Narai, Nakasendo

As I move through the Kiso district, I pass through three post-towns: Fukushima-juku (#37), Miyanokoshi-juku (#36) and Yabuhara-juku (#35). 

Fukushima was a major post-town and a checkpoint location. Being nearly halfway between Edo and Kyoto, it was a strategic place for keeping an eye on traffic and preventing the illegal movement of people. Regardless of societal position, each traveller had to wait their turn to obtain permission to pass through.  Fukushima had a lively trading centre with all sorts of items for sale. The community leaders were very wealthy. A horse market took place annually with cotton and hemp goods, salted fish and rock mushrooms amongst some of the items sold. Today, it continues to be a prosperous town. It's highly touristic with hikers or anglers coming in the summer and skiers in the winter.

The Kiso River cuts through the middle of Miyanokoshi and when it reaches Yabuhara it takes a westward direction whilst the route heads east. Miyanokoshi is the birthplace of the legendary Tomoe Gozen, an accomplished female samurai and mistress to General Kiso Yoshinaka, a member of the Minamoto clan. Tomoe fought alongside Yoshinaka in the 1180 AD Genpai War, toppling the opposing Taira clan. A few years later, Yoshinaka attempted to take control of the Minamoto clan from his cousin but failed. Knowing that he would be killed, he sent Tomoe away as he perceived his death beside a woman as shameful. Tomoe left but not before she beheaded a few more enemy warriors on her way out. What happened to her afterwards remains a mystery but her exploits on the battlefield are recorded in detail.

Beside a handful of antique shops from the Edo period, not much remains in Yabuhara. I pressed on through quiet countryside and into Narai-juku (#34), the first of five post-towns now part of Shiojiri district. 

Narai has been beautifully preserved and although most of the buildings are barely a century old, they were built using traditional architecture. A very popular tourist destination there are many gift shops but in the centre of town are three former inns that continue to operate. Nearby is Nakamura’s Residence, a building from the 1830s that used to be the home of a lacquer comb trader. An important cultural property, today it is a museum exhibiting the interior of the house and lacquer combs. 

About halfway through town is the beautiful 300-year-old Kiso Bridge. Made of hinoki cypress, it is one of the largest arched bridges in Japan built without piers. The masterful timberwork can be appreciated at close range whilst the Narai River quietly flows beneath the bridge.