Magome & Tsumago Post Towns
Trip Start
Jul 26, 2008
1
2
12
Trip End
Aug 03, 2008
Magome and Tsumago,
Chubu,
Japan
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Magome and Tsumago are post towns located on the Old Nakasendo Route, located around the Gifu and Nagano prefectural border. They have preserved old buildings with a little bit refurbishment for tourists. The two towns are 7.8 km apart and connected with an old route and new route
Magome Post Town
. The old route is an excellent hiking course with some places of interest, such as waterfalls and old tea houses, but it may be better to walk from Magome to Tsumago, not the opposite way. If you take the direction, the first 2 km should be hard, because of the uphill of Magometoge Mountain Path, but after that, you can enjoy a lot of downhills. It is an idea to walk down the route up to Nagiso Railway Station, if you have to wait for a bus, where you can visit the largest woden suspension bridge of Japan, Momosuke Bridge, which was built by Fukuzawa Momosuke, the king of electric power.First off, I took a train from Nagoya to Nakatsugawa, where I caught a local bus to Magome which took 30 min from Nakatsugawa station bus terminal. Arriving at Magome, I found a lot of other Asians and Europeans there and confirmed my right viewpoint mentioned above. Just at the entrace of the town, there was a vegetable stall where some vegetabeles were arranged on the shelf only with price tags and busket for money collection. It was still common in the real countryside of Japan. When I walked up the hill next the stall, I found a Japanese inn with a large windmill and took a picture there. I just passed through from east to west in the town, looking around here and there. At the end of the town, there was a small observatory to see beautiful Mt. Ena, which was selected as one of the best 100 mountains of Japan. I took a rest there for a while and headed for Tsumago along the Old Nakasendo Route.
On the route was the direction sign saying that Odaki amd Medaki Waterfalls was "147m" from there. We are more likely to trust an exact number than approximate one. Instantly, I decided to visit the waterfalls. Frankly speaking, they were not must-sees, but thanks to the beautiful view, I took a better rest on a large rock near the waterfall
Old Nakasendo Route
. Tsumago was 3.2 km walk from there. There was another rest stop on the way, Otsumago, with a tea house and hand-wash station. Unfortunately, it was not a post town and I didn't see anybody there, but it was a kind of attractions of the old route. Tsumago was almost there.Tsumago was an old post town on Kiso River. The woden houses looked more enchanting than Magome, but a larger difference was between the cobbled street in the middle of the hill in Magome and the street paved with asphalt of Tsumago. In total, however, Magome was refurbished for tourists; Tsumago was mostly preserved for tourists. Both advantages might make perfect. Both towns didn't take me long and 1 hour stroll in each was enough. I didn't visit any museums in both towns, because I went there to enjoy the old town atmosphere, not museums. There were some displays for tourists in Tsumago such as a stable, old inn, and water wheel and they all satisfied me. At the end of Tsumago, I was very tired, but from the beginning, I intended to finish my momorable hike at Nagiso Station. That's why I didn't even stop by the bus stop in Tsumago.
On the way to Nagiso Station, I dropped by a Tsumago Castle Ruin on the hill, where there was nothing special to see but a beautiful view of Tsumago Town from up there. Near the train station was the house of one thousand statues of the Kannon Goddess. That was not so interesting, but I picked a peach on the premise and it was pretty good. When I got to the station, I had half an hour left to catch a train to Nagoya. So I also visited Momosuke bridge (mentioned above). I didn't know who he was, but the bridge was enogh to tell me how rich he was.
All in all, the excursion was pretty good, but the area was a real countryside. So you should be careful of the transportation schedule, if you visit Magome or Tsumago. There were a few trains running hourly between Nagoya and Nakatsugawa, but much fewer beyond Nakatsugawa. In addition, you can travel between the post towns by car or public transportation, but if possible, it is better to walk on the Old Route. Compared to the other old routes, the part of the route has been well preserved. Don't miss it.
Comments
Question please
Hi
We would love to follow your footsteps. Do you think the path is doable with a 10 month old baby being pushed in a buggy?
thanks
Answer to your question
Thank you for your question. Both Magome and Tsumago are easy to access by public transportations. But Magome is located on a hillside, although it is a very small town. So it may be a little bit difficult to stroll around with your baby buggy. On the other hand, you can walk around Tsumago without trouble. But don't hike on the Old Nakasendo Route with your baby. If you are interested in the waterfalls or in both towns, it is better to take a taxi or to drive yourself. If you take JR trains between Nakatsugawa and Nagiso, please check the timetable beforehand, because trains are few and inconvenient. One day is enough to spend in both towns. By the way, I recommend Nara Park in the daytime, because it suits a family trip. Horyuji Temple is also recommendable. When will you come to Japan? In the fall, some places like Murouji Temple are more beautiful with red-colored maples. Give me questions anytime, if you want more information.