While we were admiring some brilliantly colored carp and goldfish in a backyard pond along the side of a road in a small village, a grandmotherly woman greeted us and explained that she had had some bigger fish but ferrets had poached them. Animals from the forest just beyond are worrisome for her and her fishpond.
I’m on foot, headed to that forest of tall trees where bell ringing is suggested to ward off bears. But the day is sunny, the hills alive with autumn colors, the temperature perfect and the path clear for a walk with my companions on Nakasendo Road.
One of five official roads radiating from Nihonbashi near Tokyo Station in Japan, the Nakasendo, also known as the Kisokaido, was one of the two most important roads linking Tokyo with Kyoto. The road meanders through the mountain region of central Japan, complemented by the Tokkaido Road that went along the coastal region.
Established in the early eighth century, this important road network helped to speed up communications and spurred travel and trade in a growing country.
The Nakasendo was about 335 miles long with 69 post towns along the way, including Tokyo and Kyoto, where travelers could stop and find accommodation, refreshment and entertainment. Keisai Eisen and Utagawa Hiroshige immortalized these post towns in woodblock prints.
Over the centuries the roads fell into disrepair, but in the mid-1600s the ruling Tokugawa shogunate rehabilitated the network. "Daimyo," or feudal lords, who were required to serve the shogun every other year in Tokyo, traversed the road extensively on official business along with their entourage of samurai. Their families stayed in Tokyo as insurance for their return.
Daimyo were housed in the "honjin" of each town, the largest and most elaborate building with sleeping quarters, gardens, storerooms and servants’ quarters. The "waki honjin," the next level of inn, was used by travelers of the next rank.
With the Meiji restoration in 1868 the "gokaido," or five-road system, ended, making way for asphalt roads and train tracks that allowed for greater commercial activity as Japan modernized. But parts of the Nakasendo remain intact, allowing walkers to follow the footsteps of travelers through mountain passes and ancient post towns, particularly in the scenic Kiso Valley.
My journey began in Kyoto with two fellow travelers and a guide; this was a customized guided tour. We took the Shinkansen bullet train and smaller trains to the town of Mitake, a little wayside stop where we stopped for lunch at a small cafe. Okonomiyaki, the Japanese everything-but-the-kitchen-sink pancake, was cooked up by the Korean proprietress along with tasty yaki soba (fried noodles) and a Korean green onion pancake.
Ready to work off lunch, we began the walk. Our luggage was sent ahead by taxi to Daikokuya Inn in Hoso-kute, where we would spend the night. An 8-mile walk on quiet country roads and forest paths led us to our 150-year-old "minshuku" (inn) where, after a soak in the "furo" (bathtub), we enjoyed a simple Japanese meal and a restful sleep on tatami and futon.
The next day we walked past rice and vegetable fields on asphalt roads through farm villages and hamlets. In the village of Osokute we stopped to admire a 1,300-year-old cryptomeria tree, now enshrined in the Shinto way as a local "kami," or deity. Just beyond, a little tea shop offered grilled miso mochi on a stick; the two ladies who run the shop were delighted when they heard we were from Hawaii. Since there’s not much else in the way of commerce in this village, this shop is the place where ladies stop to gossip and catch up on the local news.
After a 15-mile walking day, we rested in Ena city, formerly the post town of Oi, where we stayed in a small Western-style hotel across the street from a large supermarket.
The following five days were similar: walks through cities and towns on asphalt that wind their way in and out of forest trails of rock and earth, switchbacks up and down mountain passes, through small hamlets and villages and, literally, people’s backyards, traversing some of the original paths of the Nakasendo.
Plots of daikon, won bok, head cabbage and negi onions were plentiful as were recently harvested rice fields. Persimmon trees brightened the sky with their overload of orange fruit. Chestnut trees left their mark on paths.
