Kenrokuen is said to be “one of the three most beautiful gardens in Japan” and after spending some time here, I think I understand why people have this sentiment. I came here a little after the fall and with the winter chill starting to seep in. To be honest, I didn’t expect much and I actually ended up enjoying my walk through this garden. From the scenic landscapes to the ethereal ponds, sit tight as I recount my walk through these shots I took.
Kenrokuen Garden: My Visit on a Chilly Winter Day
Let’s start from the beginning at the Katsurazaka intersection. If you’re coming from the Kanazawa Castle Park entrance then you’ll just need to walk a couple of feet and you’ll find yourself here. The intersection forks into two pathways. The one on the left leads to Katsurazaka and the park proper while the path to the right leads to Edomachi dori Avenue and its establishments.
This is Edomachidori Avenue and this is where I suggest you grab a bite (either before or after your walk). There’s plenty of restaurants and establishments here that offer really good dining experiences. I’ve personally tried Shiroyamatei restaurant during this visit and actually liked it there.
From this particular vantage point, you’ll see the storefronts of Kenjoutei Teahouse and Horaido Cafe. Shiroyamatei, the restaurant I visited, will be at the very end of this line of establishments.
On the other hand, this is the Katsurazaka entrance to the garden. Not fully pictured is the Katsurazaka Tollgate to the right where you can purchase admission for entry to the garden (JPY320 for adults).
After purchasing entry, you can then proceed inside to the garden. Right before I entered, I took this picture of the garden’s opening hours. Much like Kanazawa Castle Park, they open an hour early at 7:00AM and close an hour late at 6:00PM from March 1st to October 16th (the spring to summer seasons).
This is the first scenic view of the garden that you’ll come across. If I’m not mistaken, these are cherry blossoms and since it’s late autumn-early winter, the trees’ leaves are already gone. If you want to witness these in full bloom, then you really want to be here during spring.
One thing I learned while researching about the garden is that it actually has a whopping 420 cherry trees. Moreover, these trees can be categorized into twenty varieties ranging from the common Somei Yoshino to the rare Kenrokuen Kiku Zakura.
Unfortunately, I’m not an arborist so I’ve really no idea how to differentiate between varieties. Going back to my walk here in Kenrokuen, I’m now in an area called Sakuragaoka. As the name implies, this has an abundance of sakura/cherry blossom trees. Also, if you look closely, you’ll find the first of the garden’s public restroom buildings just to the right of this picture.
While I may not be an arborist, I’m pretty sure that by the time spring arrives, the view from this vantage point is going to be scenic (to say the least). If you can’t come here in spring, then it might be a good idea to time your visit during winter instead. I’ve read that the snow makes the whole garden even more beautiful.
Initially, my plan was to actually visit here during the snowy winter season. Instead, some stuff happened and I ended up going here at this time instead. Regardless, I still found the garden to be quite charming even in this state. Anyway, I took a right turn from where that Sakuragaoka sign was and found myself in this area.
I moved closer and found myself in an intersection. Seeing the yukitsuri on the left, I decided to follow the path to see where it headed. To be honest, the stream near the yukitsuri was already giving me an idea as to where the path was going to take me.
I don’t know what it is about Japanese ponds and streams but I can always count on them to somehow get me to ease up. This particular stream and pond in particular looked really good so I decided to stay for a bit to admire the view.
Following the stream, I then eventually saw what I was looking for. Just up ahead is the garden’s fountain. It didn’t look as impressive as I thought it would be but I had already committed to this path so I decided to still push through to that location.
Just when I thought this was just a run of the mill, it turns out, there’s actually more to it. So the Fountain (or Funsui) is actually the first of its kind in Japan and it was probably built around the same time as Kenrokuen was completed in the mid to late 1800s. According to the sign, the fountain’s water source is Kasumaga-ike Pond and its water can go as high as 3.5 meters. At the time it was built (and even until now), it was considered a feature that you rarely find in Japanese gardens.
Looking at the fountain now, it doesn’t seem like it’s anything special. Like with a lot of things here though, there’s a certain charm to it that makes you want to take your time and admire it. I’m not really sure why this is. Maybe it’s the history behind the fountain or it could just be that its surroundings encourage reflection? Regardless, I think this is worth checking out if you do decide to come here.
