The complete listing of Chinese prototype models is below. For model reviews, please scroll below the table or click here
The complete listing of Chinese prototype models is below. For model reviews, please scroll below the table or click here
The complete listing of Chinese prototype models is below. For model reviews, please scroll below the table or click here
The complete listing of Chinese prototype models is below. For model reviews, please scroll below the table or click here
中国火车模型 Chinese Model Trains - Trip #17
Japan (Honshu & Kyushu) 2023
I had the opportunity to spend four weeks in Japan this year, right on the back of a two week railway hunting trip in far north Queensland Australia. I would have a solid two week period for myself to explore the railways and another two weeks where I would try and fit in what I could around other commitments. In this rather generous time period, I initially planned to visit three of the four main islands in the first two weeks, although soon after I started putting together an itinerary, it quickly became apparent I was trying to squeeze in far too much and I would have to leave large swathes of the country for a future trip.
My primary aims were to visit the two remaining industrial railways on Honshu island, the very scenic Tadami, Ban-Etsu and Hakubi lines, the now very rare 762mm gauge lines and some working steam trains. As steam services typically only run on weekends, everything else would have to fit in around those.
I bought a 21-day JR rail pass, and pre-booked 31 trains. I would also utilise a handful of hire cars to allow me to travel out to some of the harder to reach photography spots on various days.

After spending an agonising eight weeks plotting and adjusting my little adventure, I finally came up with the following:
-
Tokyo area
-
Chichibu Railway
-
Tadami Line (JR East)
-
Ban Etsu West Line (JR East)
-
Tobu Railway
-
Yokkaichi narrow gauge railways
-
Sangi Railway
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Tsuyama Line (JR West)
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Hakubi Line (JR West)
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Sanin Main Line (JR West)
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Ichibata Railway
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Gakunan Railway
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Fuji area
The second half of the trip was much less planned with all of my railway hunting to be done on a more improvised basis and would include Hita, Hakata and Nagasaki on Kyushu island and Wakayama, Osaka and Kyoto back on Honshu.
Japan is possibly the most railway friendly country on the planet. Most parts of the country have access close by to a railway of some sort, although in recent years there is a bit of a rationalisation happening (read culling) of some of the country’s branch lines. At first glance, Japan's railway system is incredibly complex, especially for an idiot like myself, however it becomes fairly simple to navigate with station names in English, color coded subway lines, etc. I'm anything but an expert on Japanese railways, but a very simplified and brief modern history is that the Japanese National Railways was privatised in 1987 and six JR companies were formed as a result : JR East, JR West & JR Central look after passenger services on the largest island of Honshu ; JR Hokkaido operates passenger trains on Japan's northern most main island of Hokkaido ; JR Shikoku operates passenger trains on the smaller Shikoku island underneath Honshu ; JR Kyushu operates passenger trains on the south western most main island of Kyushu and JR Freight operates freight services over all of the aforementioned companies' tracks as well as some of their own dedicated freight lines. On top of that there is a plethora of privately owned railways all over the country, some of which share tracks with the JR companies. The majority of lines run on 3'6" gauge track with the Shinkansen - or bullet trains - running on 4'8" standard gauge. There are also a handful of 762mm narrow gauge lines. Most trains are electric, with small pockets of diesels around the country, clearly being the lesser form of traction. Steam locomotives are still used for special trains and are very popular with tourists and locals alike.

Tokyo
Tadami Line
Ban Etsu West Line
Tobu Railway
Kyoto
Osaka
Yokkaichi
Fuji
Wakayama
Sanin Main Line
Izumo
Tsuyama
Okayama
Nagasaki
Hita
Hakubi Line
Honshu island is the largest island of Japan's main four islands, home to over 115 million people and the capital city Tokyo. Despite the dense population of the gigantic metropolis cities, there is still large amount of forests and regional land. The alpine regions are particularly picturesque. Honshu island has four companies looking after the national rail network - JR East, JR Central and JR West for passengers and JR Freight which operates freight services of the other three companies as well as its own freight lines. The Shinkansen trains are operated by the above companies on dedicated high speed lines. In addition to this, there are many private railways, subway systems and even tram systems.
The island of Kyushu is the western most of the main four islands. It is significantly less populated than Honshu. JR Kyushu and JR Freight operate the national railway network and there are a few private railways and Nagasaki's famous tramway as well.
September 05 - Melbourne - Tokyo
My flight to Tokyo Haneda airport direct from Melbourne with Qantas was uneventful and I arrived/departed on time on an aging Airbus A330-200. The landing at night time was definitely the highlight of the flight, with the seemingly infinite sea of city lights together with frequent lightning strikes from a large storm cell passing through. This was my second time to Japan and I am very glad I was able to fly to Haneda rather Narita airport this time around, which is much further away. I made my way through customs and got the airport train to my first hotel in Tokyo arriving around 10pm. The airport trains at this time were not particularly frequent, but I didn't have too long to wait. My hotel was the Smile Hotel near Shinagawa and I rode the train all the way to the end of the line alighting at Sengakuji station.

The Qantas A330-200 at Melbourne airport

Haneda airport express train
September 06 - Tokyo & Chichibu Railway
I had four areas in Tokyo I wanted to visit today and after getting ready and checking out of the hotel, I headed north towards the first one at Tamachi station, only a few hundred meters away from where I was staying. The weather today was very oppressive in the mid 30's (C) and hovering around 100% humidity, and although the rain was holding off, by the time I reached the road overpass south of Tamachi station, I was completely drenched in my own sweat. I spent only 20 minutes or so seeing around 40 trains in that time. There are eleven lines here and in peak time, there was never a time without at least one train on one of them.

An N700 Shinkansen train set heads out of Tokyo, seen here at Tamachi
I moved on to Yarakucho for a quick snap of a bullet train or two. This station has a large open forecourt on the eastern side. There are some cafe's which offer an even better spot, but all of these were closed. From ground level however, it is still possible to get an OK shot of the south bound trains.

An N700 Shinkansen passes through Yarakucho station
From this point I decided to drop the final two spots in Tokyo and head straight to Tokyo station to arrange my JR Rail Pass and collect all of the reserved tickets I had made online. The last time I visited Japan, some eight years ago, I purchased my rail pass voucher through a travel agency which was then exchanged at Tokyo Railway station for the actual pass. Since then, JR has made it possible to purchase the pass online and redeem for a physical pass. Although this costs 10% extra, it does enable one to pre-book tickets, rather than arrive and hope all the trains needed would still be available. This may not be a problem for most travelers, but I tend to travel with a very packed schedule with very little fat and like to have everything organised. I found I could exchange my online pass for a physical one at the JR Cafe on the eastern entrance of the station and the very helpful staff quickly had me on my way with 31 train tickets to use over the next few weeks. The JR Pass is printed on the same paper as the reserved seat tickets and it is the one that must be used to pass through gates. In fact, with all the trains I travelled on, I seldom had to present my reserved seat ticket to anyone at the ticket gates or even on the train. I decided after this was done, to travel straight up to Kumagaya to begin half a day early on the Chichibu line. My JR pass was still not going to be valid for a few days (as I had the longest pass available with 21 days and I was staying for 26, so I had to purchase my train ticket to Kumagaya separately. As a non-Japanese speaking person, I've always found Tokyo to be one of the most confusing railway stations I've visited, but I eventually found my platform and got on board a very sleek white, blue and gold W7 type bullet train for the forty minute dash north.

A W7 Shinkansen train operated by JR West arriving at Kumagaya station
After a very smooth and quick ride out of Tokyo, I found myself some 65kms north in the city of Kumagaya. I dropped my large bag at the nearby hotel for the night and headed straight back to Kumagaya station for a quick lunch at a curry house before starting my afternoon on the privately owned and operated Chichibu railway.

A 3 car 5200 series passenger train at Takekawa

A 3 car 6000 series passenger train at Kumagaya
The Chichibu railway is a unique railway in Japan, being one of only two left in Japan to have its own freight services. They also run a passenger service using various electric railcars & train sets and even have a steam locomotive for special services on Sundays. Their bread and butter however is focused on the cement plant, bringing loads of limestone from the quarry near Uramayguchi to the Taiheiyo cement plant on a spur line just east of Takekawa station, and this would be my primary focus over the next couple of days. These trains are hauled by an elderly fleet of 100, 300, 400 and 500 class Bo-Bo electric locomotives which date back to the 1950's, all of which are kept in immaculate condition. The Chichibu platforms are in the same Kumagaya station building and I decided to make use of my Suica card, rather than acquire a one way or an all day ticket.


