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TRH spend a third full day in Japan

30th October 2008

The Prince of Wales visited a pioneering conservation project and The Duchess of Cornwall visited a children’s hospital ward on the last full day of their overseas tour to Japan.

His Royal Highness visited the Afan Forest with Princess Takamado of Japan, who has a keen interest in birdlife.

Welshman and owner of the forest, CW (Clive William) Nicol, has breathed new life into a former "ghost forest" of neglected scrubland that is now home to hundreds of species of plant and wildlife.

The woodland was named Afan Forest by Mr Nicol after the forest in Wales. 

The conservationist was inspired to buy his first piece of land and turn it back into woodland in 1982 after he visited the Afan Valley above Port Talbot in South Wales and saw efforts to turn the former coal mining area back into natural habitat.

Mr Nicol, originally from Neath but now a Japanese citizen, said he was honoured to show The Prince around the site that now boasts wild bears, racoon dogs and foxes.

Mr Nicol spoke of the boost provided by The Prince’s visit.

He said: "For me it's an enormous honour. He hasn't been to the Afan forest in Wales so for him to come here it's a right royal rocket assisted take off for what we are trying to do.

"I remember that area next to the Neath valley, where I'm from, was really devastated land - dead rivers, slag heaps.

"When I went back there I saw it was green and the rivers were coming alive.

"Instead of tilting at windmills if I can use the money I made in Japan to buy land and bring it back to health that would be better."

Mr Nicol, 68, is a celebrity in Japan after appearing on dozens of television shows to voice his views on the environment.

He is also a martial arts expert, ex-environmental adviser to the Japanese Government, former Ethiopian game reserve guide, author and decades ago appeared in whisky adverts on Japanese TV.

Mr Nicol arrived in the Far East country in 1962 and became a Japanese citizen in 1995 to enable him to turn the forest project into a trust so it would be safeguarded for future generations.

Describing how the woodland first looked he said: "You couldn't see three metres ahead and people called it the 'ghost forest' - it was just neglected brush.

"I wanted to bring back a healthy diversity, go back to big trees like it was a virgin forest."

The Prince, Princess Takamado and Mr Nicol walked around the woodland paths in the mountainous area of Kurohime near the city of Nagano, The Prince carrying a shepherds crook he bought at the Yorkshire show in 1999.

Their first stop was a 100-year-old charcoal kiln found overgrown on the site by Mr Nicol who renovated it, they then went onto a campsite where a group of children had been bird-spotting.

The party then followed a winding stream to where a group of youngsters aged seven to 14 were tree climbing using ropes and harnesses.

They were being tutored by Canadian John Gathright who runs a project which uses tree climbing as a way to educate and motivate disadvantaged children.

At the final stop the group enjoyed tea at another campsite used as a "sound shelter" where visitors can listen to the forest.

Later, The Prince travelled to the Enmei tea factory, in the nearby town of Shinanomachi, which is renowned for its research into the health benefits of traditional ingredients.

The Prince toured the company's herb garden, used to grow plants and trees for products, then donned a white coat and hat and went inside to watch women packing bamboo leaves to the sound of classical music and in lighting that simulated moonlight.

Meanwhile The Duchess visited a children’s ward at St Luke’s Hospital where she took part in a pet therapy session for young patients.

St Luke’s was founded by an American Doctor Dr Teusler in 1902. It is considered to be Japan’s first modern hospital. It is well known for its chapel and was built on the belief that Christian love relieves human suffering.

Her Royal Highness met patients and their families during her visit to the ward.

In the evening The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall enjoyed dinner with Japan's Crown Prince Naruhito and his wife Princess Masako in Tokyo.

The Crown Prince hosted the dinner at his temporary home within the grounds of the Akasaka Detached Palace, as his nearby residence is being renovated.