Just opposite the Fountain, I found this really peculiar sign. It says Shiguretei Remains but there really aren’t any ‘remains’ here of anything. I tried looking into this more and apparently, Shiguretei pertains to a villa that used to stand here up until the Meiji era. A new Shiguretei is now in a different location (somewhere on the western part of the garden).
After a short reflection and taking some pics at the fountain, I then decided to continue following the stream. That decision lead me to this spot which is just a continuation of the pathway that I’ve been following.
That pathway then led me to the Komonbashi Bridge. For some reason, the bridge reminded me of a scene in one of the the Lord of the Rings. Specifically it reminded me of that bridge in Aragorn’s dreams/visions where he met Arwen.
After crossing the bridge I just followed the narrow foot path until I eventually arrived at another fork in the road. I decided to go up these stairs since it seemed like it would have a more idyllic path.
Turns out, my hunch was right. Moving up the stairs, I saw this pathway that just seemed to call out to me. At this point, I realized that I had been walking for quite some time and yet I still wasn’t feeling any sort of fatigue. I’m not sure but maybe a lot of this has to do with just the quality of the air here.
I finally managed to get on the path I took a picture of earlier. As expected, this was a really well maintained path that’s really friendly on the feet.
After moving up the path, I finally found the pond that was feeding the fountain earlier. This is Kasumiga-ike Pond and it looks really large. I’ve been to and seen a lot of ponds on this trip and this one is up there with the largest of them.
I learned that the pond was actually designed to be this large because the Maeda’s wanted it to resemble the sea. Moreover, the pond also has a prominent feature that you can actually see in this pic. There’s an island at its center called Horai Island that’s supposed to symbolize a sacred island inhabited by ageless hermits.
Considering how large this pond is and the fact that it’s winter, I was right to expect it to have some migratory ducks. Lo and behold, I did find some visitors here. If I’m not mistaken, these are called common pochards and they usually visit during the winter when their breeding grounds in Northern and Eastern Europe become too cold.
Here’s another view of the pond with the ducks happily swimming in it. Also if you look closely, you should be able to see Horai Island in the middle-right side of the picture. The most prominent landmark in this picture though is probably the yukitsuri off in the distance.
These yukitsuri really piqued my interest so I decided to get closer to check them out. To do so I just continued on the path I was following earlier and eventually came across this small bridge. I wasn’t able to take a picture of it but to my right there’s a Kotoji Toro stone lantern that a lot of visitors tend to take pictures of.
Instead of crossing the small bridge earlier though, I decided to take another route that brought me to this Observation Point that gave me this stunning view of the garden below and the city off in the distance. Apparently, this is one of Kenrokuen Garden’s six famous views and is called ‘panoramic view’.
Just a couple of steps after the panoramic viewpoint was another small bridge and this time I finally found a sign explaining the yukitsuri. Apparently, the yukitsuri is for the large pine tree in the background. Called the Karasaki Pine, this was planted by the 13th lord of the Kaga domain sometime during his reign in 1822-1866. The pine tree was grown from seeds that were brought from the Karasaki Pine at Lake Biwa.
While I have seen lots of yukitsuri, these are probably the largest ones I’ve come across. If you’re not familiar with them, yukitsuri is basically a technique used to preserve trees during the winter. It does this by supporting the branches with rope and bamboo poles to ensure they won’t break when it eventually snows.
Here’s a closer look at the bamboo poles supporting the branches from below. I will say, I’ve seen pictures of these trees when it’s snowing in the winter and I kind of get why the caretakers would go through all this effort to preserve the trees. The snow here is no joke and Kanazawa in general experiences heavy snowfall.
After appreciating the Karasaki Pine, I headed back to the panoramic viewpoint to read more on Kenrokuen Garden and its history. So according to this sign, the land where the garden is used to actually function as a fortress to dissuade enemy forces from invading Kanazawa Castle. The high vantage point of this land made it a strategic position that afforded anyone who controlled it a view of the land below (even extending to the Sea of Japan).
Here’s a signboard talking specifically about the Observation Point. It details how one should go about enjoying the panoramic view here.
