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Nikko NP, Tochigi
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The 1,445-step Sky Corridor climbs about 240 m—from the rest house at 1,350 m to Komaruyama Observatory at 1,585 m. After step 700, the stairs become a long, steep straightaway.
To help protect the natural slope, crews built the Sky Corridor without heavy machinery. Its contractor says the stairway’s pin-foundation supports were installed entirely by hand.
A Tochigi Natural Science Museum field note shares a twist on the Nikkō-kisuge’s “one-day flower” nickname: at Kisugedaira, a bloom can last until the evening of the following day.
Kisugedaira once had about 400,000 Nikkō-kisuge plants, before deer browsing caused a sharp decline. A deer-exclusion fence went up in 1994; local volunteers now replant 500–1,000 plants a year from local seed.
Nikkō-kisuge is named for a place where it once grew abundantly, not because it grows only here: the golden lily is found on highland meadows across Japan—and is one of Nikko City’s official flowers.
Kirifuri’s old lifts stopped operating on August 31, 2010. When Kisugedaira reopened in April 2013, the new Sky Corridor let visitors enjoy the famous daylilies on foot.
Kisugedaira’s meadow isn’t left entirely to nature: managers mow it each autumn so sun-loving flowers can thrive. This care maintains a now-uncommon semi-natural grassland with more than 100 flower species.
On a clear day, the Sky Corridor’s summit lookout can reveal both Mt Fuji and Tokyo Skytree from the same highland perch, with the broad Kanto Plain spread out below.
The path beyond the Sky Corridor continues via Mt Akanagi toward Mt Nyohō, one of Nikko’s three sacred peaks. Those mountains have long been revered in the region’s mountain worship.
