Mt. Ena is located at the southernmost tip of the Chuo Alps on the border of Nagano and Gifu prefectures, standing at 2,191 meters. It's also one of Japan's 100 Famous Mountains, the Nihon Hyaku Meizan. It's said that when Emperor Tensho was born, his afterbirth (placenta) was offered to this mountain, thus getting the name Mt Ena. The kanji characters are different, but ena means afterbirth in Japanese. The trees from this mountain are also held sacred and used for the making of paper streamers used in the Grand Shrines of Ise, the most important Shinto shrine in all of Japan.
The mountain has four different trailheads. The trails all go through thick forests with mostly monotonous views. The draw of this mountain is its history being featured in several novels and its conical massif can be seen from ships sailing into Ise bay and from the Nobi plains. Although its spiritual and religious significance have faded as time goes by, the history of the mountain is well-loved and climbed by thousands of people each year.
For more information, weather forecast, and pictures of Mt. Ena:
https://thejapanalps.com/en/route/mt-ena/
There are 4 x FKT routes on this Mountain:
Kawahara Route: 11.2km 1266ｍ of gain
Start/Finish: Hirogawara Trailhead Parking Area Gate (The gate that is used to stop cars from driving forward)
広河原登山口駐車場
Kuroizawa Route: 14.2km 1353ｍ of gain
Start/Finish: Kuroizawa Trailhead Entrance Gate located at the parking lot
黒井沢登山口
Kamisaka Pass Route: 11.8km of 1250ｍ of gain
Start/Finish: Misaka-toge Pass 神坂峠 (at the start of the trailhead along the road)
35.47191624551855, 137.63205762578656
Maegumae Route: 14.8km 1526m of gain
Start/Finish: Ena Shrine Parking lot 恵那神社 (start/finish right when leaving the parking lot)
35.44252344292713, 137.53353154729027
