権現山の大カツラ Gongen-yama-no-ookatsura Big Katsura on Mt. Gongen
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Big Katsura is the name of a giant Japanese judas tree on Mt. Gongen, near Mogami in Yamagata prefecture.
The tree is 19.2m in circumference and 40m tall. It is hundreds of years old and is one of the biggest katsura in Japan according to the Ministry of the Environment.
The main trunk is complicated by many knots. Some 2m above the ground, it divides into about seven trunks. Many people have named the figure it creates as a 'dragon' because the various trunks resemble the scales and face of a dragon.
The center of the trunk is hollow and can completely hold one person. It is said that pottery fired in nearby kilns was stored here in old times.
There is a large sign saying: 'Big Katsura of Mt. Gonsen' at the entrance of the forest road. It takes about 45 minutes to walk from the entrance to the tree on the hillside.
At the nearby Mogami River Shirakawa Mountain Stream Park, you can camp and enjoy the nature around you
The tree is 19.2m in circumference and 40m tall. It is hundreds of years old and is one of the biggest katsura in Japan according to the Ministry of the Environment.
The main trunk is complicated by many knots. Some 2m above the ground, it divides into about seven trunks. Many people have named the figure it creates as a 'dragon' because the various trunks resemble the scales and face of a dragon.
The center of the trunk is hollow and can completely hold one person. It is said that pottery fired in nearby kilns was stored here in old times.
There is a large sign saying: 'Big Katsura of Mt. Gonsen' at the entrance of the forest road. It takes about 45 minutes to walk from the entrance to the tree on the hillside.
At the nearby Mogami River Shirakawa Mountain Stream Park, you can camp and enjoy the nature around you
- address
- Higashihoden, Mogami-cho, Mogami-gun, Yamagata Prefecture, 999-6213
- name
- Yamagata Prefecture Mogami General Office
- phone
- 0233-28-1534
- hp
- http://www.yamagatakanko.com/tree/tree0801.html