長野・戸隠Vlog｜初夏の新緑に映える鏡池散策＆随神門〜奥社・中社参拝、戸隠そば｜Togakushi Shrine & Kagami Pond
The destination this time is Togakushi Shrine in Nagano Prefecture I’ve traveled to Nagano many times, but this is my first visit to Togakushi The autumn foliage here is lovely, but people say the fresh-green season is wonderful too I usually go to Karuizawa in late May, but this year I decided to visit Togakushi instead It’s about an hour by bus from Nagano Station to Togakushi, so you could even do a day trip from Tokyo by Shinkansen, but I want to take it slow, so I’ll stay one night in Nagano and head to Togakushi tomorrow morning Since I have time, I’m taking an express bus to Nagano It’s rice-planting season, so the paddies are flooded and look beautiful It’s only ¥1,900 on weekdays from Busta Shinjuku to Nagano Station The Shinkansen via Ōmiya costs about ¥7,000 from Shinjuku, so two people save nearly ¥10,000 by bus A hotel near Nagano Station costs a little over ¥10,000, so for the same total it’s better to stay overnight than rush a day trip I definitely recommend it for a relaxed visit After five hours we arrived at Nagano Station I checked in to Hotel Metropolitan Nagano, directly connected to the station I’m hungry, so we’re going out for a light meal Whenever I’m in Nagano I always end up at Chikufudō Their kuri-okowa (chestnut rice) is outstanding And the chestnut ice cream is amazingly good After a relaxing night we’re taking a bus to Togakushi this morning There’s a regular route bus, but since April 2025 the new
Sightseeing Limited Express Togakushi Line has started, and I recommend it The stop isn’t in the station rotary—cross to the Don Quijote side
and it’s in front of the Nagano Ekimae Post Office It’s ¥2,000 one way and online reservation only Buses leave roughly once an hour Because the coaches are new, the seats are spotless and the legroom is really generous The first highlight comes right away—the Shinkōji Loop Bridge It spirals up the mountain to gain elevation gently It’s pretty rare to see a loop that forms such a perfect circle I was slow turning on the camera and only caught the end,
so I’ll try again on the way back Ōzabōshi Pond on the Iizuna Plateau At this point we’re roughly halfway to Togakushi Shrine Driving through a tunnel of fresh green—it’s stunning We passed the Chūsha (Middle Shrine) but we’ll come back later Got off at Kagami-ike Entrance Stop Amazing—there’s still snow even though it’s the end of May It’s about a 30-minute walk from the stop to Kagami Pond The paved road is easy to walk and the greenery feels fantastic The birdsong is unbelievably loud Honestly, just coming to Kagami Pond alone would be worth the trip Found some plants that look straight out of the Cretaceous The gentle climb continues We’ve arrived It’s insanely beautiful—I’m stunned The green gradation in spring is gorgeous The surface is like a mirror, reflecting the Togakushi range A few clouds make the greens stand out even more A bit of snow remains on the mountaintops A crow came right up—must be used to people As clouds drift, the sky and sunlit greens on the water keep changing,
so you never get bored In front of the pond is a galette café called “Donguri House” It opens at 9 a.m., but today is their day off Time to head for the Okusha (Inner Shrine) of Togakushi The map shows a trail from here that links up with the Okusha approach Really? There was a signpost, so it’s legit It’s a walking path and fairly maintained These are probably Anemone flaccida After a short walk we found another sign Up to here we’d followed the trail around Kagami Pond The path forks here, so we’ll take the one toward Zuishin-mon Gate Hard to believe there’s a shrine in the middle of this mountain trail It’s a modern shrine managed by Kōmyō-in Temple To reach Zuishin-mon keep right through this torii by the shrine Pretty interesting setup One statue is Taira no Koremochi, a warrior from the “Momiji Legend” He’s a real figure in the story about a demoness at Togakushi And this is Momiji, the demoness he defeated It seems the tale was actually created in the Edo period Near Zuishin-mon the path turns to stone and is easier to walk Just a little farther Maybe because the air is so fresh, it’s less tiring than expected Or so I thought—Asa just stepped into a mud hole We walked over five minutes since the last sign yet advanced only 10 m Something’s definitely off Three more minutes brought another signboard Looks like the previous sign was wrong after all Forgot to mention: bears are around, so a bear bell is essential We’ve merged with the main Okusha approach Even strolling it took about 45 minutes My phone had almost no signal so I was anxious, but there are plenty of people here Built in 1710, Zuishin-mon is the oldest structure in Togakushi Shrine Look at that roof—it’s incredible Zuishin-mon protects the sacred area from evil spirits On the left is Toyo-Iwamado-no-Kami, and on the right Kushi-Iwamado-no-Kami Beyond the gate an awe-inspiring cedar avenue stretches inward Every cedar is over 400 years old Seeing this 500-meter-long corridor is overwhelming Let’s continue to the Okusha From here it’s just over 20 minutes We took a break after a short climb, but the slope suddenly got much steeper Looks like we still have to