# Irohazaka
Route 120 · Nikkō. Japan (Asia & Middle East).
Source: https://lotustrails.com/trails/irohazaka/

- Length: 16 km (10 miles)
- High point: 1,269 m (4,163 ft)
- Driving time: 40 minutes for both roads
- Season: April to November (very busy in October)
- Toll: Free
- Coordinates: 36.737, 139.512
- Character: Hairpins, One-way, Car culture

Irohazaka is a pair of one-way roads linking Nikkō with Lake Chūzenji: one for climbing, one for descending. Between them they have 48 hairpins, each signed with a character from the old Japanese 'iroha' syllabary. The descending road is the famous one from manga and anime, a staircase of tight hairpins dropping through forest.

## The drive
The uphill road (the second Irohazaka) has two lanes and 20 corners, so slower traffic can be passed. It ends at Akechidaira, where a ropeway gives a view of Kegon Falls. The downhill road (the first) has 28 much tighter hairpins on a steep gradient.

Because both are one-way, you never meet oncoming traffic, which makes them unusually relaxing to drive for roads this tight.

## In your Lotus
Hairpins with no oncoming traffic are an ideal place to enjoy a light, short-wheelbase car. Avoid the autumn-leaf season in late October, when the queue up the hill can last hours. Monkeys sit on the road and have learned that cars carry food; keep the windows up.

## Watch out for
- Gridlock during autumn colour weekends.
- Wild monkeys on the road and the walls.
- The descent is hard on brakes; use the gears.