Also known as the ‘Suicide Forest’, Aokigahara is first-rate spookiness at the base of Mt. Fuji. Its moniker comes from its history as a place people come to kill themselves: it’s said about 100 people commit suicide here each year.
Aokigahara also is known as the Sea of Trees, is a forest on the northwestern flank of Japan’s Mount Fuji, thriving on 30 square kilometers (12 sq mi) of hardened lava laid down by the last major eruption of Mount Fuji in 864 CE. The western edge of Aokigahara, where there are several caves that fill with ice in winter, is a popular destination for tourists and school trips.
Parts of Aokigahara are very dense, and the porous lava absorbs sound, helping to provide visitors with a sense of solitude. The forest has a historical reputation as a home to yūrei: ghosts of the dead in Japanese mythology.
In recent years, Aokigahara has become known as “the Suicide Forest”, one of the world’s most-used suicide sites; signs at the head of some trails urge suicidal visitors to think of their families and contact a suicide prevention association.
Unsurprisingly, people believe that the forest is haunted, both by the people who have committed suicide and, according to legend, elders who were left here to starve to death during times of famine. At the base of Mount Fuji is a dense, verdant forest. From above, the trees swaying in the wind are reminiscent of the sea, giving the Aokigahara forest a second name Jukai, or Sea of Trees.
The ground below is uneven and riddled with small caves, moss-covered roots growing on top of the dried lava that once flowed there. The soil has a high iron content which interferes with GPS and cell phone signals. This is a peaceful place to get lost. Visitors are strongly encouraged to stay on the trails.
There are some people, however, who enter the forest with the intention of not coming out. Signs at the forest entrances remind visitors that their lives are precious, to think of their families. At the bottom of the signs is the number for a suicide hotline.
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