Harumaki
The third-largest township of Yakushima with more than 470 households, Harumaki sits on the island’s southeast coast. While it is best known as a gateway to the recreational forest of Yakusugi Land and the trails that lead to Jomon Sugi, Harumaki also has much to offer travelers who linger in its coastal community. In addition to an authentic recreation of a Jomon-period (10,000 BCE–300 BCE) settlement on an actual excavation site, there is also a beach studded with coral-reef tidal pools to explore. Another popular sight is the hundred-year-old strangler fig tree on the grounds of Morihisa Shrine. Its “happily coupled” roots seem to be leaning on one another as they unite in mid-air to support a verdant tangle of branches. Visitors with an avid interest in plant life should pick up a copy of the handbook published by the township and sold at area stores. It organizes local flowers by color, location, and the season in which they bloom.