Fushimi Inari's torii paths

Fushimi Inari Taisha sits at the foot of Mount Inari in southern Kyoto, and the paths behind it climb the mountain under thousands of vermilion torii gates, each one donated and inscribed. The double row just behind the main shrine, Senbon Torii, is the famous frame — and the busiest.

Light comes through the gates as a soft orange that flatters skin at any hour, but the paths are only empty early. At sunrise the first section is quiet; by mid-morning it is solid with people. The higher you climb, the thinner the crowd, and at the Yotsutsuji crossroads, about halfway up, the gates open onto a view over the city.

It is an active shrine: keep the paths clear for people walking up, and don't lean on or hang anything from the gates.