If you like trekking in natural sites, seeing beautiful landscapes and witnessing first-hand a part of Japan's history, you cannot miss walking through a section of the Nakasendo Trail in Japan.
During the month I was traveling through Japan, back in 2019, I had already planned to dedicate a day of my travel itinerary to walk part of this ancient route.
Table of Contents
What is the Nakasendo Route?
Nakasendo It was one of the five main routes of the Edo period and one of the two that connected Edo (present-day Tokyo) with Kyoto in Japan.
Along the entire route there were 69 stations between the two cities, which crossed different provinces of ancient Japan.
Unlike the route of Tokaido, who was going along the coast, Nakasendo It was located inland. Many people preferred to travel this way because it didn't require fording any rivers.
To this day, few sections of the original trail survive and perhaps the most famous section, and the one that most visitors like to walk, is one of almost eight kilometers long located in the Kiso Valley, between Tsumago in Nagano Prefecture and Magome in Gifu Prefecture. Alternatively, if you wish, you can continue a few more kilometers to reach the city of Nagisio (this section is also part of the Nakasendo Route).
Another well-known trek that can be done is to climb to the top of Mount Fuji. In this post you can read the full experience of climbing the most famous mountain in Japan.
This trekking is part of me travel itinerary through Japan and South KoreaIf you want to read the rest of the stories, you can start there.
How to do the Nakasendo Route
This route can be taken either starting from the village of Tsumago and heading towards Magome, or vice versa.
In my case, I decided to start from Magome heading towards Tsumago for two reasons. The first is that there is less uphill road, so it may be more enjoyable to travel; and the second (and most important) is that my final destination was to reach the town of Nagisio, which is located 4 km past Tsumago, to take the train back to Matsumoto, city where I was staying.
I wrote about Matsumoto in this article about the Castle Route
How to get to Magome
Getting to Magome Town depends on which city you're coming from. It could be from Nagoya, Matsumoto, or Nagano, for example. I was in the city of Matsumoto and I chose to take a JR line train to the city of NakatsugawaThe ticket price (if you don't have a JR Pass) can range from 1,990 to 3,770 yen, depending on whether you take the express train, which takes 75 minutes, or the regular train, which takes approximately 2 hours and 20 minutes.
As my plan was do the Nakasendo Route in one dayI had to leave Matsumoto early and return later. So I took the fast route, as I didn't want to be too late to get started.
Once in the city of NakatsugawaWe must take a bus that leaves from platform 3, just outside the train station. The line is the Magome Line Bus, costs 560 yen, and takes about 30 minutes to reach Magome.
Start trekking from Magome
Magome was once a prosperous and cosmopolitan station with a healthy economy. However, with the construction of the main railway line, which bypassed Magome, it fell into disrepair and decay. In recent decades, it has been restored to its Edo-period appearance and is now a major tourist destination.
If we continue along the main street that runs through Magome to the end, we'll reach a viewing point with incredible views of the entire area around us. From there, we'll begin the trail to Tsumago.
Route between Magome and Tsumago
The trail connecting the two towns is 7.7 kilometers long, winding through forests, streams, and asphalt, with ups and downs.
We follow practically the entire trail along the paved road that connects the two towns, so the experience isn't 100% natural. While it's not a busy route, we'll occasionally see a car coming and going.
The trail is perfectly signposted in English and Japanese, and every few meters you'll find signs showing your progress, location on the map, and even some bells to ring and scare away any bears you might encounter along the way...yes, bears. Let's just say that having an up-close encounter with them isn't something that happens very often, but just in case, ringing those bells might scare them away...or not? 😀
Some interesting places that we will be able to see along this route, in addition to the nature around us of course, will be the tea house Tateba-chaya, a former inspection house for the route, now a rest house, where you can buy drinks or food; some beautiful waterfalls called Odaki and Medaki, an ideal place to stop and rest for a while or eat something, and finally the small town of Otsumago, where we can find some traditional and rural houses that offer accommodation or some other services.
