From Gifu Castle, I looked at the beautiful scenery that both Nobunaga Oda and Dosan Saito might have seen.

Gifu Castle, located in Gifu City, Gifu Prefecture, is on the top of Mount Kinka (329 meters above sea level). It is a mountain castle with a history dating back to the Kamakura period (13th century) and was once called Inabayama Castle. During the Warring States Period (16th century), the castle was the residence of Dosan Saito, known as the “Mamushi of Mino.” In 1567, Nobunaga Oda conquered Inabayama Castle of the Saito family, and when he conquered this area, the name of the place was changed from “Inokuchi” to “Gifu.” The name of the castle was also changed to “Gifu Castle,” and for about 10 years, Oda Nobunaga used Gifu Castle as his base of operations as he sought to unify the country until he moved to Azuchi Castle in Shiga Prefecture.

“Mamushi of Mino” means the mamushi (viper) of the Mino area. Mino is the former name of a country that occupies the southern part of Gifu Prefecture.

Gifu Castle

After the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600, Gifu Castle was abandoned by Tokugawa Ieyasu and the materials used for the castle tower were moved to Kano Castle. The reason for the abandonment of the castle is said to be that Tokugawa Ieyasu did not want to leave behind a castle that would remind people of the presence of Oda Nobunaga, who was aiming to become the ruler of Japan. The present castle was reconstructed in 1956, and in 2011, the area around Mt. Kinka was designated as a national historic site as “Gifu Castle Ruins. The highlight of Gifu Castle is the view of the Nagara River and the Mino Plain from the castle tower and the stonewalls from the Warring States Period (16th century).

Kinkazan Ropeway

Gifu Castle is located on the summit of Mt. Kinka. From Gifu Park at the foot of Mt. Kinka, take the Mt. Kinka Ropeway to the summit in about 4 minutes. If you walk along the promenade from the summit station, you will reach Gifu Castle in about 10 minutes. There is also a climbing course for beginners that takes about an hour.

Kinkazan Squirrel Village

When you get off the summit station of the Kinkazan Ropeway, you will find the Kinkazan Squirrel Village nearby. It is a healing spot where you can interact with squirrels. If you wear thick gloves and put food on your palm, the squirrel will eat it. The mascot character of the Squirrel Village, Lilo-chan, is very cute.

Night view from Gifu Castle tower

The night view from Mt. Kinka is very famous, and there are several viewing points such as Gifu Castle Tower and Mt. Kinka Observation Park. The night view from Gifu Castle’s castle tower is a 360-degree panoramic night view. Below, you can enjoy the glitter of Gifu city, and if the weather is good, you can also enjoy the glitter of Nagoya city. From summer to autumn, you can also see the bonfires of the Nagara River, a clear stream that flows at the foot of Mt. Kinka. These bonfires are the lights of cormorant fishing (Nagaragawa cormorant fishing). For the night view of Gifu Castle, you must use the “Kinkazan Ropeway”, so please check the nighttime business days of the ropeway.

Nagaragawa Cormorant Fishing

If you go by car, you can also enjoy the night view from “Mt. Kinka Observation Park” and “Mt. Kinka 2nd Observatory” on the Mt. Kinka Driveway. You can see the dynamic night view of the Nobi Plain from the center of Gifu City. Mt. Kinka Driveway will be closed after 21:00.

Gifu Castle and the big full moon

The collaboration photo of Gifu Castle and the big moon has been picked up by the media a lot, and it has received a lot of feedback on social media, and there are many comments that are surprised that it is not a composite photo.

If you want to shoot Gifu Castle as a “moon castle” like a tourist brochure, it is recommended to shoot from the right bank of the Nagara River away from Gifu Castle. (From the relationship with the calendar, the shooting point will move every month)

Compression effect by telephoto lens

As for why the moon looks large, the size of the moon is the same no matter where you look (in the world), but the size of Gifu Castle changes depending on the position from which it is viewed. Closer it looks bigger, farther away it looks smaller. The telephoto lens of a camera has the property of making distant objects appear larger, so if you use a telephoto lens to photograph Gifu Castle from a distance, the surrounding scenery will be compressed and you will be able to photograph the moon larger than it actually is. Images taken with a smartphone cannot be compressed, so a large moon cannot be captured.

 

Access to Gifu Castle

From Tokyo

It takes about 1 hour and 30 minutes from JR Tokyo Station to JR Nagoya Station by Tokaido Shinkansen.

From Osaka

From JR Shin-Osaka Station to JR Nagoya Station, take the Tokaido Shinkansen for about 50 minutes.

 

At JR Nagoya Station, transfer to the Tokaido Main Line (Special Rapid Service) and take for about 30 minutes to JR Gifu Station. Get off at JR Gifu Station. It takes about 15 minutes to get to the Gifu Koen/Rekishi Hakubutsukan-mae bus stop from the Gifu Station bus terminal (JR Gifu Station-mae Kitaguchi bus stop). Get off at Gifu Koen Rekishi Hakubutsukan-mae bus stop and it takes about 3 minutes to Mount Kinka Ropeway Sanroku Station. It takes about 4 minutes from Mount Kinka Ropeway Sanroku Station in Gifu Park to Mount Kinka Ropeway Sancho Station. It takes about 8 minute-walk from Summit Station to Gifu Castle.