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Courtesy of Paul Deckret  | Centrip Japan The Chikuni-Goe course is to the Shio no Michi what Tsumago and Magome are to the Nakasendo; a wonderful, easily accessed introduction to the route that’s suitable for a wide range of ages and fitness levels. It also happens to be the trail used for the annual Shio […]

Courtesy of Paul Deckret  | Centrip Japan ITOIGAWA: The route jumps back and forth between asphalt and gravel roads broken up by short sections of trail in Itoigawa, steadily climbing higher past wide expanses of rice fields before finally settling into a long section of forested dirt trail just beyond the small but worthwhile Salt

Courtesy of Paul Deckret  | Centrip Japan The Chikuni Kaido was the principal highway used to haul salt, marine products, hemp, tobacco and more between the provinces of Echigo (Niigata) and Shinshu (Nagano) for hundreds of years. The route ran for more than 120km from present-day Itoigawa on the Sea of Japan to the landlocked

From Phil Ingram | ShumiStayJapan April 2021   The last stage of the Shionomichi Trail going into Matsumoto was not nearly as boring as I thought it might be.  Our daughter, Nicola, accompanied me so that might have made it more interesting as she doesn’t tolerate navigation errors and so I had to be on my

From Phil Ingram | ShumiStayJapan This Spring I decided to walk the last 40 kilometers of the Shionomichi Trail going to the start/finish of the trail in Matsumoto.  I did it on two separate days about a month apart.  Spring is a wonderful season in the high plains and mountains of Nagano as the earth

After a long and damp rainy season, Kazuko and I were bursting to get out and do some long- distance walking, but we didn’t think our legs would be up to tackling a mountain peak yet. So we thought what better place to walk then the scenic and gentle second half of the Shionomichi (Salt

The northern half  of the Shio-no-michi trail runs along the sides of a narrow and rugged valley and was relatively isolated until the road and train line were built, mainly running through tunnels, in the later half of the 20th century. This meant that the area was undeveloped until recently and is one reason why

Japan is a country of matsuri-  or festivals –  which are usually based around the changing seasons. At the beginning of May each year, Golden Week – when three public holidays mean that most Japanese take the whole week off – also heralds the arrival of cherry blossom season in this area of Nagano.  To

‘Yukiwarisou’ is a lovingly restored 150 year old traditional farmhouse located in ‘Irori no Sato’, a tiny village of 11 homes located in northern Nagano at 800m above sea level at the foot of the towering North Alps. Yukiwarisou is enjoyable to visit in any season and is open all year round. The village is

The Shio no Michi area is located along a major geological fault and in an area of volcanic activity. This same geology has bestowed a number of blessings –  and few of these hold as central a place in Japanese culture as the hot spring baths – or onsen. The area on and surrounding the