Each satisfying crunch of compacted powder underfoot was a small victory as I stepped between linden trees, trying to keep my balance, wearing snowshoes for the first time in my life. I used to hate snow with a passion, but on this occasion I couldn’t stop beaming, thankful for every step of the woodland that hugs the shores of Lake Akan in Hokkaido, Japan’s northernmost island. Wowed by my guide’s explanation of how his community reveres the natural world, I practically squealed as two incredibly rare red-crowned cranes flew overhead.
As well as being an area of wild natural beauty and a hot springs haven, Lake Akan is home to one of the very few Ainu kotan (villages) in Japan. The Ainu people are the earliest inhabitants of Hokkaido and thrived here for centuries before the Japanese arrived. The exact origins of the Ainu are unknown; as a culture they didn’t write anything down and their history is shared through song, but their presence across the islands was recorded by neighbouring kingdoms in medieval times.
Led by my Ainu guide Kengo Takiguchi, who imparted both botanical and – at times – existential wisdom, this snowy walk is his Forest Time workshop; just one of the portfolio of tours Takiguchi developed for Anytime, Ainu Time, the learning centre established by the Ainu Association of Hokkaido.