This site is a web media that delivers all kinds of trivia, from sightseeing and gourmet spots in the six Tohoku prefectures to local, customs, and history.
The Okitama region, which was formerly ruled by the Yonezawa Domain, including Yonezawa City, is dotted with hot springs associated with the Uesugi clan
The Uesugi clan was founded by the founder Kenshin in Echigo (Niigata Prefecture), but after his death, during the reign of Kagekatsu, they were transferred to Aizu by order of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, and then in the Edo period, they were transferred (demoted) to Yonezawa by Tokugawa Ieyasu. Furthermore, during the Aizu period, their fief was 1.2 million koku, but after it became the Yonezawa domain, it was reduced to 300,000 koku
The Uesugi family made good use of hot springs in running their domain
The first lord of the Yonezawa domain was Uesugi Kagekatsu, but initially the domain struggled to run due to financial difficulties
The fourth lord, Tsunakatsu, died suddenly at a young age without an heir, and the family line was in danger of being cut off, but somehow it continued. However, due to this, the management of the domain hit rock bottom for a while
Uesugi Yozan (Harunori), who became the ninth feudal lord in 1767, successfully carried out financial reforms through thorough frugality.
Statue of Uesugi Yozan, owned by Tokyo National Museum
During the Echigo period, the Uesugi family used Kaikake Onsen and Matsunoyama Onsen (both in Niigata Prefecture) as "hidden hot springs," and during the Aizu period, they had hot springs with various ties, such as Aizu Higashiyama Onsen, and it seems they often made use of hot springs
After moving to Yonezawa, the feudal lord built a palace (villa) at Akayu Onsen, where he frequently visited, and he also set up a gun factoryand tried to make salt using the hot spring water (Onogawa Onsen), always keeping an eye on hot springs.
Akayu Onsen, which developed as the official hot spring for the Yonezawa domain
Akayu Onsen (Nanyo City) is a hot spring that was discovered in the late Heian period by Yoshitsuna, the younger brother of Minamoto no Yoshiie (also known as Hachiman Taro). It is said that when soldiers injured in battle were bathed in the hot springs, their wounds were instantly healed
However, the water turned deep red with blood, and it is said that this is why it came to be called "red water."
The spring water is a sulfur-containing, sodium-calcium chloride spring, and is colorless and transparent (not red!). It has a faint sulfur scent and is known as a "warm hot spring" for its many beneficial effects
During the Edo period, the Yonezawa domain's villa, Akayu Palace, was located here, and it flourished as an officially recognized entertainment venue for the domain
There are a total of 16 hot spring inns in Akayu Onsen, including Uesugi no Onsen Gotenmori, an inn that continues from Goten no Mori, the bath attendant of Akayu Palace; Ryokan Daimonjiya, which was founded in the mid-Edo period and still retains its early Showa period building; and Yamagataza Takinami, an old village headman's residence that was relocated here
There are three public baths, including a free foot bath, and in the townscape typical of a hot spring town, you can enjoy interacting with people in a way that is different from what you would experience at a ryokan
Akayu Motoyu
This public bath was opened by merging the long-standing Oyu and Tambayu baths. It is adjacent to the Akayu Onsen Tourist Center "Yu-Navi Karakoro-kan."
Information
Facility name: Akayu Motoyu
Address: 754 Akayu, Nanyo City, Yamagata Prefecture
Phone number: 0238-40-3211 (Nanyo City)
Business hours: 8:00-14:00, 15:00-21:30
Bathing fee: Adults 240 yen, Children (elementary school students and younger) 100 yen
Closed: Wednesday
Eboshi no Yu
Eboshi no Yu is characterized by its bath shaped like an eboshi hat. The entrance fee is only 120 yen
Information
Facility name: Eboshi-no-Yu
Address: 356-2 Akayu, Nanyo City, Yamagata Prefecture
Phone number: 0238-40-3211 (Nanyo City)
Business hours: 6:00-11:30, 14:00-21:30
Bathing fee: Adults 120 yen, Children (elementary school students and younger) 100 yen
Closed: Fridays
Akayu Onsen Yukotto
The facility is fully equipped with a large public bath with natural hot spring water, an open-air bath, and a barrier-free bathroom that can be enjoyed by people with disabilities or those who require care
Information
Facility name: Akayu Onsen Yukotto
Address: 3004-1 Akayu, Nanyo City, Yamagata Prefecture
Phone number: 0238-49-7350 (Yukotto)
Business hours: 6:00-22:00
Bathing fee: Adults 300 yen, Children (elementary school students and younger) 100 yen
Shirabu Onsen, where the Yonezawa Domain's gun factory was located
Shirabu Onsen is a hot spring that springs from the source of the Mogami River at an altitude of 900m. It is a very historic hot spring that was discovered in 1312
