World Heritage Site - Shirakawago

Just north of Shokawa village is the artificial lake, Miboro Lake. This lake was created by damming the Shirakawa River to flood part of the Shokawa Valley. An extremely calm lake - perfect place for watersports!

Miboro Lake

Below, these are 2 sakura (cherry blossom) trees that were transplanted from the flooded region of the Shokawa Valley. These trees are called the Shokawa Sakuras and each tree is 5m tall and more than 400 years old!

The Shokawa Sakuras

The road from Shokawa village to Shirakawago was mostly downhill with lots of tunnels to go through and bridges to cross. I made it to Shirakawago in good time and checked into one of the Gassho-Zukuri ryokan in the village.

Shirakawago was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1995 due to the unique architecture of its Gassho-Zukuri (Clasped Hands) buildings. These buildings are constructed without using a single nail and are made totally of wood. The roofs are a type of grass that is specially grown for use in the construction of these houses. The shape of the roofs allow them to withstand the heavy snowfall that this region experiences during the wintertime and most of these houses have been around for hundreds of years.

Visitors to the village are not allowed to smoke and its not surprising that amongst the local populace, not a single person smokes!

Entrance to Shirakawago Village

Deai Bridge - Connecting the tourist bus terminal to Shirakawago

My accomodation for the night was at Furusato Minshuku (120 years old). This place was run by a very kindly 83 year old lady. She did it with the help of various part-time helpers from the village.

The picture below shows Furusato Minshuku with its newly repaired grass roof. According to the old lady, they repair their roofs every once a year, and once in 5 or 10 years (depending on the condition of the roofs), they`ll completely replace the grass.

My first stop after I dropped off my stuff was the Gassho-Zukuri Minka-en. This place was a little area which housed historically significant Gassho-zukuri buildings from the Shokawa Valley region that was flooded by Miboro Lake. Each house had been turned into a small museum displaying the local way of life as well as a history the family who owned that particulary house.

Irori - An earthen fireplace found in almost every house

Inside the Gassho-Zukuri Minka-en

In front of one of the oldest Gassho-Zukuri houses - Built in the 18th century

After visiting the Minka-en, I took a hike up Shiroyama to get a bird`s eye view of Shirakawago. It was a short but steep hike up the hill. Lunch was at the restaurant at the top of this little hill.

Shirakawago Village

After lunch, it was still too early to return to the minshuku as the lady owner had gone out of town and locked up the place. So, I headed for the Shira River which ran between the tourist bus terminal and the village. Shira River literally means `White River` and you can see how it got its name from the foamy water caused by the many rocks in the river.

My nap spot by the Shira River

In the evening, dinner was prepared by one of the helpers at Furusato Minshuku. A very interesting meal of pork, fish and mountain vegetables!