Showing posts with label bridge. Show all posts
Showing posts with label bridge. Show all posts

Friday, February 2, 2024

Kakaji Betsugu Hachiman Shrine

 


Kakaji is a town on the north side of the Kunisaki peninsula, and the Hachiman Shrine is te main shrine of the town.


The approach to the shrine crosses a stone-arched bridge across the Takeda River.


Built in the mid 19th century, this type of bridge was rare in the area.


The shrine is set in a forest of pines, and its main feature is an impressive two-storey gate.


One of the komainu guarding the approach is unusual in that it is standing upon a turtle. I can't remember having seen that before.


The main gate has numerous relief carvings.


Many sources suggest the gate may have been built in the late Edo period, but the late 19th century is more likely.


The gate houses two Zuijin, Shinto guardians.


They are unusual in that they are carved out of stone, not wood. I have seen other stone zuijin in the Kunisaki area, but not elsewhere.


The shrine was established in the early 8th century, before the  Hachiman cult spread to the Kinki region with its connection to the founding of Todaiji.


It is one of 5 "betsugu" of Usa Hachimangu. Bestsugu is often translated as "branch", but the relationship is stronger and more direct than that. Maybe "annex" would be more accurate.


As a Hachiman shrine it is now considered to enshrine Ojin, his mother Jingu, and a consort.


The three Munakata "sisters" are also enshrined here.


I visited at the end of my second day walking around the Kunisaki area following the old Kunisaki pilgrimage trail while starting the Kyushu Fudo pilgrimage. The previous post was on my walk from Oreki Temle to Kakaji.


Tuesday, December 19, 2023

Saikai Bridge

 


The Saikai Bridge crosses the narrow Hario Strait which connects Omura Bay with the ocean. When built in 1955 it was the largest arch bridge in East Asia, and the 3rd largest in the world.


At its narrowest point of only 200 meters, the Hario Strait is known for the whirlpools and rapid tides that occur especially during the Spring and Autumn. Omura Bay also has another strait but it is much longer and narrower and looks like a river.


Shin Saikai Bridge, finished in 2006, crosses the strait nearby and carries a newer road. It is a Half-Through Arch Bridge with a total length of 520 meters.


The Saikai Bridge has a length of 316 meters and the roadway is 43 meters above the sea.


Between the two bridges is a park with 1,000 cherry trees that is very popular during the Spring Whirlpool Festival.


At first, I thought these were three chimneys, but it turns out they are radio transmission towers. The three 136-meter-high towers are laid out in an equilateral triangle with a side of 300 meters. They were completed in 1923 and the signal to the Imperial Navy to start the attack on Pearl Harbor came from these towers.


Also visible in the distance are the higher buildings of the Huis Ten Bosch theme park.


The previous post in this series on day 65 of my walk around Kyushu was of the precursor to Huis Ten Bosch, the Nagasaki Holland Village.

Tuesday, September 12, 2023

Around Kawado on the Gonokawa River

 


I begin the second leg of my walk up the Gonokawa River to its source from my home. I live on the other bank to the one I am walking up. My plan is to later walk down the river from the source to the sea on this other bank. Looking across the river you can see a section of the river that has no road on that bank, hence my reason for starting this leg here, rather than Kawahira where I finished the first leg.


Behind me is my village.


Across from my village is where te Yato River enters the Gonokawa. This is a decent-sized tributary with a dam and reservoir and it starts up in the mountains around the ski resorts of Mizuho. The bridge carries the now closed rail line, the Sanko sen that used to follow the river all the way up to Miyoshi in Hiroshima.


On the walk up to the bridge that crosses over to Kawado I pass by the big sacred tree where Tanijyugo has their giant Onusa, purification wand, that pacifies the turbulent water god of the river.


The bridge that crosses the river to Kawado is painted in a very distinctive colour scheme that , I believe, represents the river, the sjy, and cherry blossoms. Not sure when the bridge was built. There was a major flood of Kawado back in the 1960's so it certainly postdates that. I have seen an old photos of a low wooden bridge in the 1920's, but for most of history the on,y wa to cross was by ferry.


Now protected, somewhat, by a high embankment, Kawado used to be the main town of the area. The large building is a traditional soy sauce brewery.


On top of the cliff at the first bend in the river is the Kawado suijin Onusa. This is the biggest one in the area and the main focus of the local Suijin Matsuri.


Looking upstream, that house is the only habitation in the several kilometers between Kawado and Tazu.


Kawabune, a generic term for riverboats. Traditionally made of wood, aluminum, and fibreglass are now more common, as are small outboard motors. I am guessing they are primarily used for fishing for Ayu, sweetfish, similar to trout. Larger, flat-bottomed boats were used for freight.


Looking back downstream to the Kawado Bridge. This next section of the road has no buildings and very little traffic, the main road being on the opposite bank, as it is for most of the river. The rail line is overgrown.

