{"id":87250,"date":"2021-12-28T10:00:00","date_gmt":"2021-12-28T01:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/voyapon.com\/?p=87250"},"modified":"2022-01-20T20:50:58","modified_gmt":"2022-01-20T11:50:58","slug":"guided-tour-matagi-beech-forest-shirakami-sanchi","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/voyapon.com\/guided-tour-matagi-beech-forest-shirakami-sanchi\/","title":{"rendered":"A Forest Tour with a Traditional Matagi Winter Hunter in Shirakami-Sanchi"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Shirakami-Sanchi tour guide, Yukio Koike, moved to Aomori Prefecture 33 years ago to study Environmental Science at Hirosaki University. The Kanagawa native\u2019s intention for traveling so far north was initially to go skiing during his time off. But, unbeknownst to him at the time, he would fall in love with the mountainous Shirakami-Sanchi<\/a> and the ways of the Matagi, a unique group of traditional winter hunters of the region.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Yukio
Yukio Koike has been a practicing Matagi for the last 25 years<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The World Heritage Site Shirakami-Sanchi is the largest pristine beech forest in East Asia, with a diverse ecosystem that has remained relatively untouched over the last 8,000 years. After a chance encounter with the Matagi, Koike-san became fascinated with the culture and decided to become a disciple of Matagi himself. \u201cHe showed me how to catch a fish with his bare hands and start a fire in the pouring rain. That\u2019s when I first thought, Wow, the Matagi are amazing<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"View
Looking out over the diverse forests of Shirakami Sanchi<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Who are the Matagi?<\/b><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The term Matagi (\u30de\u30bf\u30ae) came into use in Japan around 500 years ago for the community of hunter-gathers that spread from northern Tohoku to the northern parts of central Japan, who followed strict lifestyle rules. They lived in the style of the people of the Jomon Era (ca. 10,500\u2013ca. 300 B.C.), where they hunted animals, gathered wild plants and mushrooms, and lived off the land. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n