Yamanashi Prefecture – One of Japan’s 3 Most Unique Festivals, the Yoshida Fire Festival

The Fire Festival’s main event, “chinka-sai”!
Around 80 large 3-meter-tall torches are lined along a 2-kilometer stretch of Japan’s National Route 139 in Kamiyoshida (Honcho-dori). The festival reaches its peak as the torches are lit.

The torches are lit at around 6:40pm. Many stalls also open at this point, and the celebrations last until the torches are put out at around 10:00pm.
Torches are even burned at mountain huts past the Yoshida entrance on the Mt. Fuji mountain path.

The Susuki Matsuri (Festival) is held at Kanadori Crossing (about 3 minutes on foot from Fujisan Station). (Held around 3:30 pm)
Afterwards, various other Shinto rituals are held, and at around 7:30 pm in the evening the mikoshi is returned to Suwa Shrine.

There are 2 mikoshi for this festival, but the myojin mikoshi is always in the lead.

The oyama mikoshi represents a wild, erupting Mt. Fuji.
The oyama mikoshi must be dropped on the ground three times when it stops to let its carriers rest. This is said to be done to calm the wildness of Mt. Fuji.
The dropped mikoshi weighs over 1 ton, so it is an impressive sight to behold.

The 2 mikoshi are permanently on display at Suwa Shrine.