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Chubu-Sangaku NP, Toyama
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Sarutobi means “monkey-flying.” The gorge near Keyakidaira is so narrow that monkeys were said to be able to leap across it—the name points to the canyon’s remarkable shape.
At Keyakidaira, a cargo-sized elevator lifts rail cars 200 m to the upper line. Installed in 1939 for power-plant construction, it solved a stretch of gorge too steep for a railway.
The line to Keyakidaira began as a freight railway for power projects. Locals rode free; tourists paid for unofficial trips from 1929, on tickets warning that safety was not guaranteed. Regular passenger service began in 1953.
Nearby Sarutobi and Mount Okukane share an unusual distinction: they are included in an area designated both a Special Place of Scenic Beauty and a Special Natural Monument of Japan.
The cliffs around Keyakidaira shelter Toyama’s only dense stand of Tsuga hemlock, a tree that usually favors warmer climates. The Tateyama range blocks winter winds, creating a mild pocket near its northern limit.
Several hot-spring spots around Keyakidaira—including Meiken Onsen, Babadani Onsen, Sarutobi Sanso and the station footbath—draw their water from one steaming source: Baba-dani Jigoku.
A cliff beside the path to Okukane Bridge is called Hitokui-iwa, or “Man-Eating Rock.” The trail is cut into its wall and curves beneath an overhang, making the rock look as if it is swallowing the walkway.
