Anyone who lives in Japan knows that the seasons are a big deal, with 花見 (hanami, cherry blossom viewing) and 月見 (tsukimi, moon viewing) among the popular activities that celebrate them. From now until around the middle of December, you’ll be able to take part in autumn’s main event: 紅葉を見に行く (kōyō o mi ni iku, going to see the autumn leaves).
The traditional phrase for this occasion is 紅葉狩り (momijigari), which has the nuance of going into the mountains to see wild autumn leaves. It is created by attaching the verb stem of 狩る (karu, to hunt animals) — which then becomes the noun 狩り (k/gari, hunting) — onto the end of 紅葉 (momiji/kōyō, autumn leaves). While 狩る also means “to go looking (for flowers)” and “to gather (mushrooms/berries),” it’s said that 紅葉狩り originally came into use during the Heian Period (794-1185) as aristocrats who went out to look at the leaves resembled a hunting party.
In any case, 狩り can attach to other words, too, such as 潮干狩り (shiohi-gari, shell digging) and きのこ狩り (kinoko-gari, mushroom gathering).
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.