Walk a path through towering bamboo
Some of Japan's bamboo groves have paths running through them, with stalks rising so high that the sky shows only as a thin strip. Walk slowly and listen to the leaves rustle and the stalks creak in the wind.
The best-known bamboo path in Japan, running about 400 m from Nonomiya Shrine past the north gate of Tenryu-ji to the Okochi Sanso villa. It is crowded by mid-morning, so come early. About 15 minutes from Kyoto Station by JR to Saga-Arashiyama.
A 1.8 km path through the bamboo groves on the hills of Muko, southwest of Kyoto, lined with eight different styles of bamboo fence. It sees far fewer visitors than Arashiyama. Walk about 15 minutes from Hankyu Rakusaiguchi Station, and go in daylight, as there are no streetlights.
A bamboo path along the Katsura River in Shuzenji, a hot spring town on the Izu Peninsula, with a round bamboo bench in the middle where you can sit and look up at the stalks. It is lit up after dark, and Shuzenji is about 2 hours from Tokyo by limited express.