Nagano Shiojiri City Tourist Association.
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Nagano Shiojiri City Tourist Association.

Oct. 28, 2025 (edited)
[Image1][Torii Pass - toriitoge-]OverviewA roughly 6 km mountain trail linking Narai inn on the Kiso Kaido w
[Image2][Torii Pass - toriitoge-]OverviewA roughly 6 km mountain trail linking Narai inn on the Kiso Kaido w
[Image3][Torii Pass - toriitoge-]OverviewA roughly 6 km mountain trail linking Narai inn on the Kiso Kaido w
[Image4][Torii Pass - toriitoge-]OverviewA roughly 6 km mountain trail linking Narai inn on the Kiso Kaido w
[Image5][Torii Pass - toriitoge-]OverviewA roughly 6 km mountain trail linking Narai inn on the Kiso Kaido w
[Image6][Torii Pass - toriitoge-]OverviewA roughly 6 km mountain trail linking Narai inn on the Kiso Kaido w
[Image7][Torii Pass - toriitoge-]OverviewA roughly 6 km mountain trail linking Narai inn on the Kiso Kaido w
[Image8][Torii Pass - toriitoge-]OverviewA roughly 6 km mountain trail linking Narai inn on the Kiso Kaido w

[Torii Pass - toriitoge-]

Overview
A roughly 6 km mountain trail linking Narai inn on the Kiso Kaido with Yabuhara inn.
In the Edo period it was famous as one of the Nakasendo’s toughest stretches, a place that made straw-sandalled travelers limp with pain.
Today it is a popular, atmospheric trekking route. Hikers from Japan and abroad walk this pass in large numbers.
From the summit you can look west to Mitakesan and east to Kiso Komagatake. Along the old road you will find numerous haiku and waka monuments and stone Buddhas, including those honoring Matsuo Bashō.
The pass saw battles between the Kiso clan and the Takeda clan in the Sengoku era, and in the late Edo period Princess Kazunomiya passed through here on her marriage procession.

Free loan of hinoki conical hats and bear bells!
This service lets walkers experience the look of Edo-period travelers, especially those walking between Yabuhara and Narai on the Nakasendo.
The traditional original hinoki (cypress) hats, hand-painted with kanji, make perfect travel companions and evoke the spirit of Edo travelers.
They’re great for the experience and for photo opportunities.

What is a hinoki hat?
A hinoki hat is one of Kiso region’s traditional crafts. It remains popular with locals and visitors as a practical fashion item and as a sunshade that traces its roots to the Edo period.

How to try them
You can try them at the tourist information centers listed below. We refund the full deposit when you return the items.
⚠ The deposit will not be refunded if the item is lost or damaged. (Items may be wet without issue.)

Loan locations: ① Narai-juku Tourist Information Center ② Yabuhara-juku Nigiwai Hiroba Enkan
③ Kiso Village Tourist Information Center

Addresses: ① 497-3 Narai, Shiojiri City ② 1019-1 Yabuhara, Kiso village ③ Lot 196, Yabuhara, Kiso village

TEL: ① 0264-34-3160 ② 0264-36-3020 ③ 0264-36-2543

Opening hours: ① 9:00–17:00 ② 8:30–17:00 ③ 9:00–17:00

Closed: ① During the New Year holidays ② Every Tuesday ③ Every Monday

Refundable deposit: 2,000 yen per item

Payment method: Cash only

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Torii Pass Monument

XQ2W+JJ, Narai, Kiso, Nagano 399-6303, Japan
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Nov. 4, 2025
Shiojiri-juku Location: Shiojiri City, Shiojirimachi The old Nakasendo route that crossed Misawa Pass, Ono-juku and Ushikubi Pass from Shimosuwa-shuku was abolished in 1613 (Keichō 18). From 1614 (Keichō 19) the Nakasendo was rerouted via Shiojiri Pass and the new Shiojiri-juku was established. The town layout work was overseen by Ogasawara Hidemasa, lord of Matsumoto Domain. He laid out the new Shiojiri-juku in an east–west plan southwest of the old post town. The honjin was one of the largest on the Nakasendo, and the post town also featured a noticeboard area and a Matsumoto Domain checkpoint. Plots in the post town were typically three to four ken wide. By 1843 (Tenpō 14) the town had 166 households, including 75 inns — the largest number among the 26 post towns of Shinshu, due to its position at a road junction below Shiojiri Pass. Major fires in 1828 (Bunsei 11) and 1882 (Meiji 15) destroyed much of the town, but the Ono family house, a National Important Cultural Property, still evokes the town’s former appearance.
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Oct. 27, 2025
Shiojiri’s Two Signature Local Dishes: Sanzoku-yaki and Shinshu Soba ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sanzoku-yaki Actually born in Shiojiri! The bold, dramatic sanzoku-yaki that’s a hit on social media Sanzoku-yaki, a whole fried chicken thigh served with theatrical flair, actually traces its roots to a restaurant called Sanzoku in Shiojiri City. After much trial and error, the founding couple perfected the cooking method. They named the shop “Sanzoku” (bandit) and the dish “sanzoku-yaki” because a scene in the then-popular film Seven Samurai showed bandits tearing into a chicken, the shop stood near a mountain pass, and—believe it or not—the couple themselves looked like bandits. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Soba For soba lovers: the birthplace of “sobakiri” (cut soba) — Motoyama-juku in Shiojiri In earlier times, “soba” referred to a dumpling-like food similar to what we now call sobagaki. The long, thin noodles we picture today are called sobakiri (cut soba) and were distinguished from the dumpling form. The place where sobakiri first appeared is Motoyama-juku in present-day Shiojiri City. As a post town on the Nakasendo, Motoyama-juku welcomed many travelers, and sobakiri born there is said to have spread across the country along those routes. Shiojiri’s climate, with large daily and seasonal temperature differences, has long suited high-quality buckwheat cultivation, so soba has been grown here for ages. The oldest written reference to Motoyama-juku’s sobakiri appears in the haibun anthology Fuzoku Bunsen compiled by Morikawa Kyoro in Hōei 2 (1705). It records: “Soba-kiri originally came from Motoyama-juku in Shinano Province and was widely popular throughout the provinces.”

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