Mini Travelogue | Hikone (1) Hikone Castle

Departing from the west exit of Hikone Station first thing in the morning!

The bronze statue in the Hikone Station square was Ii Naomasa. He was the first lord of the Hikone Domain and was apparently favored by Ieyasu for his achievements.

From here, I headed straight to the castle along the 'Ekimae Oshiro-dori' (Station Castle Street). I arrived at the castle entrance in just 10 minutes on foot.

The moat has come into view. Hikone Castle still has its inner and middle moats. The outer moat was apparently filled in after the war for malaria control and turned into a road (Showa Shindo).

There was a stable just inside the Sawaguchi Gate. Since it is an Important Cultural Property, I took a look. It was a large L-shaped building that looked like it could hold about 20 horses.

I discovered a high-ranking notice board here!

I didn't know that Hikonyan was a relative of the beckoning cats at Gotokuji Temple in Setagaya. Gotokuji is said to be the family temple of the Ii family in Edo. It is said that when the lord stopped by this temple at the invitation of a cat, he was able to avoid a thunderstorm. A lucky cat.

Leaving the stable behind, I cross the inner moat.

I purchased a 3-location set ticket at the main gate and climbed the main gate approach.

After touring the inside of the Tenbin Yagura, I headed toward the Taiko-mon Yagura.

And after passing through this turret, I finally arrived at the main keep of Hikone Castle!

The keep has three stories and very steep stairs. I did my best to climb them, thinking back to the year 1607.

Since I had been climbing steadily to get here, I felt a modest sense of accomplishment.

And I was relieved to have safely descended the keep's stairs. But the castle is vast. Next, I'll head to the West Bailey.

Unfortunately, Lake Biwa was hazy and couldn't be seen from the three-story turret.

But with this, the castle is cleared. Now I will descend the Kuromon approach. The inner moat below is my destination.

It took about an hour and a half from the station without any breaks. Since Hikone Castle has many highlights, I plan to spend another three hours exploring after this. I still have a lot of walking to do.

Next time, (2) Rakurakuen Garden and Genkyuen Garden.

[Postscript]
For the overall map of Hikone Castle, the map from the Hikone Tourism Association was easy to understand.

I walked the route from Hikone Station -> Map points 1 to 8 -> Nishinomaru Triple Turret -> Kuromon Bridge.