Overview
The Tokai Nature Trail (Tokai Shizen Hodo) is a long distance walking route that travels from Tokyo to Osaka. It crosses paths with a diverse range of terrain types as well as cultural sites, like historical temples and castles. It is well known within Japan for shorter day hikes, but is slowly becoming more popular among adventurous foreigners looking for a unique thru-hike. The trail traverses many different sections with their own difficulty ratings, but the overall difficulty of a thru-hike is moderate. Certain areas, especially those in the mountain ranges, will be physically more difficult. However, unlike many other long distance trails, this one often crosses through towns and villages, so hikers will not be in remote wilderness for long stretches. This eases many of the logistics around obtaining water, food, and shelter.