A 500 class electric locomotive at Takekawa depot in the standard blue Chichibu railway livery
A 100 class electric locomotive #105 at Takekawa depot in special maroon livery
The weather was threatening to finally open up and as the day was already half gone, I decided to first visit Takekawa station where there was a high chance of seeing some of the stone trains. There is a pedestrian overpass here which gives good views in both directions, if not for the jungle of overhead wires! There is also a marshalling yard which typically sees an empty train waiting for a loaded one to clear the section. The line is very busy and although I was unable to find a freight timetable, there seems to be a stone train every hour or so in both directions. All stone trains I saw were single header and the standard size train comprises of twenty open top hoppers.

A 300 class electric locomotive with a loaded 20 car stone train arrives at Takekawa, prior to heading into the cement plant
I was able to photograph three freight trains in a little over an hour, as well as all the stabled locomotives in the vicinity, before the rain arrived and I had to scramble for cover. Due to this little inconvenience, I decided to travel the line to scout out some good photo locations around a number of the train stations for the following day.


500 class electric locomotives around Takekawa
My first stop was to Yorii station, where three railway companies converge. The station is managed by the Chichibu railway, but is jointly operated by the Chichibu railway , JR East (Hachiko Line) and the Tōbu Railway (Tōbu Tōjō Line). The station is very busy with arriving and departing trains from the three operators as well as the Chichibu's stone trains, however I was a little unhappy with the aesthetics, so moved further west for a brief stop at Hagure station which has a number of traditional Japanese style buildings in the immediate area.

Tobu 8000 electric train of the Tobu Railway company arrives at Yorii station
Hagure station has a very pretty island style platform with timber canopy accessed by a walk path from the station building with a bypass track for the limestone trains. Due to time constraints and the ever increasing larger gaps in the timetable between trains, I quickly moved further west to Higuchi station which is situated next to the Arakawa river.

7500 series e.m.u. in anime livery arrives at Hagure station
I spent most of my time at Higuchi station and found a road bridge close by spanning the Arakawa river. This seemed to be a good place to send up the drone to catch a few trains approaching the station away from houses (Japan has recently updated its drone laws which are now very strict). I managed to catch a pair of stone trains and a number of passenger trains here.

A loaded stone train on the Chichibu railway near Higuchi
This area is certainly not the best for still photography with lots of trees and buildings obscuring the train line, asides from perhaps around the passenger station itself, which has a timber railway station building and platform canopy plus some traditional Japanese buildings along the railway line; however it is certainly very nice for drone video. Three passenger train types were seen and another empty stone train while I was here.


#502 with an empty stone train passing through Higuchi
7500 series train at Higuchi
As the remaining light was quickly fading, I headed back towards Kumagaya with another brief stop along the way at Fukaya-Hanazono railway station, an unusually modern station outside a large upmarket shopping center. I only managed a single train here - the same anime liveried 7500 series e.m.u. set I saw earlier. I made my way back to my microscopic room in the hotel at Kumagaya, finding a nice noodle bar just outside, before reorganising my bags for the next day on the Chichibu railway.

7500 series train in anime livery departs Fukaya-Hanazono railway station
Locomotives/Trains seen :
Electric trains :
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5000 series (Chichibu)
-
6000 series (Chichibu)
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7000 series (Chichibu)
-
7500 series (Chichibu)
-
7800 series (Chichibu)
-
8000 series (Tobu)
-
231 series (JR Central)
-
E233 series (JR East)
-
E234 series (JR Central)
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E531 series (JR East)
-
E657 series (JR East)
Diesel Locomotives :
-
Various maintenance diesels (three types, class unknown)
Shinkansen trains :
-
N700 class (JR West)
-
W7 class (JR East)
Electric Locomotives :
-
DeKi 100 class (Chichibu Railway)
-
DeKi 200 class (Chichibu Railway)
-
DeKi 300 class (Chichibu Railway)
-
DeKi 500 class (Chichibu Railway)

September 07 - Chichibu Railway
Today was my first full day on the Chichibu railway and I had the added bonus of having a hire car which would prove to be an invaluable tool over the next three days. I had prebooked a small Toyota Yaris hybrid, not quite the type of car I typically use, however it was brand new and extremely cheap to run. I woke up and checked out a bit earlier than I needed to for the short walk to the Times Car Rental office near the hotel/Kumagaya railway station, stopping along the way to capture a few suburban trains and a stored maintenance train at a level crossing. Once picking up the car and going through the motions with the exceptionally friendly staff who spent around 20 minutes explaining how to use the onboard map system, I immediately turned it off in favour of Google maps on the phone, hit the ignition and a hidden concrete curb and set off down the road to my first port of call. As previously mentioned, this was my second trip to Japan, but my first time driving here. Despite my initial cautious driving style, I quickly found out that driving in Japan was not only easy, but also very enjoyable. Other drivers were always very courteous (and at times forgiving) and very civilised, in stark contrast to some other places around the globe where people have been mad enough to lend me a car.

Japanese Kai Truck with an alleged Harley Davidson

A 20 ton maintenance diesel shut down near Kumagaya
I arrived at my first photograph location after a 30 minute drive, a place high up on my list near the end of the line at Kagemori. The line continues on for another five stops for passenger trains, but is the end point for freight running. A siding curves off here and into the side of the mountains towards the limestone loading point. My first challenge, and one that would prove to be quite a common one, was finding somewhere to park the car without having to take a half an hour hike each time, but I was lucky to find a small spot with only a couple of minutes walk to catch a passenger train rolling under a footbridge.

7500 series 3 car set heads for Urayamaguchi near the end of the Chichibu Line
Mere moments later, I was taken by surprise with a limestone train hauled by 500 series #502 departing the quarry with twenty loaded open hoppers, but managed to punch out a few reasonably good shots as it silently rolled out towards the mainline, although not quite in the position I wanted to catch it. I met my first Japanese railway enthusiast here, who had far less luck than I did, by showing me he forgot to bring the batteries for his camera. Nice to know it's not only me who is used to making the same kind of mistakes! With so many spots on my to-do list however, I decided to move on as the direction of the empty trains was not particularly good against the current position of the sun and I couldn't afford to wait another hour at least for another attempt.

502 heads to the mainline with a loaded stone train for the cement plant near Kumagaya
I moved further east to Seibu-Chichibu station, where the Seibu-Chichibu line (operated by the Seibu railway) merges with the Chichibu railway, but photography here is very limiting due to the topography. I had a go at some drone videos here, and although there is a very nice horseshoe curve leading into the station, this was also very challenging as the trains are fairly fast moving. Rather than spend any time exploring this line, I headed back to the Chichibu railway in a west direction where I had spotted a beautiful steel railway bridge during the drive.

An empty stone train near Higuchi
This particular location is close to Bushū-Hino. The old road bridge, called Anya bridge, was re-developed into a somewhat bland 'park' once the new one was completed. Asides from some stone flower beds, it looks like a standard bridge with some bollards preventing road traffic from entering. It does however have one redeeming feature in the very good view point of the green steel railway bridge behind it. I stayed for a passenger train to cross over, a three car electric 7500 series train with a unique livery featuring a variety of animals.

7500 series electric train passes over Anya bridge near Bushū-Hino
From here I made my way back towards Onohara, making a quick stop on a service road opposite the large Taiheiyo Cement factory. No trains were seen here, however I did find a lone locomotive shut down. I can't find much information on this particular machine, which I assume to be a diesel-hydraulic used to shunt wagons around the yard. Its number is D203 and it has some interesting features with a weatherproof cab for a shunter on both ends and what appears to be an onboard signalling system with the signals mounted to the outside of one of the cab windows (not shown in this photo). I couldn't find anyone in the area to ask further information on it, and even if I could I doubt I could have asked in the native tongue anyway with only three words of Japanese under my belt.

