to our mushroom expert to be analyzed. "This mushroom is huge!"
"This one is a strange color, isn't it?"
You soon realize that there are all sorts of mushrooms to be found. The fact that we have visitors who come year after year is a testament to the mountain's bounty. Finding the elusive kotake mushroom is truly a cause for celebration. Everyone shares in the excitement together upon finding that most unexpected of prizes! After the expert has sorted the edible mushrooms from the inedible, it's time for the long awaited meal time. There's nothing more luxurious than enjoying the mushrooms you've just picked in a delicious bowl of miso soup.
While the blessings of nature offer so many good things, from time to time nature can pose a danger to us. It was a day in which we learned the importance of living among nature.