Along with Gassan and Yudono, Mount Haguro is one of the three holy mountains of the prefecture of Yamagata. These sites are among the most sacred to shugenja disciples. It takes about an hour to climb the 2,446 stone steps to the summit, which peaks at 414m/1,358t. The magnificent trail lined with over 400 cedars takes you past a superb five-storey pagoda. You can also visit Shukubo Saikan (monks' lodgings), reconstructed in 1697. At the summit is Gosai-den temple.