Archive for the ‘Arashiyama’ Category

This photo corresponds with Episode 4 of the Savage Japan Podcast. Episode 4 can be heard here at SavageJapan.com or here at SavageSnowPodcast.com.

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Though this overall area is largely referred to as Arashiyama, technically it seems that I may have been in the Sagano neighborhood as I hiked upstream on the north side of the Hozugawa River.

Maps, guidebooks, and websites are in dispute and no one I have asked so far seems to know where the separation between the Arashiyama and Sagano districts of Kyoto really is.

Because I was always so close to the Togetsukyo Bridge during my visit this time, I initially thought the entire area I was biking and strolling in was Arashiyama. I will try to figure out the true borders over time and maybe learn a little about the history of Sagano and Arashiyama.

From a tourist’s perspective, Arashiyama is the area name to remember. This region of Kyoto is certainly more generally referred to as Arashiyama by visitors to Kyoto and locals as well.

As mentioned at the end of episode 4 of the podcast, the other side of the river has a trail that leads up to the Arashiyama Iwatayama Monkey Park. We’ll eventually check that out also.

Though I did cross Arashiyama’s Togetsukyo Bridge as the sun set during my visit to Arashiyama, I spent most of my time next to the river and exploring developed trails on a large hill on the north side of the bridge.

Photo Details: These black-winged, fluorescent teal-bodied dragonflies by the Hozugawa River paused just long enough in the riverbank foliage for a photo in Arashiyama/Sagano (Kyoto, Japan).

Japan Photo Journal – Living in Japan
Dan Savage [Email]

Grab anywhere on map to scroll around precise spot where above photo was taken. Zoom in & out with buttons in left corner. To learn more about geotagging your own photos, visit LearningtoGeotag.com.

This photo corresponds with Episode 4 of the Savage Japan Podcast. Episode 4 can be heard here at SavageJapan.com or here at SavageSnowPodcast.com.

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Looking east from Arashiyama in Kyoto, Japan, the Togetsukyo Bridge, the icon of Arashiyama, is framed here by the mountains on the opposite side of the city and the Hozugawa River in the foreground.

Both this and my previous Togetsukyo Bridge photo do not show the most famous postcard view angle from the east side with the closest western peak directly behind the bridge.

I’ll be sure to get that view during a nighttime shoot later this year when the hill behind Togetsukyo will be lit up with colored lights for a special event.

Japan Photo Journal – Living in Japan
Dan Savage [Email]

Grab anywhere on map to scroll around precise spot where above photo was taken. Zoom in & out with buttons in left corner. To learn more about geotagging your own photos, visit LearningtoGeotag.com.

This photo corresponds with Episode 4 of the Savage Japan Podcast. Episode 4 can be heard here at SavageJapan.com or here at SavageSnowPodcast.com.

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This is the Arashiyama Cat Man referenced in Episode 4 of the podcast. I didn’t want to invade his privacy. I hope this photo that doesn’t reveal his face is considered respectful.

The preceding photo of the Arashiyama dog and this photo of the cats were taken almost in the same exact spot, within seconds of each other. I simply turned around to get the cat photo.

Interestingly, the dog had no interest in the cats, and the cats had no worries about the dog. That didn’t stop me from using the opportunity to force my weak Japanese skills upon the cat man; I attempted to comment that there was a dog approaching. He curtly told me it was not a problem; the Arashiyama cat man obviously did not wish to play along with my attempts to practice Japanese.

Japan Photo Journal – Living in Japan
Dan Savage [Email]

Grab anywhere on map to scroll around precise spot where above photo was taken. Zoom in & out with buttons in left corner. To learn more about geotagging your own photos, visit LearningtoGeotag.com.

This photo corresponds with Episode 4 of the Savage Japan Podcast. Episode 4 can be heard here at SavageJapan.com or here at SavageSnowPodcast.com.

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Arashiyama Dog Walk
They say dogs look like their owners, or is it the other way around?
If nothing else, I thought this person’s shoes were visually compatible with his canine companion.

Japan Photo Journal – Living in Japan
Dan Savage [Email]

Grab anywhere on map to scroll around precise spot where above photo was taken. Zoom in & out with buttons in left corner. To learn more about geotagging your own photos, visit LearningtoGeotag.com.

This photo corresponds with Episode 4 of the Savage Japan Podcast. Episode 4 can be heard here at SavageJapan.com or here at SavageSnowPodcast.com.

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As I hiked along the bank of the Hozugawa River, I saw this covered boat taking people for rides in the flat water upstream of the Togetsukyo Bridge in Kyoto’s Arashiyama neighborhood.

The whitewater boats which are boarded much further upstream in the town of Kameoka, yet end their run in this same vicinity, are similar in design (though not covered).