Diesel #203 at Onohara cement factory

A Japanese Cormorant takes flight
A short distance away near Wado-Kuroya was another impressive steel bridge, however this has rather difficult public access and is obscured by trees and fences. For this location I had to launch the trusty drone and managed to get a couple of trains here, one being a series 5200 passenger train and an empty west bound stone train.

5200 series 3 car electric train set crosses the Yokose river near Wado-Kuroya
My next and final main location was somewhere I probably should have gone to in the morning to take advantage of the sunlight being on the correct side, Kami-Nagatoro. Kami-Nagatoro station has the usual three tracks - two for passenger trains and a bypass line for the stone trains, but is unusual being on a curve. Immediately out of the station heading south, the lines merge into one where it crosses the Arakawa River over the railway's largest viaduct. The bridge was completed in 1914 and has five tall stone, granite and concrete piers and three smaller ones which support the steel bridge spans. I had to pay for parking in this area as it is very popular with tourists, and hence well policed, and then take a five minute walk down to the water. I found a rocky area in the middle of the river, good enough to set down the camera bag and also act as a launch area for the drone, while also comfortable enough to sit on with my feet in the water, which was the icing on the cake as the weather was still incredibly hot. This place was unusually devoid of people as well, asides from the occasional tour boat full of screaming tourists as it passed by over the rapids, which allowed fair warning of any approaching train.

A loaded stone train crosses the Arakawa river
I was able to catch three stone trains here, one of which was surprisingly hauled by the railway's 100 series electric locomotive in a maroon livery which is usually used for special passenger trains if their steam locomotive is out of service. The passenger trains comprised of 7500 series and 5200 series trains. I captured most of these trains with the drone from the other side of the bridge where the sunlight was a lot nicer.

503 rounds the last curve into Higuchi with an empty stone train
As the afternoon drew on, I had to start moving onwards as I still had a three and a half hour drive north in the evening for my next hotel at Aizuwakamatsu to get through. I made two more brief stops on the way back towards Kumagaya where I would join the motorway, the first being near Higuchi station where I found a rare seemingly abandoned concrete pad near the track and I caught a pair of stone trains almost immediately with locomotives #503 and #102. Once again this wasn't the best place photographically speaking with the usual poles and trees obscuring much of the line. I also had a quick look around the other large Taiheiyo cement plant. This cement factory has a single track access which diverges off the main line between Takekawa and Aketo stations. I wasn't expecting to find any trains, nevertheless I had somehow managed to overtake #102 somewhere along the way and caught her arrival against a very spectacular sunset.

100 class electric locomotive #E102 approaches the cement factory with a loaded train near Kumagaya
From here, I had to bid farewell to the Chichibu railway. This is a fantastic line to spend a couple of days and I could have easily spent another one exploring. The drive north was fairly uneventful, but longer than anticipated. My Toyota Yaris became very emotional when I started to head towards the motorway, then downright angry when I turned on it. But after a few hundred meters, she gave me the silent treatment for the next hundred kilometers before once again begging me to take the exit off the motorway. I arrived fairly late to the "Hotel Route-Inn Aizuwakamatsu" and had a devil of a time finding a car park, but wide range of hand gestures in my armory and one of my three Japanese words, I soon had a hotel employee running around a hidden overflow car park where she found a spot for me. It was too late to find any open restaurants, but in Japan there is never a vending machine too far away.
Locomotives/Trains seen :
Electric trains :
-
5000 series (Chichibu)
-
6000 series (Chichibu)
-
7000 series (Chichibu)
-
7500 series (Chichibu)
-
7800 series (Chichibu)
-
E233 series (JR East)
Diesel Locomotives :
-
JR East maintenance diesel (class unknown)
-
D203 (Chichibu)
Electric Locomotives :
-
DeKi 100 class (Chichibu Railway)
-
DeKi 200 class (Chichibu Railway)
-
DeKi 300 class (Chichibu Railway)
-
DeKi 500 class (Chichibu Railway)
September 08 - Tadami Line

A single east bound KiHa E120 crosses the Tadami river near Aizu-Nishikata
Today was dedicated to the Tadami line, one of the most touted scenic lines in Japan. This 135km long railway line operates between Aizuwakamatsu in Fukushima prefecture and Uonuma in Niigata prefecture and is operated by JR East. It was constructed in sections between 1928 and 1971 and only reopened in 2022 after 11 years since devastating floods caused severe damage to the line, to the extent where there was much discussion about closing the line altogether. I would focus my time on the eastern part of the line between Aizuwakamatsu and Tadami, the majority of which follows the Tadami river with heavily forested mountains lining both sides.

A pair of KiHa E120's cross the Nojiri river heading back to Tadami
Variety on the line is very limited with regular trains on the Tadami line either KiHa 110 or KiHa E120 series diesel rail cars which run either solo or paired (sometimes with a mix of both types). On select days throughout the year steam services operate, but none during my time and asides from the odd maintenance train, freight is virtually non-existant. On top of that, services are not frequent, with only seven scheduled trains on the day of my visit. It turned out I had even further challenges as a large typhoon had decided to park its arse fairly close by, whipping up strong winds and frequent heavy showers. Fortunately there were breaks in the weather, however two trains were cancelled altogether and another one was terminated early at Kawaguchi station as a result.

A KiHa E120 diesel rail car crosses the Tadami river over the "Tadami bridge #1"
Still, what the line lacks in trains, it certainly makes up for with some absolutely spectacular scenery, which is equally impressive at whatever time of the year one visits. I had an early start from the hotel and by 7am after a very pleasant drive, I'd arrived at my first location at Honihara for the "Tadami bridge #1". The bridge is in a very secluded area, however a large car parking area with a cafe and information center has been built for visitors to revel at its splendor. From here a nice distant view of the bridge can be seen. As no people were around I was able to comfortably send the drone up for a closer view.

A pair of KiHa E120 rail cars approach Hayato station
I chose Hayato for my next photo point with an interesting section where, from the drone at least, one can find tunnels, bridges, the river and rock fall shelters in the one spot. I was able to catch two trains here. Ialso nearly lost the drone after it went rogue and decided to prune some of the trees on the other side of the river, supposedly inhabited by wild bears. Fortunately it recovered before it had the chance to impact the earth and I was left with some very good footage of the train as well as a good piece for the blooper reel. The road from Hayato is very entertaining where the road authority has decided to encourage obeying the speed limit by installing rumble strips on the road which vibrate a pleasant melody through the passenger compartment in the correct speed is maintained, this one being "Country Road" by John Denver. Shortly after passing this section of road, known as the Okuaizu Symphony Road, I spotted an oncoming train in the distance. As I had to create a respectable distance between myself and the train to get the photo I was after at another very secluded bridge, I made a somewhat enthusiastic U-turn and taught the poor Yaris what it feels like to identify as a KIA Stinger. By the time I hit the melody road, the soundtrack in the passenger compartment gave off a more death metal version tune than intended by the Japanese road authority. Or John Denver.

A KiHa 110 series diesel rail car departs Hayato station

A sign warning of unreasonable bears in the area
Still, I got the shot I was after (just) and I headed off to my next major location at Kawaguchi, where the heavens once again opened up. I managed to beat the train to Kawaguchi and got some nice distant arrival photos from the car window, however it soon became apparent that after 10 minutes or so when all the passengers on board started to disembark, that the train had indeed terminated here and after 20 minutes or so departed back to Aizuwakamatsu. I considered embarking on another chase and turned around to the poor Yaris, which sort of looked back at me with a rather human expression of "Please don't, daddy". As the weather was now really chucking down, I decided to wait around a bit and not too long after, the rain stopped just as a pair of rail cars arrived from the opposite direction.

An aerial view of the incredibly beautiful town of Aizu-Kawaguchi showing station area and turntable
I had a nice relaxed drive back towards Aizuwakamatsu and as I passed Aizu-Yanaizu station, noticed a preserved steam locomotive next to the main building. The locomotive is a common C11 class 2-6-4t locomotive #244 which was built in May 1943 by the Nippon Car Co., Ltd. Three factories built 381 examples of this type, making it one of the most popular classes in Japan. #244 is placed under a shelter to protect her from the elements and is in excellent condition, at least aesthetically.