Dappled sunlight peeking through 50- to 60-foot-tall hinoki and pine tree forests, the sound of water trickling in stream beds below, the occasional waterfall and the undulating walkways of earth, rocks, wood and bamboo made the 5- to 15-mile-a-day treks pleasant and easy, especially with fine weather.
There were train rides each day, too, since this walk covered only about 60 miles of the Nakasendo. The frequency of local and regional trains kept us moving to each day’s destination with ease.
Accommodations each night were in minshuku, small inns with private tatami mat rooms and shared bathrooms. Dinner and breakfast were provided by the inn, simple country meals showcasing mountain vegetables, carp, mushrooms, small pond-raised fish and other local specialties. We carried daypacks with essentials like water and lunch bought along the way; luggage was sent ahead each morning to the next inn.
Along the way, ancient post towns were marked by earth mounds on either side of the path and "jizo," or stone guardians, often seen with small red bibs that indicate their protection of children. Notice boards also marked the entrance to the post town, relaying official communications and edicts from the authorities.
Some post towns were more remarkable than others in their charm and historical attraction. Magome was quite the tourist town, new and stylish in a traditional way. Tsumago was a well-preserved post town, the dark scorched wood buildings taking you back to another time. The Okuya waki honjin serves as a museum of the past, with rooms maintained as they were when it was built in 1877 and a display of old tools, palanquins, documents and household effects.
Narai was equally likable, the small shops along its main street offering time-honored local specialties and the finely crafted combs and lacquer ware for which it was known. Iseya Inn, now run by its sixth generation, provided the ambience of times past and a wonderful dinner featuring products of the surrounding countryside.
Kisofukushima is more citylike, larger perhaps because it was once a barrier station or checkpoint along the Nakasendo. Travelers would have to present official papers and would be subject to search for contraband like firearms.
Karuizawa is another more modern venue on the road, but from the train station we hiked up the old route to Usui pass where there was a panoramic view of mountains surrounding the area. Mount Asama, an active volcano, was off in the distance.
We met a couple enjoying the day; when they learned we were from Hawaii, they expressed concern about the Puna lava flow. The man is a descendant of a family that was in the village in the path of Asama’s eruption 250 years ago.
In Karuizawa we came upon a small shop with a Hawaii theme; the proprietress dances hula and has been to Hawaii to attend the Merrie Monarch Festival. Like others we had met along the Nakasendo, she was delighted to hear we were from Hawaii.
Even more endearing were the fellow walkers we encountered at dinner in our inns.
A retired traffic engineer was walking the Nakasendo in portions, returning home after completing sections, then returning to do more. His goal was to walk all five roads of the gokaido. Little did we know as we said goodbye after breakfast the next day that we would meet on the trail going in opposite directions.
Another gentleman from Osaka was also walking the Nakasendo in sections; we met on the trail and then in Narai where he gave us a bottle of sake, saying that meeting us was the highlight of this section of hiking.
The hospitality of shopkeepers and passers-by was wonderful, even though our mastery of the Japanese language was nil. (Thankfully, our guide was an able translator.) When one of us lost a train ticket, the station master searched for it and found it, flagging us on the opposite platform just in the nick of time.
In the small town of Ochiai, we spotted a weaving loom at the front of a shop and made our way in to find beautiful handwoven items. The weaver was there, winding indigo-dyed cotton on a spool; her son was there, too, he a jewelry craftsman. Together they warmly showed us their workshop called Laboratory, and she pulled out her spinning wheel to demonstrate.
Walking the Nakasendo was unlike previous trips to Japan, centered on the bigger, "must see" sights and cities. This active journey gets you into the countryside, into people’s backyard farms and into little hamlets and villages that represent a rural and rarified Japan that is no doubt being consumed by a more urban and "modern" lifestyle. It was an opportunity to experience and appreciate the beauty of Japan, its mountainous geography, its rich history and its most hospitable people.
ON THE NET:
» For private custom tours: japantravelogue.com
» Google "Nakasendo" for other companies offering escorted and self-guided walks.
