SPECTRALWhat happened here
The forest grew on a lava field left by Mount Fuji's great Jōgan eruption in 864. Because the rock is young and porous, roots spread across the surface instead of down, and the ground is full of hollows and lava caves — among them the Narusawa Ice Cave and the Fugaku Wind Cave, both open to visitors.
Aokigahara's dark reputation grew in modern times, helped by Seichō Matsumoto's 1960 novel Kuroi Jukai (Black Sea of Trees). The forest is also associated with suicide in Japan, and local authorities and volunteers patrol it and post signs along the trails urging anyone in distress to reach out for help.
The legends
Folklore places yūrei — the restless spirits of Japanese tradition — among the trees, and some tell of ubasute, the legendary practice of leaving elderly relatives in remote places in times of famine. Visitors describe the silence as unnerving: the thick moss swallows sound, and few animals live deep in the forest.
The best-known story is a technical one: compasses supposedly spin and fail here because of magnetic iron in the volcanic rock, and hikers who leave the paths are said never to find their way out.
Fact or legend?
Compasses work normally in Aokigahara; they only deflect when laid directly on some magnetic rocks. Historians find little evidence that ubasute was ever a real practice rather than a folk tale. The silence is real, and so is the risk of getting lost off the trails, which is why visitors are asked to stay on them.
Visiting
Aokigahara is part of Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park, with marked trails linking the Fugaku Wind Cave, the Narusawa Ice Cave and Lake Sai. Stay on the trails and treat the forest with respect.