Preserved C11 class 2-6-4 tank locomotive

KiHa 110 & E120 series railcars cross the Tadami river near Aizu-Miyashita
When the weather finally eased up and the sun came out, I retraced my footsteps back towards Kawaguchi for the final three hours and found a total of three more trains between here and Aizuwakamatsu. It is a shame the daily operations and weather hindered much of my exploring of the line and I even contemplated another day here, which would have meant losing my day on the Banetsu West line. In the end I stuck with the original plan and would keep a second visit for the future, possibly on an autumn (fall) visit for the vastly different colors.

KiHa 110 and KiHa E120 railcars pass through some very beautiful fields at Aizu-Sakamoto on the way to Aizu-Wakamatsu
Back at Aizuwakamatsu, I treated myself to a very nice meal at a Japanese restaurant, which was just as well as I was fast running out of tolerance for my 7/11 squid chips. Then back to the hotel to pack everything ready for an early check out the next morning.
Locomotives/Trains seen :
Diesel trains :
-
KiHa 110
-
KiHa E120
Diesel Locomotives :
-
JR East maintenance diesel (class unknown)
Steam Locomotives :
-
C11 Class (#80)
September 09 - Banetsu West Line
Another early rise in what would turn out to be my favourite day for this trip to Japan. The typhoon had completely buggered off to wreak havoc in China and I was blessed with beautiful sunshine, finally at a bearable temperature. My plan for today was to follow the Banetsu West line for as far as I could be bothered. I had already marked a number of promising photo locations on the map, and while I was happy to photograph anything that came along, the main target was to be a special steam service - but more on that later.

A pair of KiHa 110 series diesel rail cars pass over a small bridge departing from Nozawa
The Banetsu West line is operated by the JR East Railway company and runs for 175kms west from Koriyama to Niitsu. (There is also the Banetsu East line, which operates between Koriyama and Iwaki). This line, for the most part, is extremely beautiful and more accessible (read photo friendly) than the Tadami line. There is also a great variety of trains for added interest, including two types of electric passenger trains and three diesel types. Despite being a busy line, it appears to be a passenger only operation. My visit would focus exclusively on a 70+ kilometer non-electrified section of the line between Aizuwakamatsu and Tsugawa. So armed with a handful of maps, fully charged camera and drone, 4 packets of squid chips and a litre of milk, I checked out of the hotel and bundled everything into the back of the now traumatised Toyota Yaris. As soon as I turned on the ignition the female voice told me some essential information that I couldn't understand. If it thought it had a bad day yesterday...

A modern GV-E400 series rail car set departs Tsugawa

A maintenance diesel at Nozawa station
I had a couple of hours before the steam train would arrive, so headed north from Aizuwakamatsu to Kitakata station and slowly headed westwards towards the very impressive yellow steel Yamato viaduct and onwards to Tsugawa. This was not only to hunt down the diesel rail cars, but to also to do some reconnaissance for the special guest. The railway and the road follow the Aga River crisscrossing it at almost every opportunity, offering incredible views and giving plenty of options for me to stop and take photos. The railway is significantly busier than the Tadami line and I spotted at least five passenger trains on my way to Tsugawa, all being KiHa 110 series diesel rail cars.

A GV-E400 series rail car set passes over the Aga river near Ogino
At Tsugawa I still had time to duck into Lawson's to top up my drinks supply as the weather was starting to warm up and I quickly realised I would probably not have time to stop anywhere once the chase began. I found a large car park in a seldom used sporting precinct on the opposite river bank of the railway, prepared the drone and lay in wait.

C57 class 4-6-2 with the SL Monogatari appraoching Tsugawa
The train I was waiting for is known as the Banetsu Monogatari, one of a number of so called "Joyful Train" carriage sets which operate on various railway lines across the country. The Monogatari set is used on most weekends between Niigata and Aizuwakamastu and usually behind a beautiful C57 class 4-6-2 Pacific type steam locomotive, #180. Four factories produced a total of 215 of the type, with 14 examples exported to Taiwan. #180 is owned and operated by JR East and is kept in pristine condition, attracting hundreds of travelers and rail enthusiasts from around the country.

C57 #180 with the SL Monogatari crossing the beautiful Yamato viaduct
I sent the drone up and flew some distance down the river and right on time, heard a whistle off in the distance and watched a column of thick black smoke drift over the river before C57 180 came into view. The train had a brief stop at Tsugawa and once the drone was back on the ground, I headed off to the first photo location point, a road overpass with a surprisingly large car park on one side which was built for no other reason than to prevent gunzels from blocking the road on days such as today. As predicted, this spot had quickly filled with photographers who lined the narrow overpass with no footpaths. Once the train had raced through, everybody, including myself, made a mad sprint for their cars in very similar fashion to the beginning of the Le Mans race.

The return run of the SL Monogatari over the Yamato viaduct
I was able to catch the train in a couple of places before making it back to the spectacular Yamato viaduct. I arrived at my chosen location on a hill to the north east of the bridge to find a throng of photographers all in position and moved a considerable distance away to get the drone up and away from everyone. I was planning to take photographs at the same time, but soon came to the realisation that I would be better off choosing one or the other. As the train approached, the noise of the locomotive was almost drowned out by the hundreds of high speed camera shutters firing away like gattling guns.

C57 #180 approaches Kami-Nojiri
I decided from here not to follow the train as there was little chance of making it back to Aizuwakamatsu before it beat me there, so stayed in the area for its return run not too far off. For the return trip I focused on still photography. I decided to move south of the viaduct for the pass over Yamato viaduct with fairly good results, but sadly devoid of the thick black smoke she made on her eastward run.

C57 #180 with the SL Monogatari train approaching Tsugawa
I managed to follow the train and catch it at Hideya and Kanose before arriving back at Tsugawa. The steam locomotive paused at the station for around 20 minutes to take on water before heading off again and I ended with a parting drone video following it through the steep mountainous terrain along the Agano river.

C57 class 4-6-2 steam locomotive the the SL Monogatari passing a Torii gate near Mikawa
From here, I made a quick stop at Nozawa station to get some final passenger trains around the area, but only found one arrival and I called it a day from here. I now had the job of travelling southward to Nikko, about half the distance back to my starting point a few days prior at Kumagaya and I departed at 4pm. I figured a couple of hours should be ample for this journey and I should arrive at my boutique Onsen hostel at Kinugawaonsen comfortably in time for dinner. Google Maps however had other ideas and decided to send me via the most direct route in a geographical sense, rather than by time. By the time I arrived at 1130pm, I was aching everywhere and all restaurants in the area were long shut. A second squid chip dinner ensued! Despite the gruelling drive, it was far from boring. Google had sent me through three torturous mountain range roads where the top speed (even for me) averaged maybe 10kph for most of the way. Two particular sections lasted nearly an hour with the road barely wide enough for the Yaris with hairpin after hairpin and a sheer drop down either side. Rain showers were also back on offer and there was also a nasty hidden trench on one side of the road where one miscalculation would see the car beached. I imagine this route would actually be a great road trip - perhaps during the day though, rather on wet roads in pitch black darkness, being pursued by rampant hordes of killer bears while high on MSG.
Locomotives/Trains seen :
Diesel trains :
-
KiHa 110
-
GV-E400
Diesel Locomotives :
-
JR East maintenance diesel (class unknown)
Steam Locomotives :
-
C57 Class (#180)
September 10 - Nikko

C11 class 2-6-4t crossing the Daiya river bridge at near Shimo-Imaichi railway station, Nikko
After a pretty awful sleep in the hostel that shall remain anonymous, I packed up, checked out and headed off for some breakfast before making my way down towards Shimo-Imaichi station in Nikko for another day of steam trains. Nearly all steam services around Japan are run on weekends, so I had to make hay while the sun was shining.. which it wasn't. Quite the opposite, there was an annoying misty rain blowing through with low cloud cover, however there were enough little blue patches in the sky to keep me living in hope.

