【熊野川 舟下り】世界遺産の「川の参詣道」を舟で下る | Sacred Kumano River Boat Ride

【熊野川 舟下り】世界遺産の「川の参詣道」を舟で下る | Sacred Kumano River Boat Ride

Kumano River Boat Ride
– The Sacred River Pilgrimage Route Kumano River Kawafune Center Today I came to the Kumano River, the longest river in the Kinki region, which flows along the border between Wakayama and Mie prefectures. This river connects Kumano Hongu Taisha Shrine and Kumano Hayatama Taisha Shrine. This river has long been a pilgrimage route, and at the same time flourished as a river for transporting timber and agricultural products. This time, I will experience such a boat ride down the Kumano River. Today, the water level in the river is low, so we will board the boat a little downstream. Today I am going boating down the Kumano River. I’m about to get on a boat. The boat has a capacity of 8 passengers. Due to cancellations, there were only 5 passengers on this day. First, return to the Hongu side (upstream). The Kumano River has long played an important role as a “river pilgrimage route” connecting the Kumano Sanzan. The pilgrims headed south from Kyoto along the Kiiji route, heading for Kumano Hongu Taisha Shrine via Tanabe and Nakahechi routes. After visiting Kumano Hongu, they boarded a boat and headed down the river 30km to Kumano Hayatama Taisha Shrine in Shingu. They continued along the coast and visited Kumano Nachi Taisha Shrine.
This was considered the official pilgrimage route. Pilgrimage to Kumano became popular from the late Heian period. Retired Emperor Toba visited Kumano 21 times, and Goshirakawa visited Kumano 34 times. It is recorded that the retired emperors also boarded boats from Hongu Shrine and went down this river. In this way, the Kumano River was positioned not just as a transportation route, but as a “sacred road” that connected people, from aristocrats to commoners, in their prayers. In 2004, the Kumano River was registered as a World Heritage Site as part of the “Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes of the Kii Mountains.” The flow, which has not changed over time, still carries the memories of the prayers and journeys of the pilgrims of those days. From the Heian period to the Middle Ages, the boats used on the Kumano River were mainly small boats that seated 4 to 5 people. Because the riverbed was shallow and the current was strong, small riverboats were used instead of large boats. It was about 30km from Hongu to Shingu, and at the time it took about 4 hours to go down the river. The boat turns around here and heads down toward Shingu. Nabiki Stone Columnar joints are hexagonal or pentagonal columnar fissure structures that form when lava or volcanic ash cools and hardens. river cormorant Honejima Demon’s Spine It’s so transparent that you can see the riverbed. We landed at Honejima for a break. Head to the “Demon’s Spine”. Climbing the rock wasn’t that difficult. When you look at it from the top of the rock, it feels quite high. Photo shoot Tsurigane Stone
An ancient document says, “If the stone above falls, the world will end.” Rapids section from here Hisetsu Falls The Heian period boat ride is also described in Fujiwara Teika’s Kumano Gokoki. It is written that the water in the river was so strong that it seemed as if the boat would capsize at any moment. In this way, we too can relive the boat ride that Gotoba and Teika experienced more than 800 years ago. Hirujima It is said that Kumano Gongen and Amaterasu Omikami enjoyed playing Go because of the grid-like cracks on this island. Kamikura Shrine is on the other side of this mountain (Chihogamine). The boatman stopped the engine and started rowing the oar. The beautiful sound of the shinobue played by the storyteller, harmonizes with the natural and historic scenery of Kumano, and makes us feel the prayers of ancient pilgrims. Mifunejima Mifune Festival is the annual festival of Kumano Hayatama Taisha Shrine, which has a history of over 1800 years.
A race is held in which nine boats compete by going around Mifunejima three times. Finally approaching estuary in Shingu. Gongen Riverbank From the Edo period to the early Showa period, Gongen Riverbank was lined with many shops and crowded with people. Shingu Castle The Kumano Ohashi Bridge, which I crossed when I walked along the Iseji Route a few months ago, is approaching. Arrived at Gongen Riverbank near Kumano Hayatama Taisha Shrine. On the way back, we were given a ride to the Kawafune Center. Today I went down the Kumano River to Shingu. This was the only place on Nakahechi that I hadn’t passed by yet, so I’m glad I was able to come today. So, that’s it for today. Thank you for watching.

今回は、熊野古道の「川の参詣道」として知られる熊野川で舟下りを体験しました。
熊野川は、和歌山県と三重県の県境を流れる近畿最長の川で、かつて熊野本宮大社から新宮・熊野速玉大社へ向かう参詣者たちが舟で下った道でもあります。

舟から眺める熊野の雄大な山並みや柱状節理の断崖は絶景です。
語り部さんの篠笛の音色が川面に響くと、当時の熊野詣の雰囲気を感じることができます。

熊野川 舟下り
乗船料金: (大人)4,950円、所要時間: 90分、出船時刻: 10:00/14:30(1日2便)
完全予約制のため、前日までに要予約

YAMAPの記録
https://yamap.com/activities/42547676

#熊野古道 #川下り #世界遺産 #川の参詣道
#kumanoriver #kumanokodo #riverboat #worldheritage #japantravel

00:00 オープニング・川舟センター
01:03 乗船
04:08 骨嶋に上陸
06:47 昼嶋
08:03 語り部さんの篠笛
09:08 御船島
10:21 権現川原に到着・エンディング