Essentially, you need to set your eyes on the Uchinada sand dunes in the far left first. This will give you a view of the dunes and the Sea of Japan.
You’ll then have to follow the dunes to the right where they end and give way to the Noto Peninsula. Then in front of you, you’ll see Mt. Toyama with Mt. Io to its right.
After enjoying the panoramic view, I decided to move along again. As I was walking I then came across this cherry blossom tree that also had yukitsuri. According to the sign in front of, this specific tree is an Asahizakura Cherry Tree. Asahi zakura are actually considered wild cherry blossoms and are recognized for having radiant and vibrant blossoms when they bloom.
While I’m not sure what type of cherry blossom this is, I will say that it does look kind of eerie. Maybe this eeriness is thanks to how its branches flare out from its trunk? Regardless, the tree really knows how to get your attention. In fact, I was supposed to take a shot of the Gankou Bashi foot bridge (parts of which you can see on the right of the image) but I ended up admiring the tree and totally forgot to snap the picture.
If the tree earlier was eerie then this one is just plain otherworldly. The way its trunk undulates makes it look like a snake trying to reach up to the sky. I’m honestly not sure if it just grew naturally or if the caretakers did something to make it look like this. I will say though that it was a little scary to walk on the path under the tree.
A couple of steps away from the weird tree were other trees that also had weirdly bending tree trunks. Quite honestly, these give off “The Temptation of St. Anthony” by Salvador Dali vibes.
Anyway, I managed to get past the otherworldly trees and came across this one story building. The establishment is called Kotobuki and it has souvenirs as well as vending machines if you happen to be hungry or thirsty from all the walking you’ll be doing. More importantly though, it’s close to the Kamisaka Gate Entrance which you can also use to exit the garden.
I finally managed to get to the garden’s Meiji Memorial Monument. According to this sign, the purpose of the monument here is to serve as a memorial for the local soldiers who lost their lives during the Satsuma Rebellion. The sign also has a picture of the area that dates back to Meiji period.
This sign also talks about the Monument but goes into more detail. It talks about the monument being completed in 1880 and the statue was that of Prince Yamato Takeru. At 5.5 meters tall, the bronze statue is said to have been the first to be built in Japan.
I will say, the statue does look impressive albeit it does look like its age. In fact, the whole monument seems like it’s not as well maintained as the other parts of the garden. That or I probably was just there before the caretakers cleaned up the place.
One thing I would have liked was to actually be able to get a closer look around the monument. For some reason I really want to look around the monument and study the base of the statue. Considering how old it might be though, it might be better to look at it from this far.
I’m now at the Hanami-Bashi or Flower Viewing Bridge and since it’s still late autumn-early winter, the cherry blossom trees here have yet to show their blooms (they don’t even have their leaves yet). Other than the cherry blossom trees here, there is this sign that talks about the Tatsumi Irrigation Canal that used to supply the water to Kanazawa Castle’s moat.
After passing the bridge and taking the path to the left, I came across this torii gate. Initially I was perplexed at its existence so I decided to read up on it. It actually took a while but I finally found an explanation for this.
So this is apparently an island called Sekirei-jima and let me tell you, it’s chock full of symbolism. Aside from the torii gate, you’ll see a five-storied pagoda, intertwined pine trees, and a yin and yang stone (could be harder to find). Each of these represent the major events a life goes through. The pagoda symbolizes death while the yin stone and intertwined pine trees represent birth and marriage respectively.
This is Yamazaki Yama Hill. I didn’t quite notice it but at this point I was actually quite tired and I was actually contemplating going up to take a rest at the pavilion. I decided to not go through considering going up there might be more tiring. And with that, my adventure in Kenrokuen Garden ended.
Despite not having seen the cherry blossoms or the snow, I still ended up enjoying my walk through Kenrokuen Garden’s various attractions. The Panoramic View at the Observation Point and the path going to Kasumiga-ike Pond were definitely the highlights of this experience. For JPY320, I think this is an activity that’s worth it especially if you happen to be in Kanazawa. One thing I will say though is that you might want to avoid visiting Kanazawa Castle Park and then immediately going to Kenrokuen on the same day. This is especially true if you’re not that active. Have you been to Kenrokuen? Do you think it deserves being called one of the three most beautiful parks in Japan?
