Tohoku 2015 東北の旅 - Yamagata Taxi 山形タクシー, Mogamikyo 最上峡, Mogamigawa Basho line Funakudari 最上川芭蕉ライン舟下り

Visited 13.10.2015 (Tue)



Taxi day. Decided to hire a sightseeing taxi for one day (on Day 5) to cover several places of interest in Yamagata Prefecture which are less accessible by trains and buses. Found Yamagata Taxi 山形タクシー and dropped them an enquiry whether they could plan an itinerary based on the places I wanted to visit, which included Mogamigawa and Hagurosan, and a fruit picking activity.

The itinerary proposed and eventually executed was as follows:
- Picked up from Notoya 能登屋 in Ginzan Onsen 銀山温泉, our accommodation we stayed the night before at 0800 hrs.
- Mogamigawa Basho line Funakudari 最上川芭蕉ライン舟下り / Mogami River boat cruise.
- Lunch at Saikan 斎館, located on the summit of Hagurosan.
- Descended Hagurosan 羽黒山.
- Fruit picking at Kaminoyama Fruits Park (Yamagata Cherry Land) 上山フルーツ園 (山形チェリーランド).
- Dropped us at Takinami 瀧波 in Akayu Onsen 赤湯温泉, our accommodation for the night at around 1700 hrs

Cost (with 8% consumption tax): 
1 day taxi charter = 52,380 yen (inclusive of expressway toll; exclusive of boat cruise ticket, lunch and fruit picking fee)
Handling fee = 1,080 yen / pax (inclusive of travel compensation fee)

Yamagata Taxi: http://www.yamagatataxi.co.jp/

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Young Oshin holding on to a kokeshi, a wooden toy doll.

1st attraction visited during sightseeing taxi trip.

Power of tv. Oshin おしん is a NHK 15 minutes morning drama (asadora 朝ドラ) which was first aired on national television in 1983. This drama which depicted the life of Oshin, a resilient woman born in Yamagata during the Meiji era, was extremely well received both locally and internationally after its release. Its huge popularity has also promoted tourism in several places in Yamagata Prefecture where the story took place in. This includes Ginzan Onsen 銀山温泉, where Oshin's mother had to leave her hometown to work as a waitress in one of the ryokan to help support the household income; Sakata 酒田, the city where Oshin was employed as a maid and babysitter by Kagaya (a wholesale rice dealer) when she was only seven years old, and Mogamigawa 最上川, which appeared in the scenes of young Oshin travelling down the river on a raft. Oshin was one of the first Japanese drama I have ever watched, and still one of my favourites to date. First caught the English dubbed version that was aired over Singapore's national television when I was still in primary school and watched the entire drama serial again when it was broadcasted on Wakuwaku Japan channel a couple of years ago. On this trip to Tohoku region, I fulfilled my wish to visit some of these places which were featured in this drama serial!

Furukuchi Port, the boarding point for Mogamigawa Basho line Funakudari.

All ready for the boat ride! 

Background. Mogamigawa is one of three most rapid river in Japan, alongside Fujigawa 富士川 (in Yamanashi and Shizuoka Prefecture) and Kumagawa 球磨川 (in Kumamoto Prefecture). The name of this river also appeared in a travel literature titled Okunohozomichi 奥の細道 penned by Matsuo Basho 松尾芭蕉, a famous 17th century Japanese poet whose works continue to gain recognition till date. Mogamikyo 最上峡 refers to the canyon in which the river runs from Furukuchi 古口 to Kiyokawa 清川 and is especially well known for its captivating scenery that can be witnessed all year round. This 16 km stretch of river is where visitors can enjoy a relaxing boat ride while admiring the magnificent gorge.











Bad weather. There are two boat cruise operators, Magamigawa Basho line Funakudari 最上川芭蕉ライン舟下り and Mogamigawa Funakudari Yoshitsune Roman Kankou 最上川舟下り義経ロマン観光, and they run different routes along Mogamikyo with different embarkation/disembarkation points. We sat with the former and boarded the sheltered boat from Furukuchi Port 古口港. Along the journey, we were entertained by the boat captain, as he introduced Mogamigawa and directed our attention to several notable landmarks, such as water falls and torii, dotted along the sides of the river. At the half way mark, the boat made a brief stop at a "floating" cafe where passengers could order drinks and snacks to accompany them on this river cruise. There was a decent variety of food to choose from: yakitori, takoyaki and even grilled sweetfish; we ordered a cup of hot coffee to warm our bodies against the cold weather caused by the rain. Unfortunately, the overcast weather made the changing autumn colours, which was beginning to show up on some section of the gorge, looked less mesmerising. The boat had to battle intermittent rain, rougher river water conditions and a downpour just before the cruise ended at Kusanagi Port 草薙港. All in all, I feel that the tour could have been more enjoyable if the weather was on our side that day.








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Mogamigawa Basho line Funakudari 最上川芭蕉ライン舟下り
Boarding point: Furukuchi Port 古口港
Ending point: Kusanagi Port 草薙港
〒999-6401 山形県最上郡戸沢村大字古口86-1
Operating hours: 0930 - 1530 hrs
* There are about five boat trips per day. After alighting from the boat at Kusanagi Port, passengers can hop onto the bus which will ferry them back to Furukuchi Port.
Fee = 2,500 yen
http://www.blf.co.jp/

How to get there?

(1) By foot. 5 mins walk from Furukuchi JR Station 古口駅.

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Commemorative stamps: