Japanese Mailman's Incredible Job Climbing a Mountain | YAMADERA ★ ONLY in JAPAN

So here we are at the top of Yamadera Risshaku-ji Temple completed in 860.

There is no more beautiful spot than this one in autumn

an amazing view overlooking Yamagata Prefecture.

And at the top of 1015 steps lies a public

Japan Post box and a man who has to climb

these steps almost every day to pick it up.

[Opening music]

Irasshaimase (welcome)

Only In Japan (voice of Peter von Gomm)

I jumped on an E3 series bullet train

the Yamagata Shinkansen from Tokyo

for the 2 hour 45 minute ride north

the morning mountain mist exciting me

for the adventure at hand today.

Yamadera north-east of Yamagata City in the

mountains is a gem for off-the-beaten-path

travelers, especially beautiful in autumn.

Close to the JR station is an over

1000 step stairway hike to the ancient

Risshaku-ji Temple or Yamadera which

is directly translated as mountain temple.

And at the top besides the temple

serving the residents and tourists

alike is a red Japan Post box

With pick-up time 11am six days a week.

I always wondered who climbs up here to

pick it up? That's over 12,000 steps each week.

A real workout.

(music)

And I found the man who has a most scenic

and one of the most challenging postal

routes perhaps in all of Japan.

This is Sasahara San who has been on

this route for several years.

He parks at the Yamadera Post Office

and then hikes up, the same as tourists.

Autumn here is warm in the afternoon sun,

chilly in the evening, perfect hiking temperature.

When you're carrying mail and packages and

have to climb up a mountain, it's a long way.

Well, it's not that far away.

Just 20 or 30 minutes to climb up.

The temple was founded in 860 nearly 1200 years ago.

An ancient hike that now has well-maintained

stone and cement steps to the top.

We'll end the episode at the stunning

Godaido observation deck and an autumn

view of the mountain town below.

It does look much more difficult

from street level though.

(adventurous music)

11:59am

We start the climb from under the torii gate.

The real climbing in the forest starts here at

the temple gate. Admission for non postal

workers is 300 yen, open 9 to 5 daily.

Oh really?

Take it step by step, but you have to

stop and look around. There's no reason to

rush it even when you have a postal route.

Yamadera is one of the big attractions of

Tohoku. It's really nice to get out of the city.

The steps up here have a lot of character

built around the ancient rocks that give

you a chance to look around

say hi to the other travelers.

There aren't that many people in the early

mornings and near closing time

the best time to visit and climb.

We passed the Midahora Rock,

worn from centuries of weather resembling

a figure of Amida Buddha.

We took a break at the halfway mark

and I asked Sasahara San what

Yamadera's attraction is to him.

[Laughter]

Aaahhh.

The climb up is easy today - no packages.

But sometimes he does have to bring them up.

12:09pm

This is Niomon Gate, a scenic spot

to cross from the forest to the

opening top of the mountain.

The Yamagata fall colors seem to start

a month before Tokyo.

(flute music)

From here, we start to enter the mountain-top

village where only a handful of people

actually live. Even without any roads

to drive up, mail needs to be picked up

and dropped off like every small town

around the country.

"Here we go."

The view is also easier to admire.

We're about 300m above sea level.

The mail must be delivered no matter what.

So it is true, almost nothing stops the Post Office.

We've reached the public mail box.

Sasahara San makes another delivery.

We've got more work to do before picking

up the mail from the public post box.

(dog barking)

One resident was happy for the visit.

OK!

As we move to the digital world,

it's good to remember that these daily

interactions also become more important too.

The delivery of mail - that human connection -

important in remote areas.

We quickly visited the main hall,

Daibutsuden, and made our way back

down to the post box.

12:32pm

There doesn't seem to be a lot of

mail to pick up today.

You could see that a lot of people

stop to watch us pick up the mail.

(laughter)

Seeing someone whose job it is to walk

up the path so often that some tourists

struggle with is also an attraction,

especially for Japanese visiting Yamadera for

the first time.

I suppose in a way, Sasahara San is

a connection between the world on the outside

and the spiritual world atop the mountain.

It would make quite an interesting anime.

We walked down past Neomon Gate,

a slice of everyday life in Japan perhaps

the most intertesting way to see the stunning

attractions in the heart of Yamagata.

The trip down is much faster than the trip up.

You notice the different view, the sun setting,

changing the direction of the light through the trees.

(spirited orchestral music)

The whole trip from post office from top

to bottom took about an hour.

12:57pm Post Office reached.

A lot of Japanese hikers say hi,

take selfies with Sasahara San -

a lot of respect for the guy who has to do

his duty up and down the trail every day.

And there are a lot of things he'll miss.

(laughter)

Good.

1:12pm Sasahara San is off.

There are more stops on his route

in the surrounding mountains delivering mail

until his retirement in a couple of years.

I went up for a quick climb again to visit

the most scenic spot, the Godaido

Observation Deck at sunset.

It said that those who ascend the steps

1015 to Okunoin Temple at the top,

forget the outside world as they ascend.

They transcend into something greater.

And when you walk around, make sure you look around

'cause it's just stunning.

Between three and 4pm there were fewer people

on the steps. It had a much different feel.

The Godaido Deck, Pavilion of the Five Masters,

when the lighting is right, is one of the most

incredible views of Japan.

It feels surreal when you have it all to yourself

just the sound of the wind, trees and maybe the

local train passing by at the bottom in town.

25 years ago when I first came to Japan,

I remember coming up to Yamadera around that time.

And more than the view around me, I was

impressed with this. Who

has to climb those stairs and pick up and deliver

the mail almost every day? Sasahara San.

And it was really special to get a chance

to see him at his job.

These are the kind of stories I like to bring you

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another adventure as I take you to

every corner of this amazing country.

Mata ne.

(temple music)