September and October in Japan bring a string of three-day weekends giving people a break as they ease out of their summer vacations. I recently used one of those opportunities to travel to Mt. Takao, an area of Tokyo famous for giving city dwellers a chance to commune with nature. Mt. Takao is host to several leisurely hiking courses (as well as a cable car) leading towards its summit, and a Buddhist temple featuring several statues of tengu, part-man part-bird spirits that live on mountaintops. I reached the top of the mountain literally minutes before this gorgeous sunset. My hike was too early to see the turning leaves, but if you make the short trek over to Mt. Takao in November, you might see the entire mountain aflame in reds and yellows.

Mt. Takao's Tengu