Autumn Color Report 2010

Tokyo is among the last places in Japan to see autumn colors every year, with the peak of the season usually occurring around late November to early December. Tokyo is also... read all

Almost three months after this year's first autumn color report, the season is finally approaching its end. Today I visited Kamakura, one of the last places in Japan to see the leaves change colors. The season does not... read all

After my first report from Kyoto three weeks ago and seven follow up reports by Scott and Francois, I visited the former capital for a last time this year to report about the autumn colors. On... read all

Today I made another follow up trip to Tokyo to check on the state of the autumn colors (koyo). The first stop of the day was at the Institute for Nature Study, a nature reserve preserving Tokyo's... read all

Yesterday evening, wanting to get one last bit of koyo in Kyoto, I went to two evening illuminations of koyo spots that I had already visited over the past few days. The first was... read all

After reporting from Kyoto for the last three days, I spent one last day in the Kansai region investigating the state of the autumn colors. Today I went to Mino Park, located about 30... read all

Today was my third consecutive day reporting from Kyoto and the last day for this season. Schauwecker is scheduled to report from the city one last time early next week. Over the last three days I have been able... read all

Today I made a follow up to our November 16, 2010 visit to Tokyo to check out the state of the autumn colors (koyo) at a few parks and gardens that are known for their leaves. The first visit of the... read all

For the second day in a row reporting from Kyoto, today I visited the Arashiyama district, Kitano Tenmangu Shrine and Myoshinji Temple. It seems once again that... read all

As Scott predicted in his reporting from Kyoto last week, the peak of this year's autumn colors are beginning to arrive in the old capital this week.... read all

Today I checked out the autumn colors (koyo) situation over in the Higashiyama District of Kyoto. The first stop of the morning was a follow up visit to Kiyomizudera Temple. The trees around the temple have progressed a lot since our... read all

Today I visited Sakurayama Park in Fujioka City, Gunma Prefecture, about 100 kilometers north of Tokyo. With its 7000 trees, Sakurayama (cherry mountain) is arguably Japan's most famous spot... read all

Today I took another side trip from Kyoto and headed down south to check out some of the sights in Nara Prefecture. After arriving at Kintetsu Nara Station, I immediately picked up a rental car and headed out of the... read all

Today I made some follow up visits to some of the sights in Kyoto that we visited on November 10, 2010 to check on the progress of the autumn colors (koyo). The first item of the day... read all

The Ise Shrines are not a destination well known for their autumn colors. Indeed, there are only a relatively small number of trees that turn colors on the grounds of the two shrines. Nevertheless, the few colorful patches of autumn... read all

After our autumn color report from Kyoto's Takao yesterday, today I investigated the state of the leaves in the Kanto region's Takao, a mountain within metropolitan Tokyo... read all

Today we continued our autumn leaf (koyo) reporting with a trip to Koyasan, the headquarters of Shingon Buddhism high up in the mountains of Wakayama... read all

Today Schauwecker and I continued the autumn leaf season reporting from the Kansai Region with a follow up trip to Kyoto. This time we visited Jingoji Temple in Takao, the mountainous region in the north... read all

On our first trip to Kyoto this season, I checked on the early state of the city's autumn colors. As seen on previous report trips, the cold weather of recent weeks seemed to have decreased the delay of this year's autumn leaf season... read all

Today we made a trip to the Fuji Five Lakes area around Mount Fuji to check out the autumn colors (koyo). The first stop of the day was at the Chureito Pagoda, a popular photography spot... read all

Yamadera is a group of temples in the mountains whose name literally means mountain temples. Located just outside of Yamagata City, the temples were my destination for today's autumn color report. Yamadera can also be... read all

Today Schauwecker and I visited Mount Daisen on the western end of Tottori Prefecture to check out the autumn colors along the trail up the mountain. At 1729 meters above sea level, Mount Daisen is... read all

Today Schauwecker and I continued our autumn color reporting in Kyushu in Oita Prefecture's Kuju Mountains. We planned one long hike through the national park to... read all

Today I went on another follow up visit to the Okunikko region, following my previous visits on October 5, 2010 and October 14, 2010. As expected, the season is coming to a close in the higher elevations of... read all

Today we did our very first japan-guide autumn color report from Kyushu, as Schauwecker and I explored the koyo around the hiking trails of the Kirishima... read all

One month after my first autumn color report to Hokkaido, I returned to the northern island to check on the colors in Noboribetsu, a popular hot spring resort in southern... read all

Today we continued our trip through Towada-Hachimantai National Park, where we checked on the autumn colors around the hot springs of Tamagawa Onsen and Goshogake... read all

Today I went on a follow up visit to the Okunikko region, the Inner Nikko area in the mountains above the temples and shrines of Nikko, to check out the autumn colors (koyo). As I saw last week, due to the... read all

Due to warmer than usual temperatures, the autumn colors remain about 7-10 days behind their average year's schedule, and can currently be enjoyed in many areas of Hokkaido and in the high mountains of northern and central... read all

Today we headed over to Okunikko, the Inner Nikko area that lies in the mountains above the temples and shrines of Nikko, to check out how the autumn colors are progressing... read all

It's been two weeks of poor weather since our last autumn color report from Kurodake, so we took advantage of today's brief respite from the rain to head up to Oze National... read all

On the second and final day of my initial autumn color trip of the season, I climbed Mount Kurodake, another peak of the Daisetsuzan mountain range... read all

For the third year in a row, we start the reporting from Mount Asahidake, Hokkaido's highest peak and the first place in Japan to see autumn colors each year... read all