January 3, 2026: Encounter with a Monkey at Minoh Waterfall

January 3, 2026: On a lightly snow-flurried afternoon, I took a walk to Minoh Waterfall in Osaka and was able to spot a single monkey. The monkeys there are completely wild and not fed by humans, and since there is no resident troop, I was lucky to see one on this occasion.

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It was a very good workout for me, as the walk was about 10 kilometers.

The monkey never came near us, spent about five minutes eating persimmons, and then returned to the mountains. The mountains of Minoh are blessed with rich natural surroundings, and in addition to monkeys, the presence of deer, wild boar, and Asiatic black bears has also been confirmed.

I warmed myself up with Mino’s famous yuzu soba along the mountain path leading to Minoh Waterfall. Yuzu soba is a type of buckwheat noodles infused with the rich aroma of yuzu, a citrus fruit native to Japan and East Asia, which is a local specialty of Minoh, and is known for its exceptionally smooth and silky texture when going down the throat.