C11 #207 with train near Takatoku

C11 #325 crosses the Kobyakuu river
Today's steam trains were in the form of a pair of C11 class 2-6-4t tank locomotives. Of the 381 machines that were built, an astonishing 52 examples are preserved around the country. Of these, six are in operational condition and three of these work on the Tobu Railway. The steam shuttles work between Shimo-Imaichi and Kinugawaonsen stations - a distance of around thirteen kilometers. Both of these stations have a working turntable which allows the locomotives to point the 'right' way in both directions. Today's locomotives were #207 and #325. I decided to begin with some aerial video and photography and found an open park just north of the station.

C11 #207 2-6-4t near Kurihara
The Tobu railway is fairly challenging for decent photographs along the line due to the urban growth around it, as well as the over head electric lines for the regular passenger trains. The Tobu railway is very busy, even on weekends and not including the steam shuttles. As well as their own services, JR trains also pass through and there are plenty of different types on offer. I found the best areas to be around small bridges and overpasses.

JR East 253 series train crossing the Kobyaku river

A new 500 series e.m.u at Takatoku
C11 #207 was the first train out of Shimo-Imaichi with a train of three crimson carriages and a small caboose that remained behind the locomotive at all times. The steam trains don't operate particularly fast and I was able to catch it a couple of times up to Kinugawaonsen. C11 #325 had a similar consist, but her carriages were blue.

A 500 series train set passing replica Mt. Rushmore in an abandoned theme park
I enjoyed a total of seven workings of the steam shuttles from a number of spots along the line. By far the best being the steel bridge spanning the Kobyaku river between Ōkuwa and Shin-Takatoku stations. From certain spots it is possible to see a replica Mount Rushmore located in an abandoned theme park which provides a somewhat interesting backdrop!

C11 #207 crosses the Kobyaku river
I could have quite happily spent more time here, however the time had come for me to relinquish the Yaris back at Kumagaya, so carefully set Google up and double checked the 90 minute travel time would actually be 90 minutes. The Yaris once again protested my directions, but I think we were both at the stage where we didn't really care what the other one thought of each other. Close to Kumagaya station, I found a service station to refuel the car. This was a first time event for me and after a very confusing 5 minutes of my life, eventually figured out the pumps were self service and the cashiers refused to accept payment, rather guiding me to a robot to stuff my hundreds of Yen to watch it excitedly spit back some change at me and exclaiming what I perceived to be some sort of thank you message.

A pair of ancient Baldwin/Westinghouse USA built electric locomotives in a crane hire company near Kumagaya
As I drove out I noticed a crane hire center with a pair of ancient Baldwin/Westinghouse electric locomotives against the fence. I don't know if these were for hire as well, but given their age I would assume not. From my research they have been sitting in the same spot since 2005 and were previously painted blue, but are now in a cream and orange livery to match the company's crane fleet.

C58 class Pacific 4-6-2 steam locomotive #363 returns nearing the end of her daily duties on the Chichibu railway
I made it back to the car rental center at Kumagaya and quickly emptied out all the squid chip packets littering the carpet. They were very happy with my punctuality in its return with the full tank, but shocked to find I had added over 1500 kilometers in a little over three days I had it, effectively doubling its mileage. From here, I made it back to Kumagaya station for lunch at a lovely curry house on the concourse before entering the platforms using my JR Rail Pass. My Shinkansen train was to depart from the upper platforms, however there was still plenty of time for that and as Kumagaya is a very busy line, I was treated to nearly an hour of freight and passenger trains. The biggest surprise was a C58 class 4-6-2 steam locomotive returning to Kumagaya after a busy day of service on the Chichibu line.

Series E257 train set ready for departure from Kumagaya

W7 class Shinkansen flies through Kumagaya
Very soon I was on my way back to Tokyo which took a little less than an hour with no stops on a very new W7 type Shinkansen. On arrival at Tokyo, I immediately headed to the platform for my train to Nagoya, this one in the form of an N700 type Shinkansen Hikari (stopping service). I still had one more service to catch, a local train to Yokkaichi on board a 313 series electric set with very comfortable club seating. Seats in my car were reserved ticketing, and despite being less than half full, the conductor was almost militant in keeping these seats free of weary standing commuters at all costs. I arrived at Yokkaichi in the late evening after quite a long day. Once again nearly everything was closed by the time of my arrival, however I was happy to find a 7/11 still open for some quality dinner (and I'm not being sarcastic with that remark either, as experienced Japanese travellers will agree that 7/11 has a huge variety of extremely good meals!). I checked into the quite comfortable "Yokkaichi City Hotel Annex" where I would base myself out of for the next couple of days and once all the equipment was back on charge, gobbled down a delicious still piping hot eel and rice dinner before I started counting sheep.
Locomotives/Trains seen :
Electric Trains :
-
100 series (Tobu)
-
253 series (JR East)
-
E257 series (JR East)
-
313 series (JR West)
-
500 series (Tobu)
-
20000 series (Tobu)
-
N100 series EMU Spacia X (Tobu)
Electric Locomotives :
-
Baldwin/Westinghouse (Class unknown)
-
200 Series (Chichibu)
Shinkansen Trains :
-
N700 (JR West)
-
W7 (JR East)
Steam Locomotives :
-
C11 Class (#207 & 325)
-
C58 Class (#363)

September 11 - Yokkaichi

A map of the Yokkaichi showing some of the railway lines in the area that I would visit
I had a couple of days in the area around Yokkaichi with a number of goals to achieve in this short time. There are a number of very unique and interesting railways around here, including the bulk of Japan's remaining 762mm narrow gauge lines including the Yokkaichi Asunarou Railway Utsube Line & Hachiōji Line and the Sangi Hokusei railway. The main draw card of the area for me was the Sangi Railway's 3'6 gauge line which was built as a freight line to haul train loads of cement to Tomida. As it seemed I would yet again be dodging thunderstorms, I decided to hit the three 762mm gauge passenger lines today and leave the more promising forecast for the next day on the Sangi line.

A 762mm gauge train arriving at Kintetsu-Yokkaichi railway station
I had a couple of days in the area around Yokkaichi with a number of goals to achieve in this short time. There are a number of very unique and interesting railways around here, including the bulk of Japan's remaining 762mm narrow gauge lines including the Yokkaichi Asunarou Railway Utsube Line & Hachiōji Line and the Sangi Hokusei railway. The main draw card of the area for me was the Sangi Railway's 3'6 gauge line which was built as a freight line to haul train loads of cement to Tomida. As it seemed I would yet again be dodging thunderstorms, I decided to hit the three 762mm gauge passenger lines today and leave the more promising forecast for the next day on the Sangi line.

1+1 seating design

Driver's control stand in the trailer car
These railways have become very popular with railway enthusiasts in recent years, especially thanks to their tiny interiors, having a 1+1 seating arrangement where it is possible to touch both sides of the interior with outstretched arms. They are very quiet and have exceptionally comfortable seats.

A Yokkaichi bound train arrives at Hinaga station
The Yokkaichi Asunarou Railway's 762mm gauge lines begin at the Kintetsu-Yokkaichi railway station, which is situated around 1km to the west of the JR Yokkaichi railway station. These lines were owned until fairly recently by Kintetsu who, after years of poor financial results from the lines, threatened to close them and replace them with dedicated bus routes instead. The local government decided to acquire them in 2015 and fortunately we still have them with us today. The lines were built between 1912 and 1916 and in 1943, a 750v DC over head power system was installed.

A pair of trains meet at Hinaga station

Gauge display at Hinaga station
The Yokkaichi Asunarou Railway has two lines; the major route (Utsube line) extends southwards for nearly 6 kilometers and has eight stations. The Hachiōji line is a shorter spur line that branches off the Utsube line at Hinaga and has only one stop 1.3 kilometers away at Nishihino.

Three car train with one of the blue cars heads for Yokkaichi having just departed Utsube
The trains are all 3 car sets which comprise of a powered motor car with driver cab, unpowered trailer and unpowered trailer with cab. The railway has five train sets with motor cars numbered from 261 - 265, trailer cars 181 - 185 trailer cars with cabs 161 - 165. All trains were painted in a cream and green livery, except for one in a blue livery, however it appears all the train sets have been chopped and changed around and the blue set is now spread amongst three sets.

