Oiwagadake - Pretty Nice | Linger in the East

What?
It’s hard to call Oiwagadake (大岩岳) a peak, so let’s just say it tops at 384 meters. The area is covered with sandstone slabs and small marshes (which were bone-dray in this day). There are some points with great views, but most of the time the road to the highest point consists out of paths through untouched forest. The end of the hike (or beginning, depending on which way you started the loop) leads you to the Sengari Dam (千刈ダム), an-old style structure dating from 1919 which lends itself as a perfect backdrop for riverside picnic.
Where?
Oiwagadake is located in Hyogo Prefecture (兵庫県) and can be reached by taking the JR Fukuchiyama/Takarazuka Line (JR福知山・宝塚線) from Osaka (大阪) and alighting at Dojo Station (道場駅). It is closeby the Kamakura Valley and the abandoned railway hike near Takedao Station.
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If you organize goodbye hikes, why not schedule some welcome hikes?
My company welcomed a new colleague, and as I appreciate some company on my hikes from time to time, why not start and initiate him correctly? Eventually we were three of us to challenge Oiwagadake.
In a few of my last hikes I seriously underestimated the terrain: Kokuzo should have been a breeze, but it turned into a jungle hacking sauna. Little Hira might have been “little”, but it also was a big slog and my feet got shriveled from an overload of wet vegetation.
I wouldn’t underestimate Oiwagadake.

Not so very long ago though, I got off at the same Dojo Station for a team-hike and I didn’t think it difficult at all. I would be surprised if a hike along the same terrain would be more difficult. And luckily, it wasn’t.
It was even way easier than I imagined. The hardest part was the morning sun, confusing November for August. But even this didn’t last long.
So let me start with the conclusion: the Oiwagadake loop was a pretty nice stroll through a pretty nice forest, with pretty nice diversion in the shape of bald sandstone slabs, and with pretty nice views at the highest points. And it ended in a pretty nice picnic break near a pretty nice dam. It was – to use some original wording – pretty nice.

I don’t really know how to sum things up in another way. I would like to call it a hike, but despite a few steep points of only a few meters, it was just a walk through the forest. And there is nothing wrong with that. I found the paths nice and easy to tread, the company was very enjoyable, and sometimes it just doesn’t need to be more than that.

Freud would have been thrilled.

These planks definitely have more use when the underground is wet.

Tasty looking, but I wouldn't try them.

The peaks aren't high, but they do have some nice views.

There were 2 highlights. One was at the Higashi-Oiwagadake peak, a 20 meters lower than the actual peak, and the other was the Sengari Dam at the end of the hike.
This old dam was built in 1919 and it shows. Not that it is in shambles or anything, its shape is just old-style and according to me very charming. The river it was blocking made a great picture-prefect spot for a long and relacing break with small talk and birdwatching.

No, Oiwagadake isn’t a must see place. But I can recommend it for anyone in the neighborhood just looking for a relaxing walk.