TIM BUNTING

KIWI YAMABUSHI

山伏

Tim Bunting Kiwi Yamabushi on Mt. Gassan

キウイ

DAILY YAMABUSHI


A Good Tough

February 27, 2026

A good place to be

If you’re never wrong, you never grow

February 26, 2026

Make the effort to learn and change

Set the Ball in Motion

February 25, 2026

Put yourself on the hook

Slowly. Surely.

February 24, 2026

At your own pace. Deliberately.

The Dead Ends add up

February 23, 2026

Make it count

If Only They Knew

February 22, 2026

If only you knew

Do They Need Your Excuse?

February 21, 2026

Is it absolutely vital?

FEATURE ARTICLES

Here are a few samples of what you find in The Kiwi Yamabushi Newsletter.

Why is Jizo-san EVERYWHERE in Japan?

Spend even a tiny amount of time in Japan, and you may notice a strange yet comforting presence.

Japan’s Rothschilds and The Port City of Sakata

Why do I live in Yamagata? Why don’t I live in Tokyo or Osaka with the rest of them?

I spent a week in the Japanese mountains training as an ascetic.

Here's what I learned.

A Coffee Lover’s Guide to Sakata

The Best Coffee Spots in Sakata, and what I really think of them

The real star of Japanese cuisine

How this humble plant made it to the top of my list of Japanese foods

Tim Bunting Kiwi Yamabushi
Why do yamabushi do yamabushi training?

Yamabushi gotta yamabushi.

Cucumber Horses and Eggplant Cows

The one Japanese custom the world needs

Japan’s Two Biggest Obsessions

Starbucks is decidedly NOT a Kissaten

Tim Bunting Kiwi Yamabushi
(Re) Discovering my origin story

How I came to live in rural Japan

The World’s Best Dojo

It's not where you think

On Ramen: The Best Food in Japan

Yamagata in its rightful place

Mt. Chokai above the sea of Japan
Emperor on a Boat Day

Or 'Marine Day'. If you really want.

Matsuo Basho and The Power of Haiku

How to capture nature in the written word

Japan is in the year 2683?

I asked the proprietor when the original temple was built.

Mt. Chokai
Falling for the Gaijin Trap Trap

That is not a typo. Everyone has to fall in sometime...

MOUNTAINS OF YAMAGATA

Here are a few posts of my adventures climbing the 100 Famous Mountains of Yamagata.

A Jizo statue at the top of Mt. Kyogakura in Sakata
Womb Passes and Monkey Crossings: Kyogakura-san “The Shugendo Peak of Sutras” (Mt. Kyogakura)

This tiny Shugendo peak and how the Japanese language got three alphabets

The Swamp Monster of Yozo

Ancient trail of primeval beech forests, legendary swamp monsters, waterfalls, snow bridges, and more.

I found an abandoned ski field in Japan

Short and quick hike with views of Chokai-zan and near the Mogami River, Shiraito Falls, and Genso no mori, the Forest of Illusions.

Yura in Tsuruoka city seen from Mt. Arakura
The Sakura of Arakura-yama

Mountains of Sakura Cherry Blossoms and the serene Arakura Jinja await.

This mountain is EVERYWHERE in Japan: Ha-yama

Former Dewa Sanzan peak in inland Yamagata Prefecture with an extensive Shugendo and Mountain Worship history.

Mt. Ubagatake in autumn
The Widow’s Peak: Ubaga-take (Mt. Ubagatake) of North Japan

Must-see autumn alpine dreamland between the two tallest Dewa Sanzan peaks with a twisted backstory

Mt. Haguro's Five Story Pagoda
Why This Tiny Mountain MUST be on Your Japan Itinerary: Haguro-san

Home to Haguro Shugendo and the Dewa Sanzan Yamabushi mountain monks

Mt.-Takadate-and-Shimoike-lake-in-Tsuruoka
Wetland Wonderland of Takadate-yama

Takadate-yama is short in stature, but packs a lot of punch as home to one of the only RAMSAR wetlands in Japan

Sign on the Nakanomata Trail up Mt. Nihonkoku
This is How I Conquered Japan!

How to conquer Japan in 60 short minutes

Hiking Japan’s Forgotten Highway: Sabane-yama and Ushu-Kaido (Mt. Sabane)

The odd connection between Osaka castle, the Shinkansen and Shinjuku, and the mountains of Yamagata.

The Autumn Leaves of Mount Taizo
The Epitome of Autumn Leaves in North Japan: Taizo-san (Mt. Taizo)

Mount Taizo all but single-handedly confirms why autumn is by far the best season for hiking in Japan.

Mt. Chokai
The best Fuji alternative: Chokai-san

Dewa Fuji, The Fuji of The North, Chokai-san, Mt. Chokai: Tallest peak entirely in Tohoku often said to resemble Mt. Fuji, leading to the name Dewa Fuji (after the former province of Dewa).

Yamagata’s Secluded Secret: Takatori-yama (Mt. Takatori)

Small peak on the edge of Nakayama Town famous for its Kannon Temple and the views it commands.

Mt. Yamuki (Yamuki-yama) in Shinjo City
The Medieval Castle and Mighty River of Yamuki-yama (Mt. Yamuki)

Tiny peak that was home to a medieval castle along the banks of the mighty Mogami River.

Zao-san and Why We Climb Mountains (Mt. Zao)

Zao-san: Snow monsters, ski fields, mountain hags, multi-coloured crater lakes, hot springs, and more.

Yamabushi

Here are some blog posts about yamabushi.

Tim Bunting Kiwi Yamabushi looks out over Mt. Chokai from Mt. Gassan
YAMABUSHI

Random Posts

crop female future teller with tarot cards on table

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