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When I reached a natural bridge known as Ombashi,

I found it shrouded in a dense river fog, which immediately gave me the sense

that something mysterious and spiritual was in the air.

Ombashi is a natural limestone arch that is 90 meters long by 40 meters high,

and extends for another 19 meters under the water. It is the highlight of any

visit to the Taishakukyo gorge, a part of the Taishaku quasi-national park in

the northeastern part of Hiroshima Prefecture.

Since my visit came shortly after a typhoon had passed by the area, there

weren't many people around. In near solitude, the sound of water dripping from

the bridge created a powerful sense of tranquility.

"When you visit Ombashi, you should look at it from the downstream side, from

where you can see a demon's face in the rocks." So I was told by a local man

before I left for the bridge, and his words came back to me now.

As the man said, the face of a Japanese oni demon soon leapt out at me, and

before long I could make out a wolf and an eerie specterlike figure, too.

I felt a shiver pass along my spine as I imagined the creatures were ready to

jump out from the bridge and attack me.

The 18-kilometer-long gorge, which is in the town of Jinsekikogencho and the

Tojocho area of the city of Shobara, was formed by the Taishakugawa river,

which carved out a channel through the deep limestone.

Near the gorge, there are some other famous tourist spots, including the

Taishakuten Eimyoji temple, the source of the name of Taishakukyo. Tourists

also can enjoy local foods, in particular the rich-tasting Hiroshima-gyu beef.

For a really priceless experience, however, take a walk along Taishakukyo,

where you can see a truly unspoiled natural world.

Near the nature trail along the river is a limestone cavern called Hakuundo.

Though it is just 200 meters long, the cavern is like a trade show for

stalactites and stalagmites, with every conceivable type of limestone pillar on

display.

Going downriver, I reached Dangyokei, the only rapids in the gorge.

I had been told that Dangyokei looks like the renowned rapids of the Oirase

River in Aomori Prefecture, making me imagine it would really be a beautiful

limpid stream.

Actually, the swollen brown torrent fully deserved its furious reputation.

Breaking against rocks, the muddy stream frothed and foamed under the limestone

bridge.

Tsuyoshi Tanabe, 68, chairman of a volunteer guide group in the Tojocho

district and the man who tipped me off to the oni face looming out of the

rocks, said, "There are many limestone gorges [in the nation]. But Taishakukyo

earns its remote, mysterious aura with its plunging cliffs and its unpaved

roads."

Ombashi has been designated as one of the nation's natural monuments. Now many

local people are hoping it will be upgraded to special natural monument status.

"I think this is the best place to learn about our human ancestors' roots, as

some plants that proliferate on the limestone soil around here date back 300

million years, proving that Japan was once a connected part of the [Asian]

continent."

Historic bridge on Lake Shinryu

Lake Shinryu, located almost exactly in the center of Taishakukyo, is a

man-made lake created back when a dam was built on the Taishakugawa river in

1924. You can enjoy a 40-minute pleasure boat cruise around the lake, marveling

at views of the bluffs rising sheer out of the water.

I wanted to see Shinryubashi bridge, which was built in 1930. The bridge used

to be called Momijibashi, and is a simple-looking structure. The 84-meter-long

span was moved to its current location from about 300 meters downstream in

1985. The bridge was transported by boat. Now the two-meter-wide bridge (it was

3.6 meters wide before the move) is the longest remaining example of this kind

of truss bridge built before World War II. In fiscal 2002, the Japan Society of

Civil Engineers designated the bridge as a recommended civil engineering asset.

Taro Akagi, 60, the chairman of a group for research and promotion of Lake

Shinryu, acted as my guide despite a thunderstorm strong enough to turn the sky

black.

"Six kilometers downstream of the dam is an area called Shimotaishaku. The area

attracts many climbers during the holidays as it has cliffs as much as 100

meters high. The area also is the home to the prefecture's longest cave--a

780-meter-long limestone cave. All this means you can enjoy the wonders of this

limestone region more in the downstream area than upstream," Akagi said.

Rain continued to fall. But the symmetrical view of Shinryu bridge and its

reflection on the surface of the lake, seen when the rain slowed, was

startlingly beautiful. I was again impressed with the spirit of the locals, who

did not go for the easy option of scrapping the bridge, but chose to preserve

it and keep it in use.

As I watched, the truss bridge turned a deeper shade of vermillion in the dusk,

as if turning into a man-made version of Ombashi.

TRAVEL TIPS

-- To get to Taishakukyo, take the Nozomi Shinkansen from Tokyo to Okayama,

which is a trip of about 3 hours and 20 minutes. Then transfer to a Yakumo

express train on the JR Hakubi Line to Niimi Station, about a one-hour ride.

From that station it is a 40-minute train ride on the JR Geibi Line to Tojo

Station, from where it takes about 20 minutes to Lake Shinryu by bus.

-- For more information, call the Taishakukyo Tourism Association at (08477)

2-0525 or visit www.taishakukyo.com.