I like trains, which is good because this trip involved a number of them. First, we had to get going relatively early to catch the “Thunderbird” from Kyoto to Kanazawa.
From there we needed to find and transfer to the Shinkansen, but only for a short trip to Toyama. From there we picked up the Hida Wide View Express to Takayama. More photos of this on the Takayama – Nagoya leg, but this felt like one of those “Great train rides of the World” as it followed a river up into narrow, forested valleys.
Below is Kanamori Nagachika, who built Takayama castle atop the (very steep) hill behind our ryokan. I hiked the hill to see what’s left, answer is not much and it may be reconstructions. Below are the messenger gate and main building foundations (I think).
After descending the hill I found this little shrine (?) in a pond, devoted to goddess Benten.
From here I did the Higashiyama (eastern mountain) temple trail. Local lords intended to copy Kyoto in having a line of temples along the east.
In the one above they had an exhibition of scrolls of ancient script.
Below, looking through one of the bell towers back towards the hill I climbed.
The following day we went see a collection of traditional farmhouses at the folk village “Hida no Sato”.
Out and About 