How tough is the Jomonsugi trail?

I'll be on a family trip to yakushima in weeks time and wasn't sure if my parents (in their 40s, not experienced hikers) would be able to keep up with 10 hours of hiking. Here on the website it says the first part on Anbo is relatively easy, but is that true?

Those who've been to Yakushima, how long did it take you to finish the round trip and around what time did you start out? :)

http://youtu.be/vOzkUaFGeos

The main difficulty is that it is very long. Very tiring. The trail itself poses no problems in terms of hiking skills required. It is steep at times but no climbing is required. It is mostly about stamina.

It may be better for your parents to make a test walk. It does not even have to be in the mountains, although the altitude difference does make a difference. But just as a test, see how long they can walk.

Most people begin this trek from the Arakawa Trail Entry. To get to this entry point you MUST take a bus from the Yakusugi Museum near Anbo. No private cars are allowed down the road towards the entry point. Buses depart from the museum from 04:40 - 06:00 and the return fare costs 1700 yen.
Once at the Arakawa Entry point you walk for 8km along a railway track. There is nothing difficult about this section of the trail other than its length. After 2.5 hours or so you then enter the forest trail and there is then a 2 hour trek through the forest heading upwards most of the way. This gets you to Jomon sugi. Walking time is around 9-10 hours, but with breaks and rests it could take up to 11-12 hours. The last bus down the museum is at 18:00, so don't miss it!
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