I’ll be honest, one of the things I was most looking forward to on my trip to Japan was a visit to Jigokudani Yaen-koen — the Jigokudani Monkey Park. This is where the much-photographed snow monkeys hang out in their hot spring hot tub while the snow clings to their fur. I wasn’t kidding myself that I’d get a better shot than the thousands that have already been taken of this place, nor did I hold out much hope for any snow, but I was looking forward to seeing the monkeys and taking a few snaps, even if just for myself. I don’t really keep a bucket list, but I do have things that I want to see if I’m ever in the vicinity and, in Japan, the snow monkeys were one of those things.
Jigokudani is billed as, “the only place in the world where monkeys bathe in hot springs.” How can you not want to see that?
All of these images were shot with a Tamron 70-200 f/2.8 on either a Nikon D810 or D850 body. Honestly, that’s probably the only lens I needed to bring. I also had my 17-35 with me but I don’t think I snapped a single frame with it — or at least none that made it into my favorites.
It was maybe a couple of hours by bus (hard to say since we made a couple of stops along the way) and then about a 40 minute walk through a beautiful forest before you actually arrive at the hot spring. I’m actually quite glad that it isn’t something that is just off the parking lot because the hike might help to limit the crowds a bit. Plus it was a beautiful hike on a gorgeous morning. No snow, but chilly enough that the monkeys would probably be appreciative of the hot water.
In the interest of truth in photography, this is what the actual hot spring site looks like:
I’m not including this shot to insinuate that the majority of the photos that you see of this place are dishonest. Who doesn’t frame a photo to look its best and to try and crop out the tourists and other distractions? I’m showing this so that you’ll know what to expect if you ever go to Jigokudani yourself. It isn’t a huge, natural area that you’ll have all to yourself. The hot springs area is fairly small, the number of monkeys varies, and there will likely always be other people around. Luckily, the springs are positioned such that all of the tourists are kept on one side of the pool, so it’s fairly easy to photograph the monkeys with a natural background that’s not full of other people with cameras.
The monkeys aren’t too bothered by the people either and seem to go about their own business bathing, grooming and chasing one another.
The monkeys didn’t disappoint. They showed up and performed well, even if the snow never materialized. All-in-all it was a fun afternoon of photography. At times I was shoulder-to-shoulder with other people, taking selfies and what not, but I was so focussed on the monkeys that it was easy to tune everyone else out. We were all there for the same reason, to see these creatures in this unusual habitat, and it made for an amiable group. Much better than groups I’ve encountered in other popular tourist sites. These folks were generally polite and just enjoying themselves.
The walk back down the mountain, through the forest was just as serene and beautiful as the walk up had been and I was once again thinking how good it was that the monkeys have this buffer zone to keep them a bit distanced from the modern world.
Would I recommend the trip to other photographers? Yes. But I think it helps to go into the situation with your expectations in check. Many thousands of images have been made here and many hundreds in conditions probably better than you will experience on one visit. As long as you go into the park with an open mind to just observe and enjoy the wildlife and try and make some good photos, I think you’ll be happy. Just don’t think you need to get THE shot, because the people who get those, generally make many repeat visits and spend a lot more time here than you will likely be able to.
Then again, you might just get lucky.