Arriving at Tsumago Village
After a couple of hours of walking, depending on our pace, we will arrive at the village of Tsumago.
Like Magome, Tsumago was a prosperous, cosmopolitan town in ancient Japan that fell into disgrace with the arrival of the railway. Beginning in 1968, local residents began an effort to restore historic sites and structures within the town. Today, Tsumago is fully inhabited, though tourist shops are the town's main business.
Tsumago has certain places of interest to visit, such as:
- The honjin, which was the main inn in the post town (it was rebuilt in 1995)
- The Nagiso History Museum, which contains information on the history of the areas and the preservation of houses.
- Kabuto Kannon Shrine: a small shrine dedicated to Minamoto no Yoshinaka, the general of the Rising Sun, who built the citadel at Tsumago.
- Tsumago Castle: or rather, the ruins of what was once the castle. Its location on the mountaintop gave it wonderful views of both Tsumago and Midono.
- Rurisan Kotoku-ji Temple: With its white walls and stone base, it rises a story above the buildings in the area.
Here you can see all the information about the town in the Tsumago official website.
Should you continue to Nagisio when doing the Nakasendo Route?
Generally, many travelers arrive in Tsumago and end their trek. Some buses depart from there to other nearby towns (check the schedule), but if they want to take the train to another city, they should continue to the town of NagisioIt's a much less frequented path and with views not as interesting as those of Magome and Tsumago, but since it has the train station, which in my case would take me back to Matsumoto, I continued on.
Nakasendo route between Tsumago and Nagisio
As we begin this route, we'll see a sign indicating that we can take a temporary detour to the ruins of Tsumago Castle. Obviously, eager to see as much as I could, I headed there. It's an extra 15 minutes of climbing until we reach the top of a hill. There we'll find... what was once a castle?
I don't know what it was, because practically nothing remains of the castle beyond some scattered rocks, but at least we'll see some very good views of the valley we just walked through.
Then, we return to the original path and continue toward Nagisio. The trail is pleasant and not at all challenging. We'll see some rice fields and several houses belonging to local residents.
Finally, we're nearing the end of the road. As we enter the city, we can already see the tracks where the train will pass that will take us to our destination.
Not in a hurry this time, I took the train back to Matsumoto City. It cost 1,400 yen but took over two hours. Otherwise, there's the express train, which costs approximately 2,400 yen (both included in the JR Pass).
If you are interested in Japan, you can read the stories I wrote about it. Tokyo: the city of my dreams, Kyoto, the cultural capital and Osaka, lights and retro with some disappointment
Reflections on the Nakasendo Route
I love hiking in natural places far from the hustle and bustle of modern civilization. I went on this trek with high expectations, hoping to transport myself back to the ancient times and splendor of this beautiful country.
But unfortunately, I never felt that special. I enjoyed hiking this ancient route and would even recommend it, but I personally had imagined something else. The best part of the trip, for me, was the towns of Magome and Tsumago, picturesque villages with that Edo-era facade, but updated for modern times and geared toward the tourism industry. The adventure or trekking took a backseat.
I was expecting something more mystical, wild, and desolate, even a bit more challenging to hike. But the fact that I had to walk along the paved road almost the entire time, seeing the occasional car passing by, or encountering tea shops or souvenir shops along the way, and even having Wi-Fi the entire time, somewhat took away from the excitement. Plus, with everything being so perfect, tidy, and comfortable (something very common in Japan and a source of admiration on my part), it felt more like a circuit to be done on autopilot than a millennia-old adventure.
It's not that I didn't like it, but I had different expectations. In any case, if you're in the area, I recommend setting aside a day to visit these towns. They're very picturesque and well worth a visit.
And that's all for today. If you have any questions, feel free to leave them in the comments below. Remember, you have the photo album of Japan to see more images of this beautiful country.
Greetings and see you next time, colleagues!
Support The Prism of Fer!
Your support helps me continue creating free content on the blog. Thank you so much!