A train arriving at Nishi Hino station in heavy rain
I was able to use my Suica card for these lines and made my way to the platform. My train was arriving at the same time and once the driver had changed ends, we were off to Utsube. I disembarked at Hinaga at the junction for a quick ride down the Hachiōji line and back. A heavy rain shower thwarted my intentions of getting out for some photos, however the photo locations along the line are very limiting anyway, so headed back to Hinaga and continued back down to Utsube on the next train.

Nishi Hino station entrance
I noticed a handful of open areas along the way close to Utsube station, so jumped out at the end of the line and took a short walk to get some photos of the next couple of trains. Everytime a train approached however, the rain would start up and then miraculously cease as soon as it passed. I managed a couple of shots while juggling a rapidly deteriorating collapsible umbrella. Finally the big rain arrived and I had to take refuge under a small shelter next to a house until it blew over. Once back at the station, I had a quick look around the train depot and maintenance area.

A three car train set near Utsube

A three car train near Ogoso
I had enough time to visit the lavatory, a separate building next the main station building. It just so happens, that the little orange ball at the end of the thin rope isn't the flush function after all, but is actually an emergency response alarm. The flush button turned out to be next to this emergency rope that had a nice little helpful label in English reading "Flush". I suspect a foreigner may have made this mistake before which would warrant a random English only sign. Rather than stick around for the ambulance, I quickly washed my hands with the carefully labelled taps and vacated the area. I figured explaining myself to the station master with my standard go-to three word Japanese vocabulary about why my actions led to the summoning of a paramedic van wouldn't have really been particularly constructive, and besides, he was far too busy pounding on the toilet door to engage in a game of charades with me.

A 5200 series Kintetsu train at Kintetsu-Yokkaichi railway station
I spent an agonizing 5 minutes huddled down in the rear carriage of the train on the platform before departure time and decided now would be a good idea to move on to the Sangi Hokusei line. This railway is some distance away, so once back at Kintetsu-Yokkaichi station, I boarded a Kintetsu train heading north to Kuwana. The 762mm gauge Sangi Hokusei line begins at the Nishi-Kuwana railway station adjacent to the Kintetsu-Kuwana station and heads north-west into the country side.

A train arrives at Nishi-Kuwana station

Typical interior of a train on the Sangi Hokusei railway
The line is the longest of Japan's four remaining 762mm gauge lines, running a distance of just over 20 kilometers and like the other Yokkaichi 762 gauge railway, operates on 750v DC. The line speed is 45kph and there are 13 railway stations. This railway line was previously owned by Kintetsu, but taken over by the Sangi railway in 2003. Unlike the Yokkaichi railway however, much of this line runs through rural areas so there are plenty of places where one can photograph the trains. Having said that, the distances between these spots and the station can be challenging without a car. There were a couple of such spots I would leave until tomorrow because of this.

A pair of trains at Sohara station
Fortunately it seemed the worst of the weather of over and the sun was starting to poke through. This railway is certainly a lot busier than the Yokkaichi lines. Trains are fairly frequent and all the ones I rode on were reasonably full and packed beyond capacity by the mid afternoon when schools finished for the day, releasing hundreds of students all vying for a spot on the next available train home.

Train passes the Shimokasadahachiman Shrine near Sohara station
The trains are similar in formation to those at Yokkaichi with a powered motor car, trailer and cab/trailer, although many of the trains have now increased to four cars with the addition of an extra trailer. The motor cars are much longer than the trailers. Most trains are in the standard yellow and orange livery, with one set painted in a black & orange advertising livery. I also found one motor car still in the original teal/cream livery at the train depot near Toin. To maximise space, the carriages have side mounted thick padded bench style seating, leaving a lot more standing room than standard seating carriages would be able to offer.

Preserved 220 type in small museum next to Ageki station
Right next to the last station on the line at Ageki, I found a narrow gauge museum, albeit closed. The museum has a 220 type electric rail car #226 which was built by Nippon Sharyo in 1931. It served for 52 years until withdrawal in 1983, and was subsequently brought here to be preserved in 2008. The museum has a small 80 meter section of track with a turntable at one end. There is also a loop of track of a smaller gauge which partially shares the 762mm gauge section. Inside the shed there is a smaller train set and self propelled cars for visitors to enjoy on open days.

Trains crossing at Nanawa station

Train in advertisement liver approaching Ageki station
I slowly started heading back to Kuwana making stops at Toin and Sohara on the way back to take some more photos before heading back to Yokkaichi for dinner. As the rain had now completely stopped, I decided to do some night time exploring around Tomida on the off chance I wouldn't have time to visit the next day.

Platforms at Tomida station

DF200 class locomotive with cement train at Tomida
From the hotel, I walked to the JR Yokkaichi station to take a local train north a couple of stops. Tomida is also the end of the 3'6" gauge Sangi line and as soon as I was off the train, found a DF200 class #206 diesel-electric tri-bo freight locomotive departing with a train of loaded cement hoppers from the Sangi railway. A pair of the Sangi's ED45 class electric freight locomotives, #452 and 453, were shut down in the small yard here along with a lone cement tank car. After spending some time taking a few night photos of these and of the numerous 313 series passenger trains arriving and departing, I headed back to Yokkaichi to turn in for the night.

ED45 class locomotives #453 and #452 shut down at Tomida
Locomotives/Trains seen :
Electric Trains :
-
220 type electric motor (#226)
-
762mm gauge 3 car set, class unknown (Yokkaichi Asunarou)
-
762mm gauge 3 or 4 car set, class unknown (Sangi Hokusei)
-
313 series (JR West)
-
1400 series (Kintetsu)
-
5200 series (Kintetsu)
-
6000 series (Kintetsu)
-
12410 series (Kintetsu)
-
21020 series (Kintetsu)
-
80000 series (Kintetsu)
Electric Locomotives :
-
ED 45 class (Sangi)
Diesel Locomotives :
-
Maintenance Diesel, class unknown (JR West)
-
DF200 class

September 12 - Yokkaichi

A 751 series electric train crosses the Uga river at Misato
Today was dedicated to the exploration of the Sangi railway, including a brief revisit to the Sangi Hokusei railway from the day before. After checking out of the hotel, I was taken by a very nice elderly gentleman in a beautifully kept black Toyota Crown taxi to the Times Car Rental office to pick up my next car - another Toyota Yaris, although this time not a Hybrid version and much older than the previous one.

Aerial view of the large cement factory at Higashi-Fujiwara. The mainline runs through the center
The Sangi cement railway has been in operation since 1928 and was built as a dedicated cement railway. Passenger services commenced in 1952 and these passenger trains have expanded significantly in the past 20 years. The line was electrified in 1954 with 1500v DC power supplied to the trains by way of an overhead catenary system. The railway is mostly single line with passing loops at the 12 of the 14 stations. The main rolling stock depot is based at Hobo, about half way down the line. The cement factory is located at Higashi-Fujiwara, three stations from the end of the line and this is transported to the Japanese national network at Tomida. Passenger trains take a slightly different route at the eastern end of the line, terminating at Kintetsu-Tomida.

A variety of some of the Sangi railway's rolling stock
The Sangi owns at least nine ED45 electric locomotives, all in a brown and yellow livery. All cement trains seen during the day were run with a pair of these machines with #'s 452 & 453 and 451 & 457 being the four operating units. There are three types of passenger trains operated which appear to be run in pairs or multiple sets of paired units. There are four types in service, all acquired from the Seibu railway over a 20 year period from the late 1980's. These are classed as the 101 series (ex Seibu 401 series), 751 series (ex Seibu 101 series) and the 801 & 851 series (ex Seibu 701 series). Most of these train sets were built in the 1960's. The standard livery for passenger trains is orange and yellow, however one 101 series set is in an interesting teal and cream livery.

ED45 class electric locomotives #453 & 452 with a loaded cement train appraoching Hobo
From Yokkaichi, I headed straight to the large cement factory at Higashi-Fujiwara near the end of the line. Higashi-Fujiwara station is next to a marshalling yard used for shunting cement wagons into the large cement factory a little further up the line. I found a retired cement wagon preserved in the car park, a type that has long since retired. There were no freight trains in the yard, although a 101 series train passed through heading to Nishi-Fujiwara at the end of the line, so I decided to follow it up there.

