Togakushi Shrine Houkosha

This magnificent building stands almost hidden amongst old cedar trees. The building is built in the style of traditional Shinto-Buddhist architecture. There's a small car park near the foot of the 270 steps to the shrine. Enshrined within the temple is Amenouwaharunomikoto, the child of the deity of Chusha.

We stumbled upon this magnificent gem. When I turned the corner from the parking lot and looked up the long steep stairs lined on each side by beautiful ancient trees, my heart skipped a beat and my jaw dropped; it is such a magical place that I had no idea even existed. After you get closer to reaching the top, the site becomes clearer by each step up, and then you are in store for an amazing treat.

My favorite of the upper, middle, and lower shrine. It's easy to get to, short walk from the bus station. Long stairs aligned with tall trees, giving it a nice feel to the place. Beautiful shrine a must visit.

A wonderful place to come and feel the energy of the temple and the forest. I took the bus of Alpico in front of Nagano Station to come to this place. Nice soba restaurant but too crowded during the weekend.

Nice nature. Went mid- march. Due to snow, I couldn't explore further. There's s bathroom here too

Hiked down from Chusha to Houkosha via a lovely, fairly well marked route through the snow. Sadly the shrine itself was closed by the time we got there around 3pm, or had otherwise not opened that day at all because of recent heavy snowfall (the front steps were completely buried in snow up to the railings so we had to make our way down from the shrine to the main road via the side street). Brilliant photos though.

Nice intricate carvings, I think the oldest of the shrines and a massive building atop a cedars lined stairway.

Beautiful place. But not suited to go in winter as the staircases are slippery with ice.