Kobiro-oji to Kumasegawa-oji leads into the mountainous regions where there are few roads and little communication possible by cell phone. Nakodo Chaya to Funatama Shrine goes through a lonely section of woods going over two passes leading towards Hosshinmon. Hikers can choose to continue on to Hongu Taisha over the Hosshinmon route or the Akagi-goe (Akagi Pass) route.
Nakodo Chaya is a ruins of a tea house. Nakodo means "matchmaker" in Japanese. The name comes from the tea house's position in a valley between to mountain passes. One of the slopes leading to a pass is called Otoko-zaka meaning "Men's Slope," and the other is On'na-zaka
meaning "Women's Slope.
Hence the meeting place became "Matchmaker Tea House.
This section takes approximately four hours to hike a distance of approximately ten kilometers for hikers in good physical condition. It is a rigorous hike in the hot summer months, and it is a dangerous hike in the winter if there is snow or freezing conditions.