climb Pretty tough going This is Iizuna-sha, dedicated to Iizuna Daigongen We still have to climb all the way up there… The “Shiseihi” stone urges visitors to purify their hearts A tree is growing right out of the rock This “Onoue Kōsha-hi” marks the mountain-worship trailhead That waterfall is clearly for ascetic training Still climbing? Is that the shrine office? Seeing a modern building is reassuring First you reach Kuzuryū-sha And here is the Okusha of Togakushi Shrine The wooden building was destroyed by repeated avalanches, so in 1979 it was rebuilt in reinforced concrete The structure integrates with the stone wall—unique After worship we bought amulets and headed down The ascent was brutal, but descending is easy It rained hard at the Okusha but is easing now Zuishin-mon is coming into view The return felt lightning quick Oh! The sun’s coming out This is the Sakasagawa stream beside Zuishin-mon With sunlight, the cedar avenue looks amazing The path back is well maintained compared to the mountain trail After rough trails, this is super easy A monument called the “Mount Takatsuma Shinkyōhi” Near the entrance the path feels like a highland greenway It’s really pleasant The end came into view sooner than expected We got down in 30 minutes Here’s the Okusha approach seen from the entrance You’d never guess there’s a steep climb at the end There was a soba restaurant right next to the torii But I’ll wait to eat Togakushi soba at Chūsha We’ll take a local bus to Chūsha, so check the time They run about once an hour; the next one’s in about 20 minutes A fun-looking facility beside the stop is closed today Since we have time, I got a soba soft-serve It had a nice buckwheat aroma and tasted great It’s about five minutes to Chūsha Maybe because it’s a weekday, the bus was empty Arrived at the Chūsha gate Where should we eat Togakushi soba? The famous shop “Uzuraya” is closed today A sign for soba dango caught my eye, so we went in The tatami room on the second floor is spacious—wonderful Just this view alone made it worth choosing this place To enjoy everything we’ll have the “Shinanoya Gozen” set They also have an English menu And an English guide on how to eat soba—so thoughtful Here it is: soba dango and stir-fried nozawana greens The soba dango are balls of kneaded buckwheat dough deep-fried They’re delicious coated in the sweet-savory sauce Next up, the Shinanoya set meal The mushrooms and mountain veggies are incredibly tasty The 100 % buckwheat Togakushi soba is, needless to say, fantastic Honestly, is it even possible to find bad soba in Nagano? The rare apple tempura was also delicious After resting enough, next we’ll visit the Chūsha of Togakushi Shrine It’s not “Yaobikuni” but “Yaohiku”—a tale about a father mourning his three sons who ate mermaid meat Stairs here are almost as steep as at the Okusha There’s a gentler “women’s slope” on the front left We’ve walked a lot this morning, so this hill is tough Chūsha was founded in 1087 The current building was rebuilt in 1955 The shrine curtain was donated by a Togakushi pilgrimage group from Inada, Jōetsu Because Togakushi Shrine has no local parishioners,
nation-wide “Togakushi Kō” groups take their place The notice board by the office showed the Shinanoya we just visited We booked the return bus,
so we’ll wander nearby until it arrives Beside the torii is the Haiden of the Chūsha Gosaijin-sha;
before Shinto-Buddhist separation it was a Hokke-dō Bought some famous Togakushi spring water It’s unbelievably good—please sell it in Tokyo! Near Chūsha are popular soba shops, temple lodgings, and ryokan Too tired to walk, so we rested at the tourist information center Looks like bus passengers are lining up The return bus was emptier than expected Finally caught the loop bridge I missed on the way in Togakushi’s shrines are wonderful, but the atmosphere of the area is so nice I’d love to stay overnight in Togakushi itself and spend a lazy day just wandering around
新緑の季節に、バスで長野県の戸隠神社に行ってきました
鏡池の水鏡 → 随神門の杉並木 → 奥社参拝 → 戸隠そば→中社参拝
と回ったのですが、ほぼハイキングというか軽いトレッキングでした。
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【Budget】（2025年6月時点・目安）
– バスタ新宿 → 長野駅 1,900円×2
– 竹風堂 栗おこわ 山里定食 1,540円×2
– ホテルメトロポリタン長野 19,200円
– アルピコ交通バス 長野駅 → 鏡池前 2,000円×2
– アルピコ交通バス 奥社入口 → 中社大門 260円×2
– しなの屋 しなのや膳 2,100円×2
– アルピコ交通バス 中社大門 → 長野駅 2,000円×2
Total：38,800円
※価格は変更の可能性があります。
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【Time Stamp】
00:00 Intro
02:28 長野駅で1泊
03:19 長野駅 → アルピコ交通バス乗車
05:31 鏡池前バス停〜鏡池
09:45 鏡池 → 随神門ハイキング
13:34 随神門～杉並木
17:24 九頭龍社、戸隠神社 奥社参拝 → 奥社入口
22:49 昼食（「しなの屋」で戸隠そば）
25:15 中社参拝
37:30 戸隠観光情報センター
32:10 Outro
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【Info & Links】
– 新宿→長野 高速バス
https://a.r10.to/hgXxHn
– アルピコ交通 観光特急戸隠線
https://www.alpico.co.jp/traffic/express/express_togakushi/
– 鏡池（Google Maps）
https://maps.app.goo.gl/YP8RoYgdxYjssXd56
– 戸隠神社 公式（奥社／中社／宝光社 ほか）
https://www.togakushi-jinja.jp/
– しなの屋
https://togakushi-21.jp/spot/318/
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【Gear】
SONY VLOGCAM ZV-E10 II（https://amzn.to/40wwxDW）
iPhone 15 Pro
Editing : Final Cut Pro / Music : Artlist.io（https://x.gd/ij2Dx）
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#戸隠神社 #鏡池 #戸隠そば
#Togakushi #NaganoTravel #JapanVlog
#長野旅行 #奥社 #中社 #信州Vlog
#週末トリップ #神社巡り