!["Buna" is the word for the Japanese beech tree. There are thousands of Japanese beech trees within the Shirakami Sanchi World Heritage Site.](http://a1.cdn.japantravel.com/photo/9148-59952/320x240!/akita-jr-resort-shirakami-59952.jpg ""Buna" is the word for the Japanese beech tree. There are thousands of Japanese beech trees within the Shirakami Sanchi World Heritage Site.")
The Resort Shirakami is a pleasure train system that runs from Akita Station to Hirosaki in Aomori along the Gono Line. There are three trains in total all with their own names and models, but they all are more or less the same and share similar characteristics.
These photos highlight a winter ride on the "Buna" train, so named because of the thousands of "buna" or Japanese beech trees in the nearby World Heritage Site Shirakami Sanchi. Naturally, the train makes several stops around Shirakami Sanchi and other locales along the Akita and Aomori coastline. While the spring, summer, and fall surely bring their own unique charms to the rural landscape, the winter season creates something special, something I can only describe as timeless serenity.
