Satoshi Nihonyanagi
Welcome to my blog, Green Tea Club !
I'll show you all the beauties and goodies in Shizuoka through this blog.
If you have any inquiry, please feel free to post your messages on it.
Hope to see you around in Shizuoka !
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06/13/2011 [Mon]
Oigawa Railway ― South Alps ABT Line to Ikawa - 1 [Kawanehoncho]
At Okuizumi Station
About ten minute ride on the temporary shuttle bus from Senzu station took me to a small station “Okuizumi”, surrounded by mountains. This is the station for South Alps ABT Line. The train proceeded slowly until it reached the next station “Aputo Ichishiro” ( ABT is pronounced “Aputo” ), where ABT system car is to be connected. From there the train goes on the steepest railway on the mountain in Japan very powerfully. ABT line, the only system in Japan, was originally exploited for building a dam in Ikawa district. I would also say it is now the line for tourists because of spectacular views along it.
ABT System is connected
Up along Oi River
Nagashima Dam
ABT system is, if explained simply, a railway with gear wheels like a roller coaster. Soon after the train goes up a hill, you will see a fascinating huge dam, called “Nagashima Dam”. A suspension bridge is seen over the water and a vast park is found beyond the bridge. Lots of tourists enjoy hiking around the dam.
Next spot is the most popular place along ABT line, ever introduced through various kinds of media. “Okuoi-kojo”, the station in the middle of the lake !
At Okuoi-kojo Station
Okuoikojo Station stands in the mountain encircled by water, which I believed at first that it was on an island. The long bridge, “Rainbow Bridge” over the lake is popular among photographers. See the picture below. The one in the left is the bridge before the station. It was so exciting to me because I had never visited a place like this. I abruptly made up my mind to get it off and walk to the next station “Sessokyo Onsen” because I had found a hiking trail in the map. It might have messed up all my plans but I didn’t care. Ce qui sera, sera.＾＾
Okuoi-kojo station beyond the bridge
I took some pictures there and walked on the bridge in the right picture to find a hiking trail to the next station. I could see the Okuoi-kojo station far behind. How can you imagine a station without people living around ? Kind of mystery, isn’t it ?
Next time, I’ll report my hike to “Sessokyo Onsen” station and Ikawa Dam.
Have a good day !
“Shizuoka Guide” is our official English blog website for events & sightseeing. Always with you ! ＾＾
Posted by Satoshi Nihonyanagi at 09:57 Trackback ( 0 ) Comments ( 8 )
Comments
Hi Supara san
Thank you for your message !
Here is a brief but good introduction about senzu area.
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Dear Satoshi,
I wonder if you can recommend a place that is not too expensive to stay nearby the Senzu station so that I can walk to the hotspring and use its facilities.
I want spend a few days there but could not find English material to read or connect to the place to stay. It is very beautiful place. There are a lot of hot springs in the area which one is the good and clean and not too expensive.
Your assistance will be appreciated.
Best,
Supara
So you took lots of nice pictures ! They would be much better only if the sky had been blue. So sorry about that. And I could tell how much you love the railway because you mentioned even the smallest details of trains and railroads, which gave me the impression that you like it better than anything !＾＾ Maybe next time you visit our city, I hope I can show you around more for the picture spots. Anyway, I’m so glad you enjoyed it !
P.S. I wonder why our e-mail doesn’t work well.
Dear Satoshi-San,
thank you very much for your tips. With your confirmation about the hiking path, I was easily able to walk up to the street to take some
photos of Okuoi-kojo station. I decided to just walk up to the street and then back to the station to get the return train from there to be
able to also make it onto the return steam train.
The weather could have been a little bit nicer ;-), but the gray water with the bridge still has a special atmosphere, it kind of looks like
cement water and has a very good contrast to the orange bridge.
You can see my photos at:
http://japan2011.ballonspass.de/3-Oigawa_Railway/index_en.html
Thank you very much again,
Christian
PS: I am also having problems sending e-mail to your address.
Dear Christian-san
Good to hear from you. I sent you an e-mail to the address provided with a map attached to it the other day but i got an error message somehow.
Is the information already enough to you ?
If so, it's OK. But in case you need the map,
please contact me directly at
s-12-seikan@po4.across.or.jp
They will have some English brochures at Oigawa Railway Kanaya or Senzu Station. Please be sure to get it !
Good day !＾＾
Dear Satoshi-san,
thank you very much for the information. I will be looking forward to my trip.
Thanks,
Christian
Dear Christian-san
Thank you for posting your message !
The Okuoi-kojo station is really good place to visit with a view of beautiful lake down below and if you like to take pictures of it from some distance, it would be best to get off the train at Okuoi-kojo station and walk up to the road passing on the Rainbow Bridge because the bridge on the side of Hiranda station is not accessible for hikers. Still, if you are meant to walk along the road, it’s OK. It will take about 30-40 minutes ( 2 Km ) from Hirand Station to the picture spot and you can walk to Okuoi-station passing on the Rainbow Bridge in 20 minutes or so.
I’ll send you the map to the e-mail address provided anyway.
Enjoy your trip !
Dear Satoshi Nihonyanagi,
I will be visiting Oigawa Railway next weekend and I am wondering whether it is possible to take a nice picture of the bridge at Okuoi-kojo station. I was looking at the map and wondered whether I could walk up the hill along the roads from Hiranda station to get a view onto the bridge.
Thanks,
Christian Michel
(Germany)
PS: Great photos and reports!
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