Gongenjima & Uryu Harbour

Gongenjima

Down below Cape Hinomisaki to the East is a small bay dotted with islets and a small island called Gongenjima.

The island, originally called Yamazakijima, protected the inner bay from inclement weather, and so the area became a safe haven for ships. In ancient times, it was the main harbour on the western half of the Shimane Peninsula and could accommodate 20 ships.

Ichibata Yakushi Temple 26 Chugoku Kannon Pilgrimage

Chugoku Kannon Pilgrimage

Koizu Inari Shrine & Sansha Shrine

Koizu Inari Shrine & Sansha Shrine

At Koizu fishing port I headed over to see what seafood was being dried in the baskets, only to discover it was nets.

Koizu Coast Washboard Rocks

 

After leaving Mitsu Shrine, the road carries on down the narrow valley into the fishing village of Mitsu itself.

As with all small fishing harbours, huge concrete seawalls and breakwaters create a safe harbour for a handful of small inshore boats...

The peninsula is part of a large Japanese Geopark and so there are plenty of signs about the geology of the area.

Not much of a geologist myself, though I do prefer land that is bare of vegetation and do enjoy geologic "features" even if I don't fully understand them....

I do know that 10,000 years ago this peninsula was an island off the coast of what is now Izumo.

The road now hugs the sea until the first named feature called Ichinose.... what we would describe as washboard rocks....

Around the headland and we arrive at the main feature of this part of the coast, Koizu Coast Clothes Washing Rocks, more washboard formations....

I do know that the alternating stripes of rock are sandstone and mudstone, with the mudstone the hollow and the sandstone the raised....

In the winter the rocks are off limits because of the seaweed that grows here and is harvested later by the locals....

From the official website.... "This alternating layer of sandstone and mudstone is part of the Ushikiri Formation from the Miocene epoch of the Neogene period. Most of the sandstone in this layer is turbidite. However, the absence of complete boomer sequences suggests that the turbidite was deposited closer to its source. Groove marks on the lower surface of the sandstone layers indicate a southwest-northeast flow, and these, along with changes in lithology, suggest that sediments in this area may have been transported eastward."

It may be uncool or even un-eco, but concrete does have an aesthetic at times....

The previous post in this series on day 42 of my walk along the Chugoku Kannon Pilgrimage was on a couple of shrines just along the coast....

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Funamori Shrine to Ishigami Shrine

 

Coming into Shiotsu Funamori Shrine is enclosed within high concrete walls to protect it from storms.

Until Meiji it was called Hachioji Daigongen and enshrined Hachioji Daimyojin but was renamed Funamori Shrine and the deity renamed Sonosazuchi no mikoto, but I can not find such a kami anywhere.

Little history is kniown but an old timber was dated to 1536.

The Aragami Shrine in the grounds enshrines Susano.

Shiotsu has a small fishing port with ample concrete protections...

At the eastern end of the village is Ishigami Shrine.

Plenty is known about this shrine as it is mentioned in the Izumo Fudoki and listed in the Engi Shiki.

Originally called Umi Shrine and believed to enshrine Wadatsumi, the sea kami.

In the 11th century, the shrine and much of the village were destroyed by a storm.]

Later, following a vision, the shintai of the shrine, the sacred object with the Honden, in this case a large stone, was brought up from the sea.

It now sits behind the shrine, without a Honden. It is surrounded by a stoen fence and the stone is wrapped in numerous layers of heigushi. There is an Inari shrine in the grounds, and an Aragami shrine, enshrining Susanoo.

The previous post was on the walk along the coast to get to Shiotsu.

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Kamaura Coast

 

By 6:30, the sun was already painting the western sky seen from my night's rest stop on the Uppurui Cape on the Shimane Peninsula.

The road east along the peninsula was narrow and there was no traffic

After a few kilometers I started down some switchbacks into the tiny fishing village of Kamaura.

Up ahead another wind farm.

Route 23 now hugs the waters edge and leaving the tiny settlement I passed a small shrine.

An Inarisha, but the nameplate also says Koshin, a Taoist cult that was very popular in the Edo Period

The road continues to hug the waters edge until the next settlement, Shiotsu.

I am always surprised by how beautiful this section of coastline is.....

The previous post was on the sunset from the windmill park where I spent the night...

If you would like to subscribe by email, just leave your email address in the comments below. It will not be published or made public. I post new content almost every day, and send out an email about twice a month with short descriptions and links to the last ten posts.