If you’re up for incredible and unique nature activities in Japan, it’s a MUST to visit the stunning mountain sightseeing route called Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route (Arupen Ruto). This 90km route that’s commonly referred to as the “Roof of Japan” goes through the lush scenery of Mt. Tateyama in the Northern Japan Alps as it spans from Toyama City in Toyama Prefecture, up to Omachi Town in Nagano Prefecture.
Since its opening in 1971, the path comprises of several stops or stations — with Murodo Station as the highest at 2,450 meters high — and they can be traversed on various different vehicles such as buses, cable cars, and ropeways.
A lot of people actually go through Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route for days during its opening season (mid-April to November) as they enjoy the spectacular vistas of the Tateyama Mountain Range which is a part of the Chubu Sanguku National Park in Japan.
In fact, all throughout the year’s seasons, there are various hiking and sightseeing activities that can be done; however… when I made a grand tour of the Chubu region earlier this year, I only had a day left to explore the Tateyama Kurobe Alpine route so I ended up going on a quick adventure.
Basically, I started from Tateyama Station and then up to Shinano-Omachi Station in just 5 hours as I made sure to see the route’s following top 3 highlights!
» READ:
– Japan Itinerary
– Chubu Itinerary
Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route
» Snow Wall / Corridor (Yuki-no-Otani)
As the highest point on the Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route, Murodo Station features a lot of fantastic activities and views. One of the most-known attractions that it has would be the Snow Wall or Yuki-no-Otani which opens from mid-April to mid-June after months of heavy snowfall. (Doesn’t it remind you of ‘The Wall’ from Game of Thrones…?)
TRIVIA: Tateyama experiences one of the heaviest snowfalls worldwide! On average, there are about 7 meters (or 23 feet) of snow that accumulates every year, but in the area near the wall, there are times that up to 20 meters (65.6 feet) would accumulate because of snowdrifts! To expel this heavy snow, this famous ‘Snow Wall’ was then born.
Running from Bijodaira to Murodo, you will you first witness the 1km passage of the Snow Wall in the bus. Once you get off at the Murodo Bus Terminal, there is approximately a 500-meter-long section of the road where you…
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