Hangetsuyama Observation Deck

If Akechidaira offers Nikko's most famous view, Hangetsuyama offers its most complete one. This 1,753-metre peak rises from the south-eastern corner of Lake Chuzenji, and from the observation deck near its summit the whole of the lake lies spread out below, held in the arms of Mount Nantai and the surrounding Oku-Nikko highlands. It is the vista that appears on tourism posters for the region, and it rewards the modest effort required to reach it.

Access begins on the Chuzenjiko Skyline, a scenic mountain road that branches off from Chuzenji Onsen and climbs the Hangetsuyama massif. The road was once a toll route but has been free to use since 2006. From its highest car park a well-trodden forest trail leads roughly twenty-five to thirty minutes uphill through beech and fir to the railed observation platform. The climb is gentle by mountain standards but does involve a steady ascent, so sturdy shoes are wise.

The payoff is a genuine 270-degree spectacle. Directly across the water the near-perfect volcanic cone of Mount Nantai dominates the skyline, its lower slopes plunging straight into the lake. To the west stretch the wetlands of Senjogahara and the peaks along the Gunma border; on exceptionally clear days you can pick out Mount Fuji far to the south and the mountains of Oze to the west. Below and to the north the lake narrows toward Kegon Falls, and the deep blue of the caldera lake shifts colour as clouds pass overhead.

Hangetsuyama, whose name means "half-moon mountain," sits within Nikko National Park and is prized by photographers for the way morning light rakes across the lake and evening colour settles over Nantai. Autumn, from mid-October to early November, transforms the slopes into a quilt of red and gold that frames the blue water below; early summer brings azalea and fresh green foliage. Because the deck faces broadly westward, late afternoon can produce dramatic backlighting and, in the right conditions, a sea of cloud filling the valleys.

This is a viewpoint for travellers happy to venture a little off the standard circuit. There is no ropeway and no public bus to the trailhead, so most visitors arrive by rental car along the Skyline, or take a taxi up from Chuzenji Onsen and walk the final stretch. The Skyline, like much of high Oku-Nikko, closes for the winter months when snow makes the road impassable, so plan for the late-April to late-November season. Facilities are minimal: restrooms at the car park, no shops on the trail, so carry water and a snack.

For those who make the climb, Hangetsuyama repays it generously. Standing at the railing with the entire caldera lake mirrored below and Nantai rising sheer across the water, you understand why generations of Japanese landscape painters and pilgrims regarded this corner of the mountains as sacred ground. Continue the extra few minutes to the true summit for a slightly higher, even broader outlook before descending back to the road.