PAID CONTENT
2019年9月2日 / 00:00 / 1年前

Central Japan’s Hinoki Heritage – travel back in time on the Nakasendo highway

The Nakasendo Highway

In the Edo era, the capital Tokyo—then called Edo—was connected to other key parts of Japan by five highways. Modest trails by today’s standards, they wound through mountain ranges, skirted the coast and passed across plains. Of these, it was the Nakasendo that connected Edo with Kyoto on an inland route, playing a key role in communications and trade between the cities.

Back then, there were 69 juku, or staging posts, along the Nakasendo, where travelers could break their journeys for the night and rest. Today, two in particular in the forested Kiso Valley remain remarkably well preserved—Magome in Gifu Prefecture and Tsumago in Nagano Prefecture—and the eight-kilometer stretch of the Nakasendo that connects them affords travelers that make the short journey north from Nagoya the opportunity to almost step back in time.

Old town, Magome

Magome to Tsumago

Starting at Magome, you soon come across one of the Nakasendo’s classic sights, when the cobbled pathway that curves into the bottom of the town suddenly puts you in front of a collection of old wooden buildings, one with a large waterwheel outside, others accented by flowerpots and greenery. It’s one of those spots where everybody seems to stop and take a photo, before following the pathway uphill on a 20-minute stroll by a succession of traditional wooden structures that now serve as a mix of residences, B&Bs, cafes and craft stores.

It’s hard to place Magome exactly in time, but there’s something comfortingly aged about it, and something calming. All the way up, there’s the gentle sound of water running down stone channels on each side of the street, and once you get to the top of town there are views across wooded hills and mountain ranges. There’s an old signboard here, too, that gives insights into life in the Kiso Valley in the Edo era, with proclamations from the region’s lord forbidding Christianity and gambling, requiring residents to uphold morals and treat each other well, and giving guidelines on horses and accommodation fees.

From here, the trail along the old Nakasendo to Tsumago begins, cutting through forests that occasionally clear to reveal lush valleys and gorges; sometimes winding past a waterfall or a rustic lodge like Kiso Ichikoku, where walkers can have free tea sat around a hearth. When it reaches Tsumago (it takes about three hours), the town is just as picturesque as Magome, with dark-wood buildings lining the main street. Like Magome, some of these are still homes, while others have been repurposed into cafes and stores under strict planning guidelines that ensure the structures themselves are fully preserved. Because of that, both towns are devoid of modern scars like convenience stores, overhead cables, and neon signs.

In both Magome and Tsumago, there are also plenty of places to try local flavours, like soba noodles, sweetly simmered river trout and skewers of gohei mochi rice cakes that are grilled after being basted in a sticky miso paste.

A Soak in Gero

The Kiso River, which runs near the Nakasendo and was used to bring Kiso hinoki from the region into Inuyama, connects to the Hida River which in turns passes through the town of Gero. Just over 90 minutes from Nagoya on the Hida Limited Express train, Gero is known for its onsen, or natural hot springs, mineral-rich waters that are believed to be beneficial to health in a variety of ways and especially good for the skin.

The waters relax, too, as travelers find if they stay at one of Gero’s traditional inns, where as well as enjoying a night in tatami mat rooms and a multi-course kaiseki dinner centered on seasonal produce, guests can unwind in piping-hot communal onsen baths.

As some inns open their baths to non-guests, a soak is even possible as a daytrip, or you could just opt for a spot of foot pampering at the Gero Onsen Museum. Here, you can immerse your feet and ankles in hot water before walking several circuits of a bathing area coated with stones that massage your feet, while progressing from very hot water to very cold and back again to hot. It leaves your feet soothed and smooth—ideal after a couple of days exploring Nagoya, Inuyama and the old Nakasendo.

More Information

From Nagoya, it takes about an hour by train and then bus to get to either Magome or Tsumago, and then a couple of hours to walk the route between them. It doesn’t matter at which town you start, nor does it matter if you are travelling with luggage; there’s a daily forwarding service between the two towns. For more information, visit the official tourism sites of Magome and Tsumago. Gero Onsen also has its own English-language site for travelers.

For information on traveling to Nagoya and other parts of central Japan from Osaka and Tokyo - click here

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