Tokaido Walk (17) Okabe-Kanaya: April 29, 2012

I walked more than 20 km from Okabe through Fujieda and Shimada to Kanaya in my 2nd day of my Golden Week holidays.

It was a sunny and warm day. The sky was blue and the light was bright. I saw fresh green everywhere along the street.

I also found flyings carp in many places. People in Japan display the carp to cerebrate the boy’s festival (Children’s day) on May 5th.

I dropped in an old inn at Okabe, the 21st shukuba station from Nihonbashi, Tokyo. The replicas of travelers in the Edo era were placed inside the building. The town is trying to make the best use of their historical resources to activate the area.

Fujieda, the 22nd station, is famous for “Fuji” or Japanese wisteria flowers. The city’s name includes “Fuji”.


They held a Fuji festival at Rengeji-ike Park in the central city. Light purple flowers were fully open and they smelled so nice. Many family were enjoying the flower as well as nice weather.



Tens of flying carp were floating over a pond.

Pine trees remain along Tokaido in Fujieda and Shimada city, the 23rd station.


I passed 200 km point from Tokyo in Shimada ciry.

I found some fields covered with small purple flowers of Chinese milk vetch (Astragalus). It is a scene wedely seen troughout the nation decades ago. The ground will shortly be turned and rice will be planted. The Chines milk vetch will be fertilizer of the field.

I arrived at Oi River. The river is one of the most famous ones in Tokaido.

The river flew so rapid in the Edo era and travelers were forced to wait days when the water was affluent.

Even today, the following phrase is wadely known:
-- Hakone hachiri wa uma demo kosuga
Kosu ni koserenu Oi Gawa,
(We can cross the steep Hakone Pass with a horse,
but we cannot cross Oi River when the condition is not good ...)

I just walked about a kilometer on the bridge and crossed the river.


I arrived in Kanaya, the 24th station. I again found a school of flying carp over a small river in the town.