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Aokigahara
 
 
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, also known as the , is a forest
Forest

File:Stara planina suma.jpgA forest is an area with a high density of trees. There are many definitions of a forest, based on various criteria....
 that lies at the base of Mount Fuji
Mount Fuji

is the highest mountain in Japan at . Along with Mount Tate and Mount Haku, it is one of Japan's "Three Holy Mountains" . An active volcano that last erupted in 1707?08, Mount Fuji straddles the boundary of Shizuoka Prefecture and Yamanashi Prefecture Prefectures of Japan just west of Tokyo, from which it can be seen on a clear day....
 in Japan
Japan

Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south....
. The caverns found in this forest are rocky and ice-covered annually. It has been claimed by local residents and visitors that the woods are host to a great amount of paranormal
Paranormal

Paranormal is a general term that describes unusual experiences that lack a scientific explanation, or phenomena alleged to be outside of science's current ability to explain or measure....
 phenomena.

forest floor consists primarily of volcanic rock and is difficult to penetrate with hand tools such as picks or shovels.






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, also known as the , is a forest
Forest

File:Stara planina suma.jpgA forest is an area with a high density of trees. There are many definitions of a forest, based on various criteria....
 that lies at the base of Mount Fuji
Mount Fuji

is the highest mountain in Japan at . Along with Mount Tate and Mount Haku, it is one of Japan's "Three Holy Mountains" . An active volcano that last erupted in 1707?08, Mount Fuji straddles the boundary of Shizuoka Prefecture and Yamanashi Prefecture Prefectures of Japan just west of Tokyo, from which it can be seen on a clear day....
 in Japan
Japan

Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south....
. The caverns found in this forest are rocky and ice-covered annually. It has been claimed by local residents and visitors that the woods are host to a great amount of paranormal
Paranormal

Paranormal is a general term that describes unusual experiences that lack a scientific explanation, or phenomena alleged to be outside of science's current ability to explain or measure....
 phenomena.

Geography

The forest floor consists primarily of volcanic rock and is difficult to penetrate with hand tools such as picks or shovels. There are also a variety of unofficial trails that are used semi-regularly for the annual "body hunt" done by local volunteers which mark their search areas with plastic tape. The plastic tape is not removed after each year, so a great deal of it litters the first kilometer of the forest past the designated trails leading to and from known tourist attractions such as the Ice Cave and Wind Cave. After the first kilometer into Aokigahara towards Mount Fuji
Mount Fuji

is the highest mountain in Japan at . Along with Mount Tate and Mount Haku, it is one of Japan's "Three Holy Mountains" . An active volcano that last erupted in 1707?08, Mount Fuji straddles the boundary of Shizuoka Prefecture and Yamanashi Prefecture Prefectures of Japan just west of Tokyo, from which it can be seen on a clear day....
, the forest is in a much more pristine state, with little to no litter or obvious signs of human contact. On some occasions human remains can be found in the distant reaches of the forest, but these are usually more than a few years old and consist of scattered bones and incomplete skeletons suggesting the presence of scavenging animals.

A very popular myth states that the magnetic iron deposits underground causes compass
Compass

A compass, magnetic compass or mariner's compass is a navigational instrument for determining direction relative to the earth's magnetic poles....
es to hopelessly malfunction causing travelers to get lost. However this myth is partially false. Japan's Self Defence Force
Japan Self-Defense Forces

The , or JSDF, occasionally referred to as JSF, are the Armed forces in Japan that were established after the end of the post-World War II American occupation of Japan....
 and the US Military
United States Forces Japan

The United States Forces Japan refers to the various divisions of the United States Armed Forces that are stationed in Japan. Under the Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and Security between the United States and Japan, the United States is obliged to defend Japan in close cooperation with the Japan Self-Defense Forces for maritime defense, balli...
 regularly run training practices through portions of the forest, during which military grade lensatic compasses have been verified to function properly. Vehicles, GPS equipment, and other electronic devices function properly.

Visitors

It is also a popular place for suicide
Suicide

Suicide is the intentional taking of one's own life. Many dictionaries also note the metaphorical sense of "willful destruction of one's self-interest"....
s, reportedly the world’s second most popular suicide location after San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge
Golden Gate Bridge

The Golden Gate Bridge is a suspension bridge bridge spanning the Golden Gate, the opening of the San Francisco Bay onto the Pacific Ocean. As part of both U.S....
, due in some part to the novel Kuroi Jukai
Kuroi Jukai

literally means "the black sea of trees" and is often just called "jukai". It commonly refers to*Aokigahara - the forest around Mt. Fuji in Japan...
 (Black Forest), which ends with the lovers of the novel committing suicide in the forest. Since the 1950s, more than 500 people have lost their lives in the forest, mostly suicides, with approximately 30 suicides counted yearly. In 2002, 78 bodies were found within the forest, replacing the previous record of 73 in 1998. The high rate of suicide has led officials to place signs within the forest, urging those who have gone there specifically with the purpose of suicide in mind to seek help and not kill themselves. The annual search, consisting of a small army of police, volunteers and attendant journalists, began in 1970.

Aside from those intending to die in the forest, the dense forest and rugged inaccessibility has also attracted the adventuring of thrill seekers. Many of these hikers marked their traveled routes by leaving colored plastic tapes behind, causing concerns from prefectural officials with regard to the ecosystem of the forest.

In 2004, a movie about the forest was released, called ??? (Ki no Umi or Sea of Trees; English Title: Jyukai - The Sea of Trees Behind Mt. Fuji), by the director Takimoto Tomoyuki. It told the story of four different people who decided to end their lives in the forest of Aokigahara. While scouting for shooting locations, Takimoto told reporters that he found a wallet containing 370,000 yen
Japanese yen

The is the currency of Japan. It is the third most-traded currency in the forex after the euro and the United States dollar. It is also widely used as a reserve currency after the U.S....
 (roughly $3,760 USD
United States dollar

The United States dollar is the unit of currency of the United States and was defined by the Coinage Act of 1792 to be between 371 and 416 grains of silver ....
), giving rise to the popular rumor that Aokigahara is a treasure trove for scavengers. Others have claimed to have found credit cards, rail passes
Ticket (admission)

A ticket is a voucher to indicate that one has paid for admission to an event or establishment such as a theatre, movie theater, amusement park, zoo, museum, concert, or other attraction, or permission to travel on a vehicle such as an airliner, train, bus, or boat, typically because one has paid the fare....
, and driver's licenses.

See also

  • Suicide in Japan
    Suicide in Japan

    Suicide in Japan is considered to be a big problem nationally. Causes of suicide include unemployment , depression , and social pressures. Japan has one of the world's highest suicide rates, especially amongst industrialized nations, and the Japanese government says the rate for 2006 is ninth highest in the world....