Wednesday, November 23, 2022

Bridges at Shurakuen Garden Tsuyama

Bridges at Shurakuen Garden Tsuyama

Bridges at Shurakuen Garden Tsuyama.

The Shurakuen garden in Tsuyama is an Edo-period stroll-type garden that is dominated by water.

Bridges at Shurakuen Garden Tsuyama.

As such there are numerous bridges across narrow sections, though none of the classic vermillion bridges or Chinese style "drum" bridges found at many gardens.

Garden.

This is the smallest bridge there.....

Bridges at Shurakuen Garden Tsuyama.

And this kind of walkway is fairly common in many traditional japanese gardens....

Bridge.

But most of the bridges were quite rudimentary, wooden structures....


Though these are not.....


many of these bridges were covered in earth......


As you can see, Water Lillies dominate the garden...... water Lillies here on this link, and more general views of the garden on this link.

Bridges at Shurakuen Garden Tsuyama.

Wednesday, August 17, 2022

Mumyo Bridge Tennenji Yaba & Yamabushi Mountain Training

Mumyo Bridge

Mumyo Bridge.

The pinnacles of rock that rise behind Tennenji Temple and the Kawanaka Fudo are called Tennenji Yaba, and clearly visible spanning a precipitous gap is the unusual Mumyo Bridge. When I first saw it, almost twenty years ago, it was very much off limits to visitors, but nowadays it is possible to climb up, though you are repeatedly warned that you do so at your own risk.

Japan.

Coming down towards Tennenji from Choanji Temple you catch glimpses of the cliffs and rock formations that are typical of the Kunisaki peninsula. Anywhere such landscapes can be found in Japan, you will find sites connected to Yamabushi, the mountain ascetics who were drawn to such places of spiritual power.
it rocks.

Many of these areas will still have the remains of training routes used by the Yamabushi. This rock formation above is adjacent to the Mumyo Bridge and you can see the chains used by the monks to clamber along these "pilgrimage" routes.

Rock on.

Many of these sites in the Kunisaki peninsula were connected along a pilgrimage trail that began at Usa Hachimangu and then wound its way around the peninsula. This ancient route has been revived by the creation of the Kunisakihanto Minemichi Long Trail which closely follows the route. There is not much in the way of infrastructure along the route, and certain sections do involve having to use chains to get up and over steep sections.


I was on my second day walking along the route which I was using as a rough guide to get me around the peninsula to visit the first seven of the temples on the Kyushu Fudo Myo pilgrimage which all are found in the Kunisaki area.


After leaving Tennenji the route heads over the ridge to the next valley and passes close to the Mumyo Bridge, however, I was carrying a full pack for a multi-night hike and decided not to take the side-route to the bridge as I did not fancy descending loaded up with so much weight. Several times I would have to navigate such steep and dangerous sections and didn't want to push it.

Mumyo Bridge, Tennenji Yaba, & Yamabushi Mountain Training

The trail was hairy enough as it was, and I would certainly not recommend it to inexperienced hikers, however, the views from the pass over the ridge were spectacular.

Monday, April 11, 2022

To The Source

Gonokawa River to the source


Due to the travel restrictions caused by the pandemic of recent years I decided to start another walking project locally. My intention is to walk from the mouth of the Gonokawa River to the source, and then back along the opposite bank. The Gonokawa, the longest river in Western Honshu, is 194 kilometers long, yet its source on Mount Oasa is a mere 40 kilometers as the crow flies. It meanders along a great curve passing through Miyoshi, the only inland city in Hiroshima.


The first bridge, carrying Route 9 across the river in Gotsu, was not built until 1950. Earlier they ahd tried a pontoon bridge but it didnt last long. Before that the only way across was ferry. Route 9 is the national highway that starts in Kyoto and roughly follows the old Sanin-do, the ancient imperial highway. The bridge is 488 meters, making it the longest bridge across the Gonokawa.


Sanin Line Railway Bridge

Slightly upstream is the  Sanin Line Railway Bridge. This was opened in 1918 and built of American steel. It is the longest iron bridge on the San-in Line, and the oldest existing bridge on the river.


Heading upriver I will be following the route of the old Sanko Line which follows the river from Gotsu to Miyoshi. This was my local line and was a truly beautiful rail journey but was closed down a few years back.


The third bridge that crosses the river in Gotsu is the New Gonokawa Bridge, a monster double-decker. The lower deck carries a local rad that is very rarely used. The upper deck carries the Gotsu-By-Pass that hooks up with the San0In Expressway, only parts of which have been completed. It is always very busy.


Along my walk I plan to revisit many of the sights that are to be seen, as well as see how things have changed in the last twenty years. The right bank I will be walking is the least inhabited side of the river with mostly very small roads. and I suspect I will find many crumbling, abandoned houses,... and first up is Hoinmachi, the original Gotsu town protected from the sea by hills.


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