Fifteen metres round, and there is no trunk in the middle. This katsura on the slopes of Mt Tamatori has lost its central stem, and what stands there now is a ring of trunks rising around a hollow base, 30 metres tall. The 15 metres is the measure of that whole fountain of stems, not of one trunk, which makes it no less of a sight, a single tree standing like a small grove. A 2024 book by Koyama Yoji gives the figures and an age of more than 300 years, and lists it as a Natural Monument of Ehime Prefecture. It grows on the north side of the mountain at about 1,060 metres, in the Tomisato district of Shikokuchuo. In autumn katsura leaves turn pink and yellow, and as they fall they give off a smell often compared to caramel or burnt sugar. We have to be plain about two things. The newest photograph we know of was taken in 2010; the 2024 book is cited for it in the present tense, but we have found no dated sighting since. And we have found no description of the way in, neither the path, nor the parking, nor whether there is a sign. It is roughly 25 kilometres of mountain road from Iyo-Mishima station, by car only, and then on foot. If you have been, tell us how you got there.
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Getting there
North slope of Mt Tamatori (about 1,060 m), Samukawayama, Tomisato-cho, Shikokuchuo, Ehime
You can recognise it by the ring of trunks, 15 metres round in all, rising around a hollow base where the central trunk has gone. It stands on the north slope of Mt Tamatori at about 1,060 metres.
Remote mountain tree reached by a mountain road and then on foot; I found no source describing the route, parking or whether it is signed. Car only, far from any station.
Roughly 25 km of mountain road from Iyo-Mishima station per the earlier pass; car only. No public transport verified.
Autumn colour
October and November, when the leaves turn pink and yellow and smell of burnt sugar as they fall
The line is our estimate of how much there is to see, not a measurement. Typical for this species where this tree stands; exact weeks shift with the year.
Sources
Where the facts on this page come from. The story was written with AI from these sources, and readers who know the tree correct it.