Nishi-Fujiwara railway station

Retired locomotives on display at Nishi-Fujiwara station
Nishi-Fujiwara is quite an interesting railway station with all the buildings shaped like Japanese steam trains! On the disused side of the platform is a collection of old locomotives no longer used by the railway. One of them is an old Baldwin/Westinghouse electric steeple-cab locomotive built in 1925 and wears the Sangi railway's standard brown/yellow livery. It is numbered ED 22 2, one of a number imported to Japan in the 1920's and 1930's. A 2950 class 2-6-2t steam locomotive numbered E102 is on the same track and was built for the railway in 1931 by Kisha Seizō. There is also a twin-axle diesel hydraulic locomotive devoid of any identifying marks, numbers or manufacturer details in an orange and cream livery. Next to the station is a sizeable miniature railway.

A pair of ED 45 class locomotives shunt at Higashi-Fujiwara

Rail yard and station area of Higashi-Fujiwara
I waited around for the departure of the passenger train; a twin set with car #'s 103 and 104 and caught it again at the next station down at Nishinojiri. Once back at Higashi-Fujiwara, a cement train had arrived with some large white cement hoppers and I was able to get some good photos of the ED45 class electrics #'s 452 and 453 - the same ones I had seen the night before at Tomida - before they disappeared into the cement works.

B4 class 4-4-0 steam locomotive #39

ED457 & 451 with an cement train near Nyugawa
I then headed further east to Nyūgawa where I found another small railway museum. This was shut, but many of the exhibits are located outside anyway with easy access. Here I found two locomotives, a diesel-hydraulic twin axle locomotive #DB101 and 5650 class (or B4 class as this example is, from The Tobu Railway) steam locomotive #39, a 4-4-0 built by Beyer Peacock in 1897. The diesel is a 1957 120hp machine which has no relation to the cement railway, but was sent here to be part of the museum. I am unsure of the origins of the steam locomotive, but it is one of seven survivors of a class of 99 built. As well as these two locomotives are a large number and variety of retired freight wagons from ancient box cars and tank cars to a modern Schnabel type 12 axle wagon which is designed to separate in two halves to enable the transportation of power station generators. During my time here, a west bound empty cement with one smaller black cement hopper and six larger white type passed through behind E45's #457 and 451 as well as a 751 series passenger train.

A loaded cement train heads for Tomida, seen here near Nyūgawa
Not too far away, I found a great photo spot at the Mie Prefectural Road 140 overpass showing the mountains in the background. Despite there being a lot of low level cloud, I was still very happy with the results and I waited around for three trains - a pair of cement trains and a pair of passenger trains with a 3-car 801 series and twin unit 101 series train.

Four car train set on the Sangi Hokusei railway near Ohda
As the photo spots I wanted to visit on the Sangi Hokusei line was very close by at this point, I took a quick detour to get these, finding a nice open field section with a nice dense forest background between Ageki and Sohara. I was able to get some good drone footage and a handful of decent photos of a pair of 4-car passenger trains before heading back to the Sangi line.

ED 457 & ED 451 rolls through Hobo

A stack of pantographs
I picked up on the Sangi line at the locomotive depot where I found ED 45 class locomotives #'s 454, 455, 456, 458 & 459 all shut down next to the road. With good afternoon sunshine finally bursting through, I was finally able to get some very high quality photos of these locomotives. They are all in incredible condition, especially given their age - a testament to the workers who keep them going. A few passenger trains were also found in the yard as well as a maintenance train and other track machines. Just as I was about to head out, both of the working cement trains passed through Hobo, a great send off to a very fulfilling day.

801 series rail set at the rolling stock depot near Hobo
Time was running out for me to make it back to the car rental office, so I had to start my journey back, taking the long way around to pay a very quick visit to the huge railway bridges owned by JR West and Kintetsu companies that span the Ibi and Nagara rivers near Kuwana. These rivers are separated by a very thin strip of land, big enough for the road and parking spots are quite difficult to find, but I managed to find a patch and get some snaps of the passing trains before calling time and heading back to Yokkaichi.

A pair of twin unit 313 series electric rail cars cross the Ibi River near Kuwana
After filling up with petrol, with my new petrol filling skills from the other day, I got back with 10 minutes to spare. The lady was very kind to offer me a lift to JR Yokkaichi station to save me the 40 minute walk with my bags and with some newly found time up my sleeve, was able to enjoy a large number of freight and passenger trains around the station before catching a local service back to Nagoya followed by a Shinkansen Hikari service on board an N700 to Okayama. As this train would arrive late, I bought a very nice meal from the kiosk on platform for dinner to eat on the train, promising myself to have a proper sit down meal the next night - although this was actually very good in itself, if a little pricey.

DD200-2 in the freight yards atYokkaichi

DF200 diesel with cement train at Yokkaichi station
On my arrival at Okayama, I headed to the "Toyoko Inn Okayama eki Nishi guchi Migi hotel" which just so happened to face the railway station and the train depot filled with KiHa 40 series rail cars for the Tsuyama line, where I would spend my time on tomorrow. The depot wasn’t particularly well lit for my photos, but thankfully the 'Great Pumpkin' karaoke club next door occasionally sent out some interesting luminance for me to get a few snaps.

One of the Tsuyama Line's KiHa 40 series railcar #2049 in special livery Sakubi Sakura parked in the depot at Okayama
Locomotives/Trains seen :
Electric Trains :
-
101 series (Sangi)
-
751 series (Sangi)
-
801 Series (Sangi)
-
851 series (Sangi)
-
762mm gauge 3 or 4 car set, class unknown (Sangi Hokusei)
-
223 series (JR West)
-
310 series (JR Central?)
-
313 series (JR West)
-
6000 series (Kintetsu)
Diesel Trains :
-
KiHa 40 series (JR West)
-
Ise type III (Ise)
Electric Locomotives :
-
ED 22 class (Sangi)
-
ED 45 class (Sangi)
Shinkansen Trains :
-
N700 (JR West)
Diesel Locomotives :
-
Maintenance Diesel, class unknown (JR West)
-
Maintenance Diesel, class unknown (Sangi)
-
Shunter diesel, class unknown (Sangi)
-
DB class (Sangi)
-
DD200 class (JR Freight)
-
DF200 class (JR Freight)
Steam Locomotives :
-
B4 Class (#39)
-
2950 Class (#E102)


September 13 - Okayama, Tsuyama

Bullet train viewed from hotel window with Okayama railyards below
Today I headed inland to travel on and around the Tsuyama line out of Okayama. I had intentionally done very little research on this line, apart from my first photo and drone location. I was totally reliant on using public transport today, all covered with my JR Rail pass. So after taking some daylight photos from my hotel window, headed off for a very quick breakfast and supply top up and headed for Okayama station.

KiHa 40 series rail car arrives at Kamenokō

A pair of stabled KiHa 40 series rail cars at Tsuyama
The Tsuyama line was completed in 1898 and is a single track railway line, apart from passing loops at stations, of which there are seventeen. It runs from a distance of around 60 kilometers. JR West operates the line using a fleet of aging KiHa 40 series and more modern KiHa 120 series diesel rail cars which typically run in pairs. I was looking forward to seeing some KiHa 47 series trains, but these appear to have been retired from the line as none were found during the entire day. The KiHa 40's seen were all painted in standard solid red livery, apart from one which wears a more traditional and much more attractive red/cream livery. There was also a single car rail car seen back in the depot at Okayama wearing in a pink Sakubi Sakura livery, I suspect something to do with cherry blossoms. This particular unit never moved out of the yard so may be reserved for special services. Freight doesn't operate on the line, however the sheer beauty of the area makes up for this as does there being no overhead power lines to get in the way.

KiHa 40 series railcars approaching Makiyama railway station
My first stop was only four stations out of Okayama, at Makiyama. The station precinct is good enough in itself to take photos, however I had found a small section just north of the station with a series of step-up rice fields along the line which I thought would make a good drone video. This required a 10 minute walk out of the station and crossing the Asahi River by the not-overly-complicated-named "Okubozanteisensuihodo Bridge", which is only for pedestrians and bicycle traffic.

