area-water.webpHakushu and Mukawa, in the south-west of Hokuto at the foot of Mt. Kaikoma in the Southern Alps. Rivers and springs run down from the mountains, and that water is used to make whisky and sake. In Daigahara-juku, a post town on the old Koshu Kaido highway, a sake brewery dating from the Edo period and old houses still line the street.
Good for sake and whisky lovers, people who like walking old streets, and anyone who wants a walk along a mountain stream.
Simplified map (shapes and positions approximate)
Places to stay
city-h19che0002.webpSee · Hakushu
Walk an Edo-period post town on the old Koshu Highway.
Tip
Walk slowly and look at the latticed fronts and storehouses where life on the Edo highway still shows.
Tabizen guide B (name)
city-h21chc0007.webpSee · Hakushu
Granite and emerald pools at the source of Hakushu's water.
Tip
Look into the spot where the water comes up and see how clear and cold it is.
scenic-shojigataki-falls-hero.webpSee · Mukawa
One of Japan's 100 finest waterfalls, 121 m high, seen from a viewing platform.
Tip
On the gorge trail, count the falls as they appear, first, second and third. At the viewing platform at the end, watch the water drop 121 m in one go and spread into mist.
komasumi-intro-s1.webpDrink · Mukawa
Tasting and a brewery tour at a farm-to-bottle sake brewery.
Tip
Komasumi has grown its rice and brewed its sake in one family for five generations, a brewery that starts in the paddy. Beyond the shop, look at the fields around the brewery and the well that supplies its water. Seeing how field, water and brewhouse connect makes choosing a bottle more fun.
place-8017-hero.webpDrink · Hakushu
Tour and tasting at a small valley distillery.
Tip
Being small, the whole process from mashing to filling casks is visible in one building. The tasting lines up the same spirit at different ages, so you can follow what the cask does. Drivers get a non-alcoholic malt soda instead.
place-8013-hero.webpDrink · Hakushu
Fermented dishes made with the brewery’s koji and sake lees.
Tip
Taru-no-Ma is run by a post-town sake brewery. The koji and lees in the food come from the brewery next door. If you don’t drink, follow the brewery’s flavours through amazake and its brewing water.
place-8015-hero.webpSee · Hakushu
Spring water to take away, a farm shop and a café.
Tip
Anyone can use the water tap at Meisui-no-Sato for free. Bring empty bottles and you have drinking water for the trip. The farm shop and café share one building, so you can rest after shopping.
place-8024-hero.webpEat · Mukawa
Seasonal Japanese sweets and a small tea room.
Tip
Komaya’s fresh sweets change shape and colour every month. Ask the staff at the case what each one depicts. You can take them away, but fresh sweets are best eaten the same day, in the tea room.
place-8023-hero.webpSee · Mukawa
Carve a spoon at a woodcraft studio.
Tip
No two wooden bowls share the same grain. When choosing one in the gallery, hold it to feel its weight and surface. Ask how to care for it so it lasts.
daigahara-walk-autumn.webpGuide price From about ¥9,200 per person (for two, incl. local transport)
There is a small inn in an old merchant house in the post town.
place-8018-hero.webpStay · Hakushu
A restored Meiji-era merchant house in the post town, rented whole. One group a day, up to 6.
Tip
Kuraya keeps the bones of the merchant house it once was. Look up at the beams over the earthen-floored entrance and at the lattice of the old counting room. Walk the post-town street once in the evening and once in the morning to see its quieter side.
The highlands on the southern slopes of Yatsugatake, from Kobuchisawa, Hokuto's gateway, up to the farms and forest of Kiyosato.
The sunny east side: sunflower fields, Mt. Mizugaki and the Masutomi hot springs.