Kiso Valley (Tsumago & Magome)

The best-preserved string of post towns on the Edo-period Nakasendo, with the 8 km Tsumago–Magome trail, Nezame-no-Toko gorge, the blue waters of Atera Valley and Kiso cypress forests.

The Kiso Road is the stretch of the Edo-period Nakasendo — the highway linking Edo and Kyoto — that runs through the Kiso Valley, with eleven post towns along the banks of the Kiso River. This destination is centred on Tsumago-juku in Nagiso, Nagano Prefecture, and also covers Magome-juku in Nakatsugawa, Gifu Prefecture; Agematsu and Kiso-Fukushima to the north; the Atera and Kakizore valleys; and the Kaida Highlands and Mt. Ontake. Narai-juku on the northern section is covered under the Matsumoto & Kamikochi destination.

The main draw is the roughly 8 km Nakasendo walk between Tsumago and Magome, linking stone-paved paths, cedar forests, waterfalls and old teahouses. It takes 2.5–3 hours one way; starting from Magome, climbing to Magome Pass and then descending all the way to Tsumago is the easier direction. The visitor centres in both towns offer a luggage forwarding service (roughly late March to November; bags must be dropped off in the morning). Tsumago-juku was the first post town in Japan to launch townscape preservation, and its principle of “don't sell, don't rent, don't demolish” has kept the entire street looking as it did in the Edo period. Magome-juku, hometown of the novelist Shimazaki Tōson, has a stone-paved street climbing the hillside with distant views of Mt. Ena. Nearby you can see the Taishō-era wooden Momosuke Bridge, the granite formations of Nezame-no-Toko on the Kiso River, the jade-coloured “Atera blue” waters of Atera Valley, and the Akasawa Natural Recreation Forest, one of Japan's three most beautiful forests.

Seasons: fresh greenery in April–May, with autumn colours at their best from late October to mid-November. Summer is good for paddling in the gorges, but the mountains are humid and buggy, and bear warning signs are posted along the trail, so carrying a bear bell is recommended. Winter may bring snow and some shops in the post towns close, but the towns have a special charm under snow. Getting there: from Nagoya, take the JR Chūō Main Line limited express “Shinano” about 1 hour to Nakatsugawa Station, then a bus about 25 minutes to Magome; the closest station to Tsumago is JR Nagiso Station (about 7 minutes by bus). Buses to the gorges and the Kaida Highlands are infrequent, so driving is recommended. Plan for 2 days, with a night at a minshuku guesthouse in one of the post towns to experience an Edo-style inn stay.

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