Road Trip On Matsumoto Electric Railway - Part 1

Join us on our next two-day journey of enquiry and discovery. This time, we will be riding on Alpico Kotsu’s Kamikochi Line that runs through the central part of Nagano Prefecture. Alpico Kotsu was founded in 1921 as Chikuma Railway. In 1932, the name was changed to Matsumoto Electric Railway. Then in 2011, after the company merged with a bus business, it became known as Alpico Kotsu. The Kamikochi Line, which spans 14.4km, has 14 stations between Matsumoto and Shinshimashima stations. 

We start our journey from Matsumoto City, a historic castle town. We catch the train leaving at 10.10am from Matsumoto Station and head to Nagisa Station, two stops away. The train runs through a residential area first before arriving at Nagisa in less than five minutes. A local recommends we try the homemade waffles at Asawa. The store has a corner dedicated to waffles and offers more than 10 flavours. It is very popular among students in the neighbourhood. 

After trying some waffles, we take the 11.30am train to the neighbouring station, Shinano-Arai. The train ride lasts about five minutes. We drop by a pharmacy near the station, where we find out about an area called Hata which is famous for growing watermelons. It is located near Samizo Station, further down the Kamikochi Line.  

We enquire about lunch spots and are told about a buckwheat noodle shop called Kurekino. We head there and order Kanzarashi noodles, its most popular dish. In the middle of winter, buckwheat seeds are soaked in the cold water of a waterfall and buckwheat flour is later made with them. Soaking the seeds in cold water is believed to enhance the flavour and texture of the noodles. We also order buckwheat noodles served with shrimp tempura. They feature flavourful handmade buckwheat noodles made with Shinshu buckwheat flour ground in a stone mortar.  

We go back to Shinano-Arai Station and advance to Shimonii Station, two stops away, on the 2.50pm train. The train reaches Shimonii at about 2.55pm. A local resident we speak to mentions a place with a great view of green rice fields. We walk for 15 minutes to the rural road which overlooks the rice fields. After enjoying the peaceful view, instead of walking back to Shimonii Station, we decide to walk to Kitanii-Matsumotodaigakumae Station, near Matsumoto University. 

On the way to the station, we meet a resident who recommends a sunflower field on the opposite side of the university. We check it out and are thrilled by the breathtaking sight of the vast field boasting around 130,000 sunflowers in full bloom. Matsumoto University and JA Matsumoto collaborated and planted the sunflowers to revitalise the community.

It is evening by now and we start looking for accommodation. A local suggests we could stay at Shisuien, but it is quite far away. It is already past 6pm by this time and it takes us more than an hour to walk to Shisuien. However, much to our dismay, it is fully booked. We enquire about another place to stay and are advised to go back to Matsumoto Station as there are more choices around that area. The nearest station to Shisuien is Niimura so we walk for 30 minutes to that station, before taking the 9.25pm train to Matsumoto Station.  

We arrive at Matsumoto Station - where we started our journey in the morning - at 9.40pm. A local here recommends we stay at Buena Vista. We walk for 10 minutes through the city centre and reach the hotel at 10pm, but it too is fully booked. We then try our luck at another recommended place - Tourist Hotel - but it only has one room available. We finally manage to secure rooms at Tokyu REI Hotel and it is nearly 11pm by now. We have not had dinner so the hotel staff suggests a Japanese-style pub, which is known for its minced meat cutlets. After a five-minute walk from the hotel, we reach Kura no Mukou and order Shinshu salmon and its popular cutlets, which are soaked in a special sweet and spicy sauce and served with a generous portion of cabbage. 

Tips:

1)    Asawa, near Nagisa Station, is known for its homemade waffles of various flavours
2)    A sunflower field near Matsumoto University is a must-see tourist spot