Day 48 — Kiso to Nakatsugawa - Tom and Marilee Retire to the Road

October 20, 2025

Day 48 — Kiso to Nakatsugawa

We were away relatively early from the guesthouse in Kiso. The guesthouse itself was a bedroom in a middle aged couple’s house, which felt a bit awkward, so we weren’t too sad at leaving, even though it was perfectly comfortable. The bedroom across from us, and one on the ground floor, were occupied by some Americans who were using it as a base to do day hikes along the Nakasendo, using the train to shuttle to starting points in different towns.

The weather was good, and the ride when it was not on the highway was amazing. When it was on the highway, though the scenery was spectacular, it was too stressful to really be enjoyed. We found ourselves stopping at the Michi no Ekis just to give our nerves a break.

View across the valley from a Michi no Eki we stopped at to get a caffeine infusion

I think we have kind of started a ritual at the stores at the Michis — find the most outrageously priced item. These mushrooms are ¥5100 — C$47.

Also a new ritual — find creative highway signs

There were plenty of amazing off highway stretches, a lot of it in a side road that traced the path of the old Nakasendo, so we got to coast through old post towns that were quiet and tourist free, which was a privilege. The scenery as we careened down the river valley was jaw dropping.

Kiso River carving its way down the valley

Pausing to check out the temple in a post town

Once we turned west and left the Kiso valley to head to Nakatsugawa (a large town where we’d been able to find accommodation — guest house prices in the touristy post towns were waaaay out of our budget), Komoot did the Komoot thing and found crazily obscure ways cross country to get us into town. Tracks across rice paddies, roads barely 6 feet wide careening into river valleys and back up, back alleys connecting two normal sized roads. It all worked and provided a unique look at the spaces between the big roads, but often there was that feeling of … really??… then we’d pop out in a suburb or behind a factory or right onto the only bridge for miles.

Komoot did its job today of putting us on amazing secondary roads

A lot of the ride was pedalling through villages like these

Image not found :( — Another bonkers small road through a bamboo forest

Like Arashiyama, but no Instagrammers here

Once in Nakatsugawa, the ride was more of a crosstown slog at rush hour. And like the end of every day as we near our destination, the wind picks up and it’s all uphill. We found our generic business hotel on the outskirts, tidied up and had dinner at a gyudon fast food place, both of which provided a return to reality from the day pedalling through old Japan.

Today's ride: 64 km (40 miles)
Total: 2,449 km (1,521 miles)

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