Todoroki Keikoku: the gorge carved by the Yazawa in the heart of Setagaya, Tokyo

A three-minute walk from Todoroki station, on the Tokyu Oimachi line, some fifty steps descend from the Golf-bashi bridge and take you below the level of the city. From here begins Todoroki Keikoku (等々力渓谷), the only gorge in Tokyo's 23 central wards recognised by the metropolitan government as a "place of scenic beauty". The valley was carved by the Yazawa river, which eroded the southern edge of the Musashino plateau: the result is a cleft several metres deep and narrow, where the temperature stays on average about 3 degrees lower than at the surface. The bridge's name recalls the golf course that occupied the area — the old village of Todoroki — in the 1920s and 1930s.

The trail through the gorge

The trail follows the river for about a kilometre and takes 20-30 minutes to walk. It runs between wooded walls, thickets of bamboo and maples that change colour in autumn; the floor is almost always in shade, crossed by little bridges and small springs that surface along the edge. It is an easy route, suitable even for children, but the ground is often slippery from the spring water: closed shoes with a good sole are best, avoiding smooth leather and heels.

The Fudoson temple

Halfway along, on the higher slope, stands the Todoroki Fudoson temple, officially named Ryugozan Myooin. It is dedicated to Fudo Myoo (Acala), the "king of wisdom" of esoteric Shingon Buddhism. Temple tradition traces its roots back more than 1,300 years, while its documented foundation is placed at the end of the Heian period, around 1100, attributed to the monk Kakuban, reformer of the Shingon school. In the Sengoku period it became the guardian temple of the Maita-Kira clan of Setagaya Castle. The present building dates from the mid-nineteenth century. The temple is the 17th stop on the pilgrimage of the Thirty-Six Fudo temples of the Kanto.

Right below the temple, inside the gorge, is the Fudo-no-Taki waterfall: two spouts from which flows the water used for ritual ablutions. From that sound — todoroita, the rumble of the waterfall — the name Todoroki is said to derive. It is this interweaving of water, bamboo and the temple's dark wood that gives the valley the Studio Ghibli-film air that many recognise in it. It stays little frequented above all because of its location: a residential neighbourhood at the far south of Setagaya, almost on the border with Kanagawa prefecture, with no major attractions nearby to funnel in the tour groups.

Along the way it is worth seeking out two more spots. Past the Tamazawa bridge, about fifty metres further on, is the Third mound of the Todoroki valley: a stone tomb from the 7th-8th century, the best preserved of a series of ancient kofun in the area. On the slope opposite the temple, meanwhile, a Japanese garden in shoin style opens up, with a reception room built in 1961, a pond and stone paths.

How to get there

How to get there: from Shibuya you take the Tokyu Toyoko to Jiyugaoka, then change to the Tokyu Oimachi as far as Todoroki, about 20 minutes and a little over 200 yen. The temple and garden are free; the free car park beside the main gate has about 10-15 spaces and is open from 8:00 to 16:30. Spring, with the Fudoson cherry trees in bloom, and the autumn of the maples are the best times. Before setting off it is worth checking the Setagaya municipal website: some stretches of the trail have been affected by works and temporary closures.

Related guides: Unusual Japan: destinations and itineraries off the tourist trail.

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