Yato Dam to Hinui to Ichiyama
October 4, 2004
| Within the borders of Sakurae,
the Yato river is the main tributary of the Gono river. The Yato
starts in the highland to the south, and passes through Ichiyama
and Oda and then Kawado before entering the Gono opposite Tanijyugo.
About 9kms upstream on the Yato is Yato Dam, a 71 metre high concrete
dam built in 1976 primarily to stop the flooding that Ichiyama periodically
suffered. This is the starting point for my hike today. Just behind
the dam the river forks, the Yato heads towards Asa Mountain, and
the Hinui heads up to Hinui. I take the latter. The valley is narrow
and steep, so the lake formed by the dam looks little more than
a river, only its stillness and the tide mark on the banks show
that its a man-made lake. Its a beautiful morning,... its rained
just about non-stop for the past month so I havent been out hiking
since then. The temperature has dropped considerably and the suffocating
humidity is much reduced. About half a kilometre up the road a diversion
sign points up a narrow road that winds up the mountain away from
the lake. I guess that the road ahead is closed to traffic but that
on foot I will be able to get through. Its really nice walking along
a deserted road. Fall is definetely just around the corner, as there
is a brown tinge to the forest, not yet the brilliant yellows and
reds that will come, but the green is becoming neutralized. The
road is littered with chestnut husks and acorns. Another couple
of K and the skeletons of submerged trees protrude from the surface
of the water, and round the next bend the sound of rushing water
as the river proper now begins. |
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| About 8k from the dam I come
to an abandoned house. The first sign of any habitation all the
way along the road, and then around the next bend the reason for
the road closure. Two diggers are re-laying the road where the mountain
has been covered in concrete. The sides of japanese mountains tend
to be steep, and purpotedly to reduce landslides they like to cover
the sides of the mountains with concrete. I am not sure how much
of this is really necessary, other than for the construction industries
profits. It sure is ugly though. Soon the quiet, uninhabited part
of the hike is over as I reach the main road and have a 2k walk
into Hinui town. On the outskirts of town I see the largest thatched
roof I have ever seen in Japan. Thatched rooves are disappearing
in Japan due to the scarcity of thatchers and the expense. Passing
thjrough the middle of town I visit the Shrine and am greeted with
a most curious sight. Standing guard on either side of the entrance
are what appears to be 2 artillery shells. |
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| The inscription under them is
just the name of the person who donated them, and there is no information
as to where they came from, or more importantly why such things
are guarding a supposedly religious site. Bemused I take the road
to Ichiyama which climbs out of the town and 2k later, after passing
several more sections of mountain being concreted, I reach the pass.
The road is sometimes single-laned, sometimes wider, but only a
couple of vehicles an hour pass me. The scenery is typical,... a
narrow valley with hillside farms and terraced rice paddies. In
one paddy the farmers are harvesting the rice by hand. There has
been so much rain recently that the rice has been flattened and
cannot be harvested by the miniature machinery usually used. |
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| Its now late morning, and it
is a most pleasant day, warm with drifting clouds. I am ambling
along, wihen the stream that parralels the road suddenly disappears
in a roar and the valley opens up to reveal a steep drop-off. Its
hard to see through all the trees, but by the roar of water both
next to me and hundreds of feet below me, it must be a pretty impressive
waterfall. I had driven down this road once before and not seen
it. I find out later it is called Amanjyaku which means "contrariness",
and there is supposedly a trail up the valley below to it, something
I will have to explore later. The road starts to descend steeply
now, and ahead of me I can see the village of Ichiyama. Its around
now that my left hip and left knee begin to hurt. At the bottom
of the mountain I pass Omoto Shrine, where once every 6 years a
unique form of Kagura is performed. By Now my hip and knee are agony,
but there is little I can do. Its still 5k to home so I slowly limp,
grimacing, along the road. At Imada bridge I stop and sit down and
smoke a ciggy, then a van stops. Its my friend Miura-san! Ha! the
gods are kind to me. |
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