{"id":40631,"date":"2018-10-22T08:00:41","date_gmt":"2018-10-21T23:00:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/voyapon.com\/?p=40631"},"modified":"2021-05-25T18:37:39","modified_gmt":"2021-05-25T09:37:39","slug":"nakasendo-trail-from-nakatsugawa-post-town","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/voyapon.com\/nakasendo-trail-from-nakatsugawa-post-town\/","title":{"rendered":"Hiking through the Nakasendo Trail from Nakatsugawa Post Town"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
Do you know of the Nakasendo trail? Nakasend\u014d,<\/strong>\u00a0also called Kisokaid\u014d, was one of the\u00a0Edo Five Routes<\/strong> (Gokaid\u014d\u00a0\u4e94\u8857\u9053)\u00a0named Gokaid\u014d during the\u00a0Tokugawa feudal\u00a0period<\/strong>, linking the cities of\u00a0Tokyo<\/strong> and Kyoto<\/strong>. It had an important role in connecting the capital with different provinces. The most important of the routes was T\u014dkaido Road<\/strong> between Edo and Kyoto, tracing the Pacific coast. Tokugawa Ieyasu began construction of the five roads to increase control over the country in 1601<\/strong>, but Tokugawa Ietsuna, the fourth shogun of the Tokugawa Shogunate, declared them as the nation’s major roads. Thus, a number of shukuba<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0(<\/em>post towns)<\/em>\u00a0<\/strong>were built along the routes so that travelers could rest, eat, buy food and stay overnight. The routes flourished due to the governmental policy known as sankin-k\u014dtai<\/em><\/strong>, which required daimy\u014ds (<\/em>regional rulers) to travel to Edo on this route every other year, sometimes accompanied by processions of thousands of men. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Let’s talk about the Nakasend\u014d<\/strong> (\u4e2d\u5c71\u9053) trail. It had 69 stations<\/strong> and crossed through provinces of Musashi, K\u014dzuke, Shinano, Mino and \u014cmi. In addition to Tokyo and Kyoto, Nakasend\u014d <\/strong>passed through the current prefectures of Saitama, Gunma, Nagano, Gifu and Shiga, with a total distance of about 542 kilometer<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Nakasend\u014d Trail translates to “the route through central mountains,<\/strong>” as opposed to T\u014dkaid\u014d which means “the eastern sea route.” The Nakasendo was considered a safe and good quality road, so many famous people as well as lords traveled the path regularly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In early Edo period, many political, legal, cultural and intellectual changes took place in Japanese society, including the renovation of the road network<\/strong>. Before these official trade routes were set up, many shorter routes connect small cities. One such route was Kisoji<\/strong>, which consisted of eleven stations that later was migrated as a part of Nakasend\u014d, from Niekawa-juku to Magome-juku<\/strong>. Before the Edo Period, the route hold two names: Sand\u014d and T\u014dsand\u014d, as time passed by, the name was changed to Nakasend\u014d in 1716 during the Edo period<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Although there are many modern buildings along Nakasend\u014d, some original building plots remain <\/strong>and others have been restored<\/strong> in recent decades. The best-known section is in Kiso Valley between Tsumago-juku<\/strong> and Magome-juku<\/strong>, which is very popular among travelers nowadays. This area is also related to the writer T\u014dson Shimazaki <\/strong>who chronicled the effects of the Meiji Restoration on this area in his novel, Before the Dawn (Yoake Mae<\/em>). This 8km-long path is a pleasant walk that provides the opportunity to enjoy the preserved traditional architecture<\/strong> of Tsumago-juku and Magome-juku. The walk between these historic resorts requires two to three hours of walking <\/strong>through the stoned pavement with stunning views of forests and waterfalls.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n In this article, we’ll chronicle the long path<\/strong> starting from Nakatsugawa Post Town (close to JR Nakatsugawa Station) all the way to the Tsumago Post Town.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Starting your journey at Nakatsugawa Station, where there restaurants for any price range<\/strong>, enabling you to stock on calories and energy before you set off! For a several hours hike, noodles such as soba<\/em> are a good option.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Make a stop at Asahigaoka Park<\/strong> with a few toriis<\/em><\/strong>, famous Japanese lacquered red gates that typically mark the entrance to Shinto shrines.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The roadways are not busy with vehicles but please try to walk in the pedestrian zone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Every curves offers you a new landscape<\/strong>, you can’t help stopping to admire each new landscape.<\/p>\n\n\n\n You will often find hiking trail signs<\/strong> on the Nakasend\u014d, but you only need to follow the specific road surface to stay on course, an elegant asphalt tinged with yellow pebbles–a yellow brick road of sorts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n You will have an opportunity to glimpse the daily life of local resident<\/strong> or their craft creations<\/strong> on the side of the road.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Peaceful landscapes offer a welcome break along the hike. You’ll find rice fields <\/strong>as far as the eye can see, foregrounding lush mountain ranges, as well small narrow streets <\/strong>and <\/strong>other groves and small temples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Our next shukubo<\/em> is Ochihai-juku. <\/strong>The highlight of this post town is Ochihai-juku honjin<\/strong>, which used to be an accommodation for lords and castellans<\/strong> who entered through a special entrance, out of respect for their rank and also for security reasons.<\/strong> They always had to keep themselves safe, ninjas<\/strong> <\/em>acting as bodyguards, checked the roof to observe from afar a potential attack from enemies. From the roof there was access to a room directly near the dining room that enabled bodyguards to reach the lord immediately. Even if this defense was not enough, they could attempt escape through one of the honjin’s many tunnels or secret walls.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/figure><\/li>
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One of the most important roads during the Edo era: Nakasendo<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Explore Nakansendo shukuba<\/em>, post towns<\/b> \u5bbf\u5834\u753a<\/span><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Nakatsugawa-juku \u4e2d\u6d25\u5ddd\u5bbf<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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Ochiai-juku \u843d\u5408\u5bbf<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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Magome-juku \u99ac\u7c60\u5bbf and Tsumago-juku \u59bb\u7c60\u5bbf<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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