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掛川宿(Kakegawa inn town/castle town):

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掛川宿(Kakegawa inn town) is the 26th inn town of Tokaido. It means that we have covered a half of Tokaido inn towns. Kakegawa is one of starting points of 秋葉街道(Akiha Kaido) pilgrimage roads. Also, it is a castle town of Kakegawa castle, which has been rebuilt with woods with combination of modern and traditional technologies for the first time in Japan.  Today, Kakegawa inn town does not have much hints of Edo-time inn town. Unlike Tokyo or Shizuoka, Kakegawa was not severely bombed by air raids during WWII. The current landscape of the town is due to modernization of the town since WWII.  Starting around the Edo-side gate. Today, most of things we will find about old Tokaido in this town are structures of roads. From here, 東海道七曲り(Tokaido Nanamagari), a series of seven turns. It is a structure to slow down enemies of Tokugawa shogunate from the west of Japan.  The tall building on the right side of the image with 杉町区(Sugimachiku) is a storage for 山車(dashi) traditional festi...
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日坂宿(Nissaka inn town): many houses are posting old Yagou(business names)

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I found out that, apparently some hikers love Kanaya-Kikugawa-Nissaka part of old Tokaido trail. I found several blogs about it, so I am posting one of links on the reference section.  Now we are in Kakegawa city. 日坂宿(Nissaka inn town) is literally on a hill(坂).   Entering where Edo-side gate used to be.  I noticed that many houses display 屋号(Yagou: names of houses or stage name). This one shows 伊勢屋(Iseya), and the whole town explains locations of which family of what businesses used to live in.  Here is 東屋(Azumaya).  The town doesn’t have huge things to show so far, but let’s wait and see further down. It is a small rural community.  This Joyato light was built probably in order to guide pilgrims for Akiha shrine in northwest of today’s Hamamatsu city. It is called 秋葉常夜灯(Akiha joyato). 掛川宿(Kakegawa inn town) is the starting point of one of 秋葉街道(Akiha Kaido) pilgrimage roads. Also locals of Nissaka inn town wished protections from fire as well, as the god o...
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菊川宿(Kikugawa unofficial inn town): old cobbled road is still here

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菊川宿(Kikugawa inn town) is an unofficial inn town between Kanaya and Nissaka inn towns. This part includes Kanaya pass, one of the highest peaks in Makinohara Plateau. This plateau covers major part of central Shizuoka prefecture, making itself one of the best and largest green tea producing areas in Japan. This is because after Tokugawa regime was over, new Tokugawa’s samurais, who lost their jobs, became green tea farmers for living and developed this area.  Let’s take a quick look at the overview. When you google 菊川(Kikugawa) in Shizuoka prefecture, you will find a couple of places. Be sure to know that Kikugawa unofficial inn town is NOT in Kikugawa city.  Before entering the inn town, there is a remarkable trail on its way. The restored cobbled road is on old Tokaido trail. And this us fairly long.  Total length of cobbled road is about 1km. Of this road, 30m length of the road is actually the original cobbled road from Edo period.  The cobbled road ends here, wh...
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木野川渡し(Konogawa watashi: Oze river crossing): the boarder to Yamaguchi prefecture

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木野川渡し(Konogawa watashi) was the river crossing site on Oze(Kono) river of San’yodo/Saigoku Kaido highway. And it was the boarder of the country of Suo(周防:today’s southwestern Yamaguchi prefecture) and the country of Aki(安芸: today’s Hiroshima prefecture).  I use Kono River here, but the river is actually called Oze River as well. This is because the river has different names by Hiroshima and Yamaguchi locals. In Hiroshima, it has been called Kono, while it is called Oze in Yamaguchi.   This is one of places not featured on regular guidebook. It looks that, many people who know this place visit because of San’yodo/Saigoku Kaido trail.  We are sort of derailing off from the trail. Konogawa boat ride site had a honjin inn, in case of high water level of Kono river. Tsuya honjin’s gate has been preserved here.  This is my discovery from Google map/street views. Near Tsuya honjin inn, there is a good number of old houses as if this was late Edo or early Meiji period(mid to...
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