Japan: Kiso Valley to Akeno scenic drive 4k

A scenic drive from Kiso Valley to Akeno.
July 18, 2023
"The Kiso Valley (木曽路, Kisoji) is located in Nagano Prefecture, and runs alongside the mountains of the Central Alps. An ancient 70 km trade route called the Kisoji was developed along the valley and served as a very important means of commerce in the area.
The Kisoji became even more important from the beginning of the Edo Period, when it was amalgamated with other routes in the formation of the 500 km long Nakasendo. The Nakasendo ("path through mountains") was one of the two main routes that connected Edo and Kyoto. It contrasted with the other principal transportation route of the time, the Tokaido, which ran along the sea shore.
Because of restrictions by the shogunate, travelers were almost always forced to make their trips on foot. As a result, "post towns" developed every few kilometers to provide travelers with places to rest, eat and find nightly accommodation during their arduous journey.
Along the Kiso Valley, a few post towns, particularly Magome, Tsumago and Narai, have been preserved to look as they did when they served travelers of the Nakasendo. Visitors are able to enjoy the stone paths and wooden buildings of a bygone era."
--www.japan-guid...
"Akeno (明野村, Akeno-mura) was a village located in Kitakoma District, Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan. Its territory includes Yama-Ogasawara, the village which gave its name to Ogasawara Nagakiyo, his clan of samurai, and-eventually-to the Ogasawara Islands in the North Pacific south of Tokyo. (Ogasawara itself is twinned with another location-Hara-Ogasawara in nearby Minami-Alps-due to the similar names.)
As of 2003, the village had an estimated population of 4,750 and a density of 169.04 persons per km2. The total area was 28.10 km2.
On November 1, 2004, Akeno, along with the towns of Hakushū, Nagasaka, Sutama and Takane, and the villages of Mukawa and Ōizumi (all from Kitakoma District), was merged to create the city of Hokuto."
--en.wikipedia.o...