Travelers are presented with a variety of adventure opportunities in Japan when they visit the islands.
The Nakasendo Highway, which links Kyoto and Tokyo is a 310 mile-long highway once used primarily by people on foot and horses. Built in the 1600s, many parts of the road are preserved, which means hikers can walk the route as the Japanese did some 400 years ago.
Today, the best areas to travel are between the Nagano Prefecture and Gifu Prefecture, where the route takes explorers past restored architecture, beautiful waterfalls and paved roads.
It also winds around the shores of Lake Biwa, across several mountain ranges and through the Kanto-plain near Edo (present-day Tokyo).
If hikers want to make the full route, they'll have to make some of the way along modern roads. However, the roads do have traditional guideposts for the Nakasendo.
There are 69 stages in the highway, considered of the most important during the Edo Period (1603 to 1868) when the Tokugawa family ruled Japan.
The best way to explore the Nakasendo Highway is with a small group of adventure travelers.
Trek across the Nakasendo Highway in Japan
Posted on Monday, April 11th, 2011
