Dorogawa Onsen

Dorogawa Onsen is located on the banks of the Yamakami River, which is also the source of the Kumano River, at a cool altitude of 820 meters above sea level, and is so cool and refreshing that it is called the Karuizawa of the Kansai region.

Dorogawa Onsen Town is the trailhead for Omineyama, Yamagamigatake, and Women’s Omine and Inamuragatake.

Omine is a women-only mountain that Shugendo practitioners climb, and in summer it is crowded with worshippers and Shugendo practitioners who come to visit the Zao-do hall on Mt.

The hot spring resort developed as a mountain climbing base for Omine worship along with the prosperity of Shugendo.

The streets are somewhat nostalgic, lined with inns, guest houses, souvenir stores, and stores that manufacture and sell Daranisuke-maru, which create a unique atmosphere as if you have stepped back in time to the Showa period.

Daranisuke is a folk medicine, said to be the original Japanese-Chinese medicine, and is made from natural plant-derived herbal medicine.

According to legend, during the Asuka Period (1300 years ago), when a plague broke out, En no Gyoja (En no Shokaku) made this medicine and saved many people.

Since ancient times, there have been factories on Yoshino-yama and Dorogawa, and the medicine has been used as a medicine to keep people confined in the mountains and as a souvenir for climbers and ascetic pilgrims to Yoshino-yama and Omineyama.

It is also said to be the home of the descendants of “Go-oni,” a high disciple of En no Gyoja.

During the day, there are many tourist attractions such as limestone caves where visitors can take a rare slope car to the entrance and back, a suspension bridge across the valley, an eco-museum square where visitors can enjoy playing in the river, and hot springs.

At night, lanterns light up the area, creating a fantastic atmosphere that is different from that of the daytime. In mid-June, you can enjoy watching fireflies at the old pond.

The hot spring water is a simple, mildly alkaline spring at 26°C and is effective for neuralgia, rheumatism, and muscular pain.

Shinsen-do, Izumi no Mori, and Gorokoromizu, three of the springs scattered throughout Shugendo, have been designated as one of the 100 best water sources in the Dorogawa Spring Group.

The Gyoja Festival is held on August 2 and 3 every year and is known as a strange festival to celebrate the return of En no Gyoja.