NATIONAL PARK

NATIONAL PARK

Hakone Hachiri

By courtesy of Hakone Town History Museum

The Hakone Hachiri is a part of the Old Tokaido Road developed by the Tokugawa Shogunate in the early Edo period (1600-1868) that ran between the imperial and cultural center of Kyoto with the political and economic capital of Edo (modern day Tokyo). In Japanese “hachi” means eight and “ri” was a measure of distance. The Hakone Hachiri is an eight-ri (about 32km) route that starts from Odawara City, climbs up the Hakone Pass (846m above sea level), and descends to Mishima City in Shizuoka.

 

The Tokaido Road was one of the main roads for transportation and travel during the Edo period. The Hakone Hachiri traversed some of the most difficult terrain on the Tokaido Road because of the steep mountains of Hakone. To support the busy traffic the most magnificent cobblestone pavement in Japan at that time was laid under orders from the new Tokugawa Shogunate (1600-1868). Before the cobblestone, reeds of bamboo and gravel were used making it difficult to walk on the thick and slippery mud. Travelling on the Hakone Hachiri, you will see scenes from the past that transcend time and take you on a journey back to the Edo period.

 

This road was considered to be the most difficult part of the Tokaido Highway, as the song “Tenka no Ken” (Sword of Heaven) describes.

 

“The Hakone Mountains are the steepest place in the world,

There is no comparison.

Very high mountains with bottomless valleys.

Clouds are on the mountains, fog circles, and meadows fill up…”

 

 

In the past, this steep slope was traversed by a variety of travelers, including Siebold (1796-1866), who accompanied the head of the Dutch trading post to Edo; the Korean envoys on their way to Edo to pay their respects to the shogun; a delegation of Nagasaki magistrates on their way to Nagasaki; and people from Edo on their way to Ise Shrine for religious pilgrimages.

 

There are many interesting historical and cultural places to visit along the Hakone Hachiri between Odawara and Mishima.

  • At the base of the Hakone mountains is the city of Odawara with Odawara Castle. This large part of Japan was ruled from Odawara during the Warring States period of Japanese history before falling to Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Tokugawa Ieyasu in 1591.
  • Along the Hakone Hachiri in Yumoto is Soun Shrine, the family shrine of the Hojo Clan that ruled from Odawara Castle.
  • Hatajuku is a village halfway up the Hakone Hachiri and is the center for the famous Japanese woodcraft known as Yosegi Zaiku.
  • The Amazake Teahouse is one of the few remaining teahouses along Tokaido Road that once numbered in the hundreds. The tea house still serves the same menu and is run by the 13th generation of the same family.
  • There is a good portion of the original stone paved road called ishitatami preserved between the tea house and Lake Ashi.
  • On the shores of Lake Ashi is the Cedar Avenue, which are towering trees that were planted along the Tokaido Road under orders from the Tokugawa Shogunate to provide travellers with protection from the elements.
  • The Hakone Checkpoint is a place where the papers of travellers were checked because during the Edo period travel was heavily regulated, especially to prevent the movement of weapons and women.
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