One legend says that the name "Shirabu" came from the fact that a white-spotted hawk was cured of an eye disease in this hot spring, but it seems more accurate to say that the place name came from the Ainu people who originally lived here, who said "shirabu" means "a place where frost forms." The kanji characters "shirabu" were added later
The Okitama region, where Shirabu Onsen is located, was under the control of the Date clan during the Sengoku period, and there are records that the lord at the time, Date Masamune, visited the area. During the Edo period, lords of the Yonezawa domain, such as Uesugi Yozan, also visited the area
In the early Edo period, Naoe Kanetsugu established a matchlock gun factory in Shirabu Onsen, where sulfur and other gunpowder materials were available, in preparation for an unstable era. This gun is said to have been useful in the Winter Siege of Osaka, which broke out in 1614
Shirabu Onsen is home to five hot spring inns, including the thatched-roof Yutaki no Yado Nishiya and Azumaya Ryokan, which was newly built after a fire, and Nakaya Annex Fudokaku, an old-style inn built in the Taisho era, a short distance away.The hot springs are sulfur-containing, calcium sulfate springs, and this sulfur was the raw material for bullets
Shirabu Onsen＜Information＞
Facility name: Shirabu Onsen
Location: Seki, Yonezawa City, Yamagata Prefecture, and other areas
Phone number: 0238-53-2761 (Around Nishi-Azuma)
access:
Train: Approximately 50 minutes by bus from Yonezawa Station on the Yamagata Shinkansen, JR Uetsu Main Line, or Yonesaka Line bound for Shirabu Onsen
By car: Approximately 30 minutes from the Yonezawa-Hachimanbara Interchange on the Tohoku Chuo Expressway
Onogawa Onsen, where the remains of the Yonezawa Domain's saltworks remain
Onogawa Onsen is a hot spring with a history of about 1,200 years, said to have been discovered by Ono no Komachi, a poet of the Heian period who was acclaimed as a peerless beauty. It is said that Ono no Komachi fell ill while visiting the area in search of her father, but after receiving a message from Medicine Buddha, she bathed in the hot springs, recovered from her illness, and regained her beauty
During the Sengoku period, it was a hot spring frequented by the Date clan, and later became one of the hot springs frequented by the Uesugi clan of the Yonezawa domain. Also, because the source of Onogawa Onsen contains a lot of salt, a saltworks was built by Uesugi Yozan to extract salt from the hot spring water. The spring quality of Onogawa Onsen is a sulfur-containing, sodium-calcium chloride spring, but it seems that the salt concentration was higher during the Edo period than it is today
There are 13 inns in Onogawa Onsen. Founded in the Muromachi period, Ogiya Ryokan is said to be the first inn in Onogawa Onsen, and its Meiji-era building is still in use. There's a wide variety of inns to choose from, ranging from luxury inns with rooms with open-air baths to inns offering homely hospitality, so you can choose one that suits your budget and purpose. There are also two public baths, and there are plenty of popular events, such as the summer Firefly Festival, autumn rice field art, and winter Kamakura Village
Namekawa Onsen, a single inn opened with permission from the Yonezawa domain
Namekawa Onsen is a hot spring that was discovered about 350 years ago, and due to its beautiful scenery, it was opened as a hot spring resort with permission from the Yonezawa domain
The only lodging available is Fukushimaya, and its most attractive feature is the hot springs, which use three springs. Nearby is Namekawa Falls, a 100m waterfall that has been selected as one of the "100 Best Waterfalls of Japan."
Namekawa Onsen <Information>
Facility name: Fukushimaya, a hidden hot spring inn in Yonezawa
Address: 15 Ozawa, Yonezawa City, Yamagata Prefecture
Phone number: 238-34-2250
access:
Train: Get off at Toge Station on the JR Ou Main Line, then take a taxi for about 15 minutes (pick-up service available)
By car: Approximately 1 hour from Fukushima Iizaka IC on the Tohoku Expressway, approximately 50 minutes from Yonezawa city
I visited hot springs associated with the Uesugi clan of the Yonezawa domain, but unfortunately, Goshiki Onsen, a secret hot spring that Naoe Kanetsugu is said to have visited, has closed down and is no longer accessible as of May 2023. As it was a popular hot spring nestled in the mountains, I can only hope that it will reopen
My love of travel grew, and I used to write a travel magazine, and now I'm a travel writer for the web. During my research, I visited all 47 prefectures in Japan, mainly in the Tohoku region, but my fun part is soaking in hot springs and experiencing traditional Japanese culture such as old townscapes, lifestyles, and performing arts and crafts.
![Mogami safflower](https://jp.neft.asia/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/30121446_m-1-150x150.jpg.webp ""Mogami safflower" certified as a Japanese heritage and Japanese agricultural heritage [Yamagata Prefecture]")
