#ishizuchi

[merpmonde]

Yosan Line part 2: Marugame to Imabari

Continued from part 1.

Tadotsu (33 km) is where the Dosan line to the Southern city of Kôchi detaches. The Yosan line, meanwhile, gets very close to the shore, offering some wonderful views of the island-dotted Seto Inland Sea.

Tsushima-no-miya (40 km) serves Tsushima-jinja, a shrine sat on a small island connected to Shikoku by a bridge. To be precise, the station serves Tsushima-jinja's matsuri, which takes place in early August, and thus holds the distinction of being the station in Japan with the shortest opening period - just 2 days a year! The rest of the time, trains just whizz through.

Skipping quite a distance ahead to Iyo-Saijô (114 km), its Shikoku Railway Cultural Center and views of the Ishizuchi mountain range. Not the best view on the day I went, evidently, as clouds cover what I think is Kuromori-yama - at least I want to talk about Kuromori-yama, as the name means "Black Forest"! There is just no getting away from the Schwarzwald!

Nyûgawa (127 km) sees the Yosan line traverse something of a plain. Fields in the foreground, industry in the background, as we approach Imabari, the town at the Shikoku end of the Shimanami Kaidô I have already posted about.

[beifongkendo]

Mt. Ishizuchi, Ehime prefecture (by sorakataphoto)

[eirikrjs]

In SMT V, Kurama Tengu refers to an "Ishizuchizan Hokibo" in a quest before summoning Zaou Gongen to fight alongside him. Do you know who or what he may be referring to?

I took this screenshot and apparently never gave it a second thought.

It appears Ishizuchizan Hokibo is one of the Great Tengu by one such reckoning/grouping, living on Mount Ishizuchi in Ehime Prefecture on Shikoku. This page has everything. Hokibo:

Simply, Hokibe lives atop Tengudake, Ishizuchi's peak. But Ishizuchi is also associated with the Shugendo sect and En no Ozuno/Gyoja, and thus Zaou Gongen, who is venerated at Ishizuchi. So in the game, the somewhat lowly Kurama Tengu is appealing to a superior tengu to contact and help summon the mountain's deity.

[milehighdad]

大権現。Daigongen.

お遍路64番前神寺。Ohenro #64 Maegamiji.

[davidmesquivel]

Ishizuchi

[merpmonde]

Yosan Line part 3: Imabari to Matsuyama

Continued from part 2. I don't have many pictures of the scenery on this section, so let's have a look at the usual rolling stock (having already covered the Joyful trains on the route).

Imabari (145 km) is a town I've already talked about somewhat. There's more I could show, but nothing within immediate reach of the train station. So here's one of the latest trains on the line: the tilting 8600 series, introduced in 2014. It shares the Shiokaze and Ishizuchi limited express services with older 8000 series trains (see below). The round face is peculiar for what's supposed to be a fast machine, but it's supposed to evoke the days of steam engines.

It uses pneumatic suspension for its tilt, which strikes me as odd given the U-turn JR Shikoku made on its tilting Diesel trains. I can only guess that the profile of the Yosan line is a good fit for this system, whereas other lines are not.

Rounding the North-West cape of Shikoku where the Imabari Shipyards are located, we reach Namikata (152 km). Actually, I say that, but the photos are actually from a train going to Imabari, so we're working backwards... Anyway, much of the Yosan line is single-tracked, and double-tracked only in stations, meaning a lot of waiting happens, even for express trains. The waits are even longer in local trains like the 7000 series pictured (and the one from which the picture is taken), as they also wait for express trains to overtake them.

Kikuma (166 km), and another wait as a swish 8000 series tilting express train races through in the other direction. Time for some stats: the Yosan line is 194 km long between Takamatsu and Matsuyama, the capitals of Kagawa and Ehime prefectures - the name "Yosan" comes from the old province names, Sanuki and Iyo, but "San'yo" would be ill-advised, as there is also a San'yô line from Kôbe to Shimonoseki (san'yô meaning the South face of a mountain range). The Ishizuchi limited express does the trip in 2 hrs 30 minutes, with an average speed of 77 km/h; you're looking at nearly 5 hours by local train, with more waits, and changes at Kan'on-ji and Iyo-Saijô.

At Matsuyama (194 km), the line splits. The old route, non-electrified and using KiHa 54 Diesel railcars, follows the coast and serves the famous scenic seaside station of Shimonada. I considered going there, but the frequency is pants: one train every 2 hours, which wouldn't be so bad if there was something to do at Shimonada other than wait for the next train. I found a window in the timetable where I could get a return trip 45 minutes after arriving, but even then, in the heat of summer, the three-hour total round trip from Matsuyama (bear in mind my guest house was at Imabari!) didn't feel worth it. I encountered the same dilemma later in the trip with the Tarumi line - spectacular as it may be, getting there with the train is, ironically, not very inviting.

So we will be using the newer, quicker Uchiko branch to reach the final segment of the Yosan line, from Ôzu to Uwajima, in the last installment of the mini-series.

[dr-iphone]

【限時免費】Steam 放送《戰艦世界：入門包：Ishizuchi》DLC ，3 月 21 日凌晨 1:00 前點擊下載永久保留

喜歡《戰艦世界》的朋友快注意！Steam 放送《 World of Warships 戰艦世界：入門包：Ishizuchi》DLC ，讓玩家能擁有日本IV 階戰鬥艦 Ishizuchi 石鎚山。從即日起至 2025 年 3 月 21 日凌晨 1:00 前，只要進入 Steam 遊戲頁面，點選「新增至帳戶」就可以把這款 RPG 製作工具永久加入至收藏庫囉！ Continue reading 【限時免費】Steam 放送《戰艦世界：入門包：Ishizuchi》DLC ，3 月 21 日凌晨 1:00 前點擊下載永久保留

【限時免費】Steam 放送《戰艦世界：入門包：Ishizuchi》DLC ，3 月 21 日凌晨 1:00 前點擊下載永久保留

[dr-iphone]

【限時免費】Steam 放送《戰艦世界：入門包：Ishizuchi》DLC ，3 月 21 日凌晨 1:00 前點擊下載永久保留

喜歡《戰艦世界》的朋友快注意！Steam 放送《 World of Warships 戰艦世界：入門包：Ishizuchi》DLC ，讓玩家能擁有日本IV 階戰鬥艦 Ishizuchi 石鎚山。從即日起至 2025 年 3 月 21 日凌晨 1:00 前，只要進入 Steam 遊戲頁面，點選「新增至帳戶」就可以把這款 RPG 製作工具永久加入至收藏庫囉！ Continue reading 【限時免費】Steam 放送《戰艦世界：入門包：Ishizuchi》DLC ，3 月 21 日凌晨 1:00 前點擊下載永久保留

【限時免費】Steam 放送《戰艦世界：入門包：Ishizuchi》DLC ，3 月 21 日凌晨 1:00 前點擊下載永久保留