Sunday, September 8
Nametoko Gorge is a zoo by itself and we seemed to have brought the cirus. It teems with natural
beauty - cascading waterfalls, lush green moss and skyscraping cedars. But when
60 or so Gaijin arrived to eat, sing, and drink the night away by the bon-fireside, Nametoko
quickly turned into something like a small Missouri town tent-house. Between a constant
chattering din and intermittent but uproarious laughter, even the famous red-faced monkeys of Nametoko - who seem
to be unfazed by anything - seemed disturbed by our chaos. Yet it was, in the
end, the natural side of Nametoko that left a lasting memory. (No offense to the people at Nametoko that weekend)
Thirty miles southeast of Mima-cho is perhaps the finest gorge in Shikoku. Carved out of the mountains by years of erosion,
Nametoko is heaven to hikers, photographers, swimmers, and onsen lovers. Electric-blue tailed
lizards, powerful web-casting spiders and impeccably camouflaged toads dance along the river,
scavenging for food and protecting themselves from human intruders. And no animal seems as defensive
as the Nametoko monkey. They are tough as jerky, bright as a beacon, and are unafraid of you or the
impending slam of a car door on their hand. Carrying baby in underbelly, bouncing up and around
the gorge, they snatch food (and garbage) from the most innocent among us. If not for the food that we bring, I doubt the monkeys
would want us here at all.
Hopping up the gorge by rock, dodging white-waterfalls and animal alike, a friend and I searched
for perfect swimming holes and oases of sunlight. The Gorge has been smoothed for years
by this river we fight upstream like salmon on foot, yet we still trudge up the ravine with the agility of a two-ton tractor.
It winds up the canyon shaded by dense vegetation only a rainforest could challenge.
The trees angle themselves to cover the river, reminiscent of the way the monkeys shade their youth.
A sweet but not overpowering aroma consumes the open air, but it is the drone of falling water
that that tickles my recollection. I have always loved the consistency of water on rock; at
Nametoko it seemed like the most peaceful sound in the world. It is a truly magical setting.
And yet, though I'd love to call Nametoko a diamond in the rough, the truth is, Shikoku
is generously stocked with these shiny gems. The beaches in Kochi, the Seto Island Sea,
the Shimanto-gawa (river) and the quaint fishing villages which protect Shikoku like a castle's
moat. Shikoku may have been the destination for yesteryear's Japanese convicts, but they
weren't going to purgatory in any meaningful sense. It seemed to me that Nametoko was a
spiritual place, though not because it is riddled with Buddhist temples or shrines. In fact,
I saw none in my first short visit. Natural spirituality here comes with a dip in the Gorge's
icy swimming holes. The water here is pure enough to be bottled and cleanses the body and mind.
Hiking up the Gorge is a near necessity, though a leap from a twenty-foot height into a
twenty-foot hole or a trip down a massive, natural waterslide may be
left to the braver sorts. Crowding the monkeys (who with their
red faces look strikingly similar to the Japanese when they are drunk) with cameras also
seems to be a given here. Hunger is what drives these monkey's, but aside from their
desperation to stave off malnutrition, they appear to be rather gentle beasts,
no more dangerous than your average hungry football fan.
I had previously imagined Japan as a concrete view into the future, but some parts,
especially here at Nametoko, take me back in time instead of forward. The pristine setting
has not escaped human presence (the perfect stone trails are the first example which comes to mind) but
though Nametoko has been a mecca for outdoors-people for years, it has not been trampled in
the one might expect. Rather, Nametoko has all but avoided the littered beer cans, candy wrappers
and cigarette butts epidemic; the Japanese appear to have harbored the rare desire to
preserve its beauty.
A cobweb shines in the sparse sunlight much like my watch blinds me reflecting light,
and it occurs to me I must go. But I know I will be back to gently exploit Nametoko again.
Only next time I will bring food prepared especially for the monkeys, so I don't have to
fight them for mine.
