Sawayama Castle Ruins - Hikone

Rather than visiting castles, climbing mountains. There is a toilet, a parking lot, and a volunteer guide's station in front of the mountain trail on the Ryotanji side, and you can get a map. I'm a little nervous because I climb through the temple grounds or the grave. I heard that there are monkeys on the way, but there were quite a few groups so don't stimulate them. The view from the summit is very good, and you can see Hikone Castle perfectly. There are almost no remains, and there are really a few stone wall traces left. This stone wall trace was also a place that you would not know at all if the place was an individual, so if you really want to see it, I think you should ask a volunteer guide at the foot, the guide is very kind from the explanation of the history around here He did it. As others have written, the mountain trails are not well maintained, so wear sneakers that you are accustomed to wearing. You also need insect repellent.

Climb from the graveyard behind Ryutanji. Due to the private land of Ryotanji Temple and Seiryoji Temple, the courses that can be visited are limited. The original castle town seems to be on the east side, so this course is a back door.

It is a mountain that even beginners can easily climb The monkey is a little annoying I visited Mt. Benten → Mt. Monosei → Mt. Benten → Mt. Sawayama Castle Ruins in this order. The view from the top of the Sawayama Castle Ruins is very good Hikone Castle is also perfect There were many maples on the top and the autumn leaves were beautiful ?

On the way back from Hikone Castle, I came by car to the site of Sawayama Castle, which was the residence of Mitsunari Ishida, in late June on a sunny weekday. (The arrival time was past 1 o'clock.) I didn't do much research in advance, so I was in trouble. I found out when I went there. ① It is difficult to know where the entrance is. Since there are no buildings such as the castle tower, I didn't know where to enter, and as a result, I asked the government office to tell me the entrance. I have attached a photo, but there is a free parking lot in front of Ryotanji Temple where about 15 cars can be parked. From the parking lot, there are entrances to the Sawayama Castle Ruins, toilets, and bamboo canes used for mountain climbing (a mountain road that lasts for 20 minutes). I made a mistake with the Sawayama Center (meeting hall?) And the ground, park, model? I parked at the place where Sawayama Castle is located. I think that the navigation and Google map settings are good at Ryotanji Temple. (If you set a Google map at the Sawayama Castle Ruins, it will be more difficult to understand) For details, please refer to the photos taken and arranged. ② Thin long sleeves, water bottle, easy-to-walk shoes If you go through the tomb next to the temple, you will find a complete mountain path. There are only enough roads for one person to pass along the way, and my feet are not good. It is safer to prepare comfortable shoes that you are accustomed to wearing and those that allow you to stop and rehydrate on the way. Insects are also flying, so please be careful. I think it would be even better if you bring an insect repellent. Also, it is not recommended for those who have a chronic illness on the knees or lower back or who are not feeling well. It's not as much as climbing, but I felt it was difficult to climb up and down. ③ The top is beautiful with a good view. I didn't look around the details, so I don't know, but since it's a castle ruin, there aren't many things to see, of course. However, when I looked around from the top where the castle tower would have been, I could see rice fields and Lake Biwa, and I thought that Sansei would have felt very good. If you like Ishida Mitsunari, you should definitely climb it. for your information.

I have also attacked many mountain castles and 100 famous mountains, but this mountain castle is ridiculously dangerous. It's not like going after Hikone Castle. As the name suggests, it is a hiking course up to the Honmaru ruins on the mountaintop, and is for at least intermediate climbers and above. The mountain road is only about 50 cm wide, and there are steep slopes without stairs in some places, so there is a sufficient risk of slipping down. However, it is not the case that the road is full of weeds that are not maintained at all. Proceed from the entrance in front of Ryotanji Temple, 15 minutes up and 10 minutes down (in the case of high pace). After the death of Nobunaga, it became Hideyoshi's residence, and until the Battle of Sekigahara, Mitsunari Ishida was the lord of the castle. After the battle, Naomasa Ii became the lord of the castle, but when the castle tower of Hikone Castle was completed, the Ii family moved to Hikone Castle and was abandoned. There are only two community buses in the morning, go along Sawayama-dori from the east exit of Hikone Station, turn right when you see the overpass of Prefectural Road 518, go under the railroad track under the underpass, and then follow the narrow sidewalk along the railroad track in about 15 minutes. Access to the entrance of the hiking course.

I tried to climb from the steep slope behind Ryotanji Temple on weekdays, but I passed through the mossy tombs from the end of the Edo period to the Meiji period, and there was no pavement or temporary stairs with bamboo on the way. You will be going up a steep slope. Unfortunately, I was frustrated because I was tired from sweating, I was worried that GPS might disappear due to the power of my cell phone being turned off, and I thought it would be difficult to get off the road on my way home. .. Since it was a weekday, there were no people in the information, so how many minutes would it take to reach the summit? Where is the comfortable entrance? I couldn't even hear the information. It was said that there is an easy way, but on my Google map, the easy way to climb will pass through private land (a house with a splendid gate with a nameplate), so go from there. I didn't. Overall, there were few guides and signs for tourists, and it was difficult to understand the climbing point, so the hurdle was high. Maybe Saturday and Sunday are different. I didn't bring the rental wand to the unmanned information, but I should have brought it now ... I think it's convenient to have it when you go down a steep mountain slope. I tried to climb around 2 pm, but I think it's better to have less mental anxiety in the morning.