South of Aso’s steaming volcanic vent, on the outer rim of the caldera, a little off the main roads in the scenic Old Kugino Village area, you can find a rare and interesting group of peaks on Mt. Rakan (near Mt. Takagi). These ragged pyroxene andesite formations of spewed volcanic rock emit a spooky-yet-inspiring mood in winter, with their black-and-brown pillars flowing out of the brown grassy landscape due to erosion.

Old Kugino holds some of the last vestiges of natural landscape left in Aso. This quiet area rewards those who venture there with faint birdsong and vast, mountainside views carpeted in grasses and occasional trees.

羅漢山奇岩—Rakanzan no Kigan—Mt. Rakan Crags 旧久木野村—Kyuu Kuginomura—Old Kugino Village (now merged into Minamiaso Village)