Miho no Matsubara

Miho is a sand spit reaching into Suruga Bay east of Shizuoka, planted along about seven kilometres with some thirty thousand black pines, and the composition it makes - twisted pines in the foreground, the bay, and Fuji standing across the water some forty-five kilometres away - has been painted and printed for centuries, including by Hiroshige. It is part of the Fujisan UNESCO inscription for that reason: not for itself, but as one of the viewpoints that made the mountain a cultural object. The Hagoromo pine is the grove's fixed point, associated with the Noh play Hagoromo in which a celestial being leaves her feather robe hanging on a branch; the tree standing now is a successor to earlier ones. The beach is coarse grey sand and pebble. Erosion has been a serious problem and concrete works along the shore are visible in most directions.

What you actually see

• Thirty thousand pines - seven kilometres of black pine along a sand spit.
• The classic composition - pines, bay and Fuji, painted for centuries.
• The Hagoromo pine - the tree of the Noh play, a successor to earlier ones.
• UNESCO as a viewpoint - listed for how the mountain was seen from here.

When to go

November to February at dawn for Fuji. Two hours.

Honest expectations

Fuji is absent behind cloud much of the year, which removes most of the point. Coastal erosion works and concrete tetrapods are prominent. The beach is grey pebble, not sand for lying on. It is a long bus ride from Shizuoka.

Nearby

Shimizu port is north; Shizuoka city is west.