Japan Photo Journal – Living in Japan
Dan Savage [Email]

Grab anywhere on map to scroll around precise spot where above photo was taken. Zoom in & out with buttons in left corner. To learn more about geotagging your own photos, visit LearningtoGeotag.com.

This photo corresponds with Episode 4 of the Savage Japan Podcast. Episode 4 can be heard here at SavageJapan.com or here at SavageSnowPodcast.com.

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This Kyoto landmark, Arashiyama’s Togetsukyo Bridge, crosses the Hozugawa/Katsuragawa River on the west side of Kyoto in the popular tourist area of Arashiyama and Saga. I realized I was not too far away from Arashiyama while running errands earlier in the day and on a whim, I decided to pedal on over.

There is a lot more to do here than I had time for during this late afternoon and early evening of exploration. Arashiyama is quite scenic and peaceful; I will be returning for sure.

There are some rapids upstream on the Hozugawa River which is later renamed the Katsura River at this point, but from the photos I’ve seen it looks like the occasional rapids are only class 2, maybe one class 3.

Incidentally, this river is also confusingly called Oigawa upstream of the bridge, but I have read too many conflicting accounts of the proper use of that name to feel confidant in explaining when to use Oigawa at this point. When I sort through all the misinformation, I will share more about it.

Hozugawa is used in connection with the boat trips and is the only river name you need to remember if you are considering taking that trip.

Rides in hard shelled boats are available to take passengers down the river from Kameoka to the takeout at the Togetsukyo Bridge. Typically the boat passengers are visitors who just took the Sagano Scenic Train up to Kameoka.

The river trip is marketed as an exciting adventure, but I think it is a trip to be taken more for the scenery and not for the rapids, unless you have a low adrenaline threshold. In that case, you may find the boat ride to be thrilling as well as beautiful.

As I mentioned in the podcast, I’ll probably wait until I have a nice girl to go with me before I take the boat ride back down, but you might find me taking the inexpensive train ride up to Kameoka for a day of exploration and then back down again at some point in the not too distant future.

I doubt anyone would object if you brought your own kayak or raft and attempted to paddle down into Arashiyama, but I wouldn’t make a special effort to bring my kayak here.
If you happen to be visiting Gifu Prefecture on the other hand, or Shikoku…

There will be much more to come on this website and in the podcast in the future regarding whitewater kayaking and rafting opportunities in Japan.

Japan Photo Journal – Living in Japan
Dan Savage [Email]

Grab anywhere on map to scroll around precise spot where above photo was taken. Zoom in & out with buttons in left corner. To learn more about geotagging your own photos, visit LearningtoGeotag.com.

This photo corresponds with Episode 4 of the Savage Japan Podcast. Episode 4 can be heard here at SavageJapan.com or here at SavageSnowPodcast.com.

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This train is heading into the mountains and will eventually reach Kameoka, the same destination the Sagano Torokko Romantic Train ends up if you choose to take the scenic route along the Hozugawa River.

This stretch of track is located in the Sagano area and the photo was taken as I bicycled down into the north end of the Arashiyama district of Kyoto. Saga Arashiyama Station is only about 300 meters behind this train as it heads west into the mountains and away from the camera. I must admit I had no idea I was so close to the station at the moment I took the photo. The wonders of GPS and my new geotagging hobby.

The Saga Arashiyama Station is one of the boarding points for the Sagano Torokko Romantic Train. You will see the scenic train referenced with different names in English, but always some combination of the words I used here.

Japan Photo Journal – Living in Japan
Dan Savage [Email]

Grab anywhere on map to scroll around precise spot where above photo was taken. Zoom in & out with buttons in left corner. To learn more about geotagging your own photos, visit LearningtoGeotag.com.

This photo corresponds with Episode 4 of the Savage Japan Podcast. Episode 4 can be heard here at SavageJapan.com or here at SavageSnowPodcast.com.

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Kyoto is a City of Water.

This corridor of water was passed as I headed to the western edge of Kyoto via Marutamachi Dori, on my first bicycle outing to Arashiyama.

Though perhaps not intertwined with waterways as much as the east side of Kyoto with its large aquaduct network fed by Lake Biwa, the west side of Kyoto still enjoys an abundant supply of water washing its way down from the northern and western slopes.

The city of Kyoto also hosts 3 substantial rivers within its perimeter: the Kamogawa, the Takanogawa, and the Hozugawa (which is called Katsuragawa downstream of the Togetsukyo Bridge).

Japan Photo Journal – Living in Japan
Dan Savage [Email]

Grab anywhere on map to scroll around precise spot where above photo was taken. Zoom in & out with buttons in left corner. To learn more about geotagging your own photos, visit LearningtoGeotag.com.