The rainy season started and the weather is already nicely hot and humid. Not a very good period for hiking. Fresh new member of the Outdoor Club Japan club, I took the oportunity of last sunday’s scheduled caving event to join to my first club event and enjoy the coolness of the cave.

We went in Okutama where there are several caves (most of them very small) including the Nippara-Shōnūdō (日原鍾乳洞) cave which is arranged for tourists visits (entrance is 600 yenfor high-schools and adults, 400 yen for schoolboys and girls 200 yenfor kids).
Check http://www.nippara.com/nippara/syounyuudou/syounyuudou.html (in Japanese) for information on the Nippara-Shōnūdō cave.

Information on Japan’s cave are very rare as the Japan caving association keeps its caves information and maps jealously guarded and share them exclusively amongst the members of its very small and secret community.

The good aspect of this regrettable and elitist attitude is that we enjoyed the pleasure of exploration and not knowing were you are going. It was a lot of fun to try all the different tunnels and find our way through the different levels across tunnels and chimneys. Here are some pictures of this adventure :