Visiting the Five Togakushi Shrines on a Cub 50: Heavy Rain, Dense Fog, and the Story of the Hidden Keystone
Visiting the Five Togakushi Shrines on a Cub 50: Heavy Rain, Dense Fog, and the Story of the Hidden Keystone
2025 Silver Week
A three-day, two-night trip to Togakushi Shrine in Nagano on a Cub 50.
Total distance: 500 km. Fuel cost: 1,514 yen.
If I had made the wrong call, I probably would have turned back halfway.
Why Togakushi?
It was recommended by a designer in another department.
"I love Togakushi Shrine! I really want to recommend it to you!"
The plan started from a conversation between two shrine enthusiasts.
A year passed since then.
I finally put it into action to coincide with the September holidays.
The Choice of a Cub 50
The reason I didn't go for a 110 is simple: I don't have the funds yet.
But honestly, I don't even want to switch right now.
My current Cub runs well.
The internal specs are completely customized to my preferences,
and while it looks like just a regular Cub 50, the inside is a different beast.
A child who isn't very capable is even more endearing.
It's close to that feeling.
Even with the throttle wide open on mountain roads, it only goes 20 km/h.
Even so, it can travel 500 km.
By the way, I've even taken this Cub as far as Wakayama Prefecture.
With just 1,500 yen, I can make it as far as Nara.
It's a fuel-efficiency monster.
Because there are limitations, my judgment is sharpened.
Day 1 | Downpour at the 50 km mark
The weather started looking suspicious around the time I entered Gunma Prefecture.
Just as I felt a drop, it turned into a heavy downpour all at once.
I thought I'd put on my rain gear at the upcoming roadside station,
but I didn't make it in time.
By the time I reached the roadside station, I was soaked.
And I had only traveled 50 km.
What's more, it was almost sunny by the time I arrived.
What was that all about?
Only my spirits were dampened.
The thought of turning back crossed my mind.
But I didn't want to waste a plan I'd had for a year.
It's this sunny, so I'll probably dry off if I keep riding.
I started riding again.
I arrived at the inn nine hours after departure.
Day 2 | Altitude 1200m, feels like 5°C
Togakushi Shrine is at an altitude of 1200m.
It's about 10°C colder than on the plains.
I wore a windbreaker over my rain gear top and bottom while riding.
When I later explained the situation to an AI and asked about the perceived temperature,
it said it was 5°C by simple calculation.
I arrived at Chusha and parked my bike on the side of the mountain road.
As I was getting ready, a new Cub 110 passed by.
Nice, a 110.
Just as I was thinking that, it turned around and came toward me.
We made eye contact, so I spoke first.
Hello!
Where did you come from?
West Tokyo!
Wait, on a Cub? A 110?
It's a 50!
You made it all the way here on a 50? That's amazing!
He lives in Kyoto and apparently comes to Nagano for work every year at this time.
Does the 110 climb mountain passes easily?
Yeah, it's the best!
On my 50, even if I rev it to the max on these mountain roads, I only get to about 20 km/h...
Hahaha, is that so!
I don't even know his name.
But as fellow Cub owners, we can become friends in this once-in-a-lifetime encounter.
2km one way to the Okusha, 16,000 steps
The final visit was to the Okusha and Kuzuryu Shrine.
I passed through the torii gate and walked the 2km mountain path one way.
The first half is a gentle uphill slope.
The second half is steep enough to make you a bit breathless.
The last 300 meters or so are bumpy stairs made of stones of various sizes, and
I broke into a sweat all at once.
It reminded me of climbing Mount Fuji.
I saw a few people carrying walking sticks even though they were walking just fine, and
I realized, 'Ah, so that's why'.
The cedar trees are growing while "twisting" over hundreds of years.
There was a quiet power there that cannot be measured by human time perception.
The hidden keystone
Just before the Okusha (inner shrine), there was a spot with no signs at all.
A stone frame about 3 meters square.
It is raised about 50cm, and
it is neatly leveled with gravel.
There is a fence, and it is blocked off with a chain so you cannot enter.
It is also slightly off the main path.
At first glance, it looks like ordinary scenery.
But, when I looked at it closely, something felt strange.
It hit me.
It's a keystone. "I want you to look at the photo."
I think my brain was spinning at a furious speed.
There is a little bit of evidence for what I call intuition.
At the Geku (outer shrine) of Ise Jingu, there was also a keystone in a place with no signs posted.
Everyone walked right past it, but it was there in a small enclosed space.
Hiding something by daring to expose it to public view.
A reversal of thinking. I think it's a Japanese way of thinking.
Even when I checked the official records of Togakushi Shrine and the internet,
I couldn't find any information that there is a keystone at the Okusha.
But, it must be there.
There are things you can only understand if you come to the site.
A parent and child who were walking behind me came to that spot and
said, "What is this? There's nothing here, right???"
"I think there's probably a keystone here. Even though there's no sign."
"?????????"
"Do you not know what a keystone is? Do you know the movie Suzume?"
"Yes!!!"
"That's it."
"Ohhh!"
The art of hiding important things.
I think Japanese people are wonderful.
Day 3 | 2:15 AM, thick fog, visibility 10m
I couldn't sleep at all.
I started driving at 2:15 AM.
It started raining around Karuizawa.
It gradually got stronger, and in the end, it was heavy rain.
On top of that, there was incredibly thick fog.
Visibility was only about 10 meters.
It was cold because of the high altitude.
My raincoat had been keeping the rain out, but
the moment I stood up to refuel around 5 o'clock, rain got in through the gaps.
Even my pants were soaked.
I was so cold I felt like I was freezing.
Around 6:30, I found a laundromat facing the street.
Lucky. I'm on a roll.
No one else came in, so while I was drying my clothes inside,
a stylish old man wearing a black hat walked in.
"It's cooler and nicer today than it was yesterday!"
"I was in Togakushi, Nagano until yesterday. I'm on my way back to West Tokyo."
"Oh? Is this bike yours, young man?"
"Yes, it's a 50cc."
"You can go on a 50? My son-in-law rides a 750."
I don't even know his name.
But conversations like this stay in my memory.
He told me, "You should come to Haruna Shrine too!"
Maybe I'll go there on a day trip sometime.
I got home at 11:30 in the morning.
I took a shower, cleaned up, and
took a nap from 2:00 PM to 7:00 PM.
Since I had been riding all night and hadn't slept for a night,
I caught up on one night's worth of sleep.
The Cub 50 is constraint itself.
For this round trip, the cost of high-octane gas was 1,514 yen.
The amount of gasoline was 8 liters.
Nagano has many mountain passes, so it costs more in gas, but
if it were mostly flat land, it would cost 1,500 yen to get to Nara.
In fact, I've even ridden this Cub all the way to Wakayama Prefecture.
A fuel efficiency monster.
It ran well even in heavy rain. Thank you.
The Cub 50 is constraint itself.
But because there are constraints, your judgment is sharpened.
When to put on a raincoat.
When to turn back.
When to rest.
When to keep riding.
Travel, training, and work all share the same structure.
Designing within constraints.
That is my way of traveling.
Walk on.