Mount Yuzuruha, Mountain summit in Awaji Island, Japan.

Mount Yuzuruha rises 607.8 m in the Yuzuruha range in southern Awaji Island, on the boundary of Minamiawaji's Kōjiuragaki, Kitaama Inadaminami and Nadasogawa districts, and is the highest point of both the range and the island. It is built of Cretaceous Izumi Group sandstone and conglomerate north of the Median Tectonic Line, with a steep fault scarp on the south slope dropping to the coast and gentler east-west ridges. A first-order triangulation point stands on the summit, which serves as the otabisho of Yuzuruha Shrine about 400 m to the south.

The mountain has been a pilgrimage route since ancient times, as shown by old stone markers and statues scattered along its paths. These monuments suggest that people have traveled here for many centuries.

The mountain's name comes from the yuzuriha plant, common here, and from the broadleaf trees that shed old leaves for new ones each spring. The Yuzuruha Shrine, about 400 m south of the summit, is said to have been founded in the reign of Emperor Kaika and enshrines Izanami-no-Mikoto. Its spring festival on the second Saturday of April brings a portable shrine up to the summit, and the shrine grove holds a stand of akagashi oak designated a prefectural natural monument in 1974.

The main hiking route begins at Yuzuruha Dam where you can park for free, and the walk to the summit takes about an hour. Bring sturdy shoes and weather-appropriate clothing since the paths can be steep and sometimes damp in places.

The summit holds a first-order triangulation point and serves as the otabisho of Yuzuruha Shrine, where a portable shrine is carried up each year on the second Saturday of April. Fans of figure skater Yuzuru Hanyu adopted the mountain as a pilgrimage spot after his 2014 Sochi gold, the shrine's priest said.