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Chubu-Sangaku NP, Gifu
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The original plan was far bigger than today’s ride: a ropeway from Shin-Hotaka over the Hotaka range to Kamikochi, crossing from Gifu into Nagano. After years of surveys, planners switched to today’s route in 1968.
Shinhotaka introduced Japan’s first double-decker ropeway gondola in 1998. Crowds had grown so dense that riders near the middle struggled to see the Alps; the extra deck gave more passengers a clear view.
At Shirakabadaira Station, Hida’s beloved hoba miso gets a playful bakery makeover: the bread is shaped like a magnolia leaf and topped with miso made with Hida-grown egoma and scallions.
Trees removed with special permission during the summit-area renewal weren’t simply discarded: a Takayama furniture maker turned them into café panels, then crafted the leftover wood into trays, boards, and coasters.
At 2,156 metres, Nishihotakaguchi Station has Japan’s highest post box for year-round mail collection. It’s called the Yamabiko Post—“mountain echo”—so your postcard can travel home from high above the valley.
When the ropeway opened in 1970, Okuhida’s hot-spring area was mainly a destination for therapeutic bathing. The operator says hotels and inns soon sprang up, helping the region grow into a wider tourism hub.
The café at the ropeway’s lower station serves tempura manju, a crisp-fried sweet that the operator describes as a Hida festival feast food. It’s a taste of local celebration before heading up the mountain.
In 2003, the first ropeway’s gondolas got a see-through “skeleton” design, chosen so riders could look down at the natural landscape of Nabedaira Plateau beneath their feet.