Rice fields in the mountains near Makiyama
When I arrived, I was correct that this would be a drone only exercise and I had a good 20 minute wait until the next train would come through, so I spent the time photographing a pair of beautiful large eagles close by on the power lines. (For all the animal welfare aficionados, my drone is a very small and quiet DJI mini 3, which was flown away from and completely ignored by the birds). I got a couple of very nice videos from this location and then when I arrived back at Makiyama, took a train all the way to Tsuyama. This was a very relaxing and pleasant journey cutting through the country side in nice weather.

Japanese Golden Eagle

Crossing the Asahi river at Fukuwatari
Tsuyama, also known as "Little Kyoto" is famous for its castle, shrines and museums – including a large railway one, of which I had absolutely no idea existed about until I arrived (pinky promise). I noticed the roundhouse as the train arrived into Tsuyama itself along with a large number of diesel railcars in the yard in front of it so decided this is where I would go. Tsuyama is a large railway junction town with the Tsuyama line to Okayama, the Imbi line to Tottori and a major stop about half way along the Kishin line which runs from Niimi and Himeji.

C11 class 2-6-4t #80 at Tsuyama railway station

View of Tsuyama railyard with roundhouse in background
Immediately outside the station I found a preserved C11 2-6-4t steam locomotive #80 and I quickly stopped into the 7/11 for some cold drinks before walking on to the round house, which takes around 10 minutes. As I approached I noticed a lot of posters on the wall showing steam trains and thought maybe I would be able to get inside to see it, and moments later as I entered the driveway to find this major museum was open. After purchasing a ticket, I found myself outside the front of the round house with nearly every stall occupied by a steam or diesel locomotive or railcar. Some of the exhibits can be walked through.
The list of exhibits seen are as follows :
-
KiHa 28 series d.m.u. #2329 (1964)
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KiHa 33 series d.m.u. #1001 (1978)
-
KiHa 52 series d.m.u. #115 (1965)
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KiHa 58 series d.m.u. #563 (1964)
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Kiha 181 series d.m.u. #12 (1969)
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DD13 class diesel-hydraulic B-B #638 (1967)
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DD15 class diesel-hydraulic B-B #30 (1964)
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DD16-300 class diesel-hydraulic B-B #304 (1972)
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DD51 class diesel-hydraulic B-B #1187 (1977)
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DE50 class diesel-hydraulic C-B #1 (1970)
-
DF50 class diesel-electric B-B-B #18 (1958)
-
10t diesel hydraulic shunting diesel B (1974)
-
D51 class steam locomotive 2-8-2 (1936)


KiHa 181 series (left) & KiHa 58 series (right) diesel rail cars
The museum has a large N scale model railway with a very high degree of automation and a large double story building next to the roundhouse which is packed with railwayana artifacts from signalling equipment, uniforms, locomotive number and factory plates, etc.

D51 class 2-8-2 steam locomotive in roundhouse, Tsuyama

Many trains in Tsuyama roundhouse

DD50 & DD16-300 class diesel-hydraulics
From the museum, it is possible to see directly into the railway yards which are still used today, where I found a large number of KiHa 40 and KiHa 120 diesel rail cars awaiting their next duties. The museum itself, being a weekday was fairly quiet asides from a school group passing through, although I did meet up with a nice American couple touring the museum.

A pair of KiHa 40 series rail cars accelerates out of Tsuyama
After spending a considerable amount of time at Tsuyama, I decided to return to Okayama with a stop on the way at a peculiar station I had passed through earlier, Kamenokō. The station building here is in the shape of a large turtle, because why not? Apparently Kamenokō means 'turtle shell' and is named after a large rock close by that resembles this.

Turtle themes railway station building at Kamenokō

KiHa 40 series rail cars in nice two tone livery at Kamenokō
Kamenokō also has a lot of open fields away from the town, so I fired up Google maps and found a spot with a good view of the railway. After a few trains, the searing heat was getting a bit much and with no shelter, I headed back to Kamenokō station and continued on to Okayama.

Aerial view near Kamenokō with KiHa 40 series railcars passing through
Once back at Okayama with a couple of hours of daylight remaining, I thought maybe I should try a different location so after a very quick search on Google earth, picked out a place on the San-Yo line heading east from Okayama and boarded a KiHa 115 series e.m.u. train which seemed to be heading in the right direction. I seemed to have chosen the correct train, as 30 minutes later I arrived at Mantomi station.

A pair of three-car 115 series electric train sets cross over the Yoshii river and head towards Okayama
I had noted to the east of here was a large curved bridge spanning the Yoshii river. This was within walking distance, although the heat was still a bit on the warm side and I was starting to wear out from all the walking I had been doing during the day. Had I maintained a faster pace, I would have just made it to see a container train racing over the bridge, and in the remaining light I was only able to catch a few different passenger trains, all of the yellow KiHa 115 series electric trains or the KiHa 187 series diesel railcars. Soon the mosquitoes had found a new target and after performing a slappy dance for 5 minutes trying to deter them, I retreated back to Mantomi station. Another container train rolled through, but unfortunately my camera couldn’t be bothered working at the critical moment. My train back to Okayama was on board another yellow KiHa 115 series electric train set and I immediately headed out for some well earned dinner.

An amusing statue at Okayama station

Okayama tram near Okayama-Ekimae station

Street view of restaurants, Honmachi ward, Okayama
Again, being completely ignorant and not researching Okayama, I was delighted to see the city has its own tram system which runs directly to the main railway station. I decided to walk anyway as I figured in such a vibrant city I would find a place to eat that would catch my eye. I eventually came across an Italian restaurant - and yes, I know - I'm in Japan and should go local, however once I spotted a stone oven through the window and immediately missing my typical carb-packed diet, I gave this place a shot. Without any exaggeration, I can honestly say this was the best pizza I have ever had in my entire life - and those who know me will know that this belly has seen probably more pizzas than it should have. I had to walk through the train station to get back to the hotel and here I found a statue that had been the subject of one of James May's hilarious "Man in Japan" TV episodes (which can be found on Youtube).

Locomotives/Trains seen :
Electric Trains :
-
115 series (JR West)
-
223 series (JR West)
Diesel Trains :
-
KiHa 28 series (preserved)
-
KiHa 33 series (preserved)
-
KiHa 40 series (JR West)
-
KiHa 47 series (JR West)
-
KiHa 52 series (preserved)
-
KiHa 58 series (preserved)
-
KiHa 120 series (JR West)
-
KiHa 181 series (preserved)
-
KiHa 187 series (JR West)
Diesel Locomotives :
-
DD13 class (preserved)
-
DD15 class (preserved)
-
DD16-300 class (preserved)
-
DD51 class (preserved)
-
DE50 class (preserved)
-
DE51 class (preserved)
-
Shunter Diesel, class unknown (preserved)
Electric Locomotives :
-
EF210 class (JR Freight)
Shinkansen Trains :
-
700 (JR Central/West)
-
N700 (JR West)
Steam Locomotives :
-
C11 class (#80)
-
D51 Class (#2)
September 14 - Hakubi Line
I was very much looking forward to today, despite the crap weather that was proving to be constantly following me around. Today was my opportunity to spend some time along the Hakubi railway, which links The southern coastal city of Okayama which crosses the country to the northern coastal city of Izumo over a distance of 138 kilometers. This railway is over a hundred years old, completed in 1919. Today the entire route is electrified with 1500v DC and is a mix of dual and single track sections. The southern portion generally follows the Takahashi river with mountains on both sides, so it was obviously going to be a very beautiful part of the world - which it is, however as an even bigger draw card for me was my first and last time to see the very classic 381 series trains which were due to be retired only months later. There was also potential for a large variety of trains, with at least nine other types seeing regular service on this line.


Freight trains are very frequent at Kurashiki, these two seen within 10 minutes; EF210 #11 (left), EF66 #119 (right)
Due to the larger distances and not wanting to be held hostage to the train timetables again, I rented another car from Times Car Rental, but had to get to the next station out of Okayama (Kurashiki) for a much better deal and far less stress than driving out of Okayama itself. I also had to check out of the hotel this morning and didn't like the idea of lugging all my bags around with me as well. I took a morning local train to Kurashiki and arrived significantly earlier than I needed to at Kurashiki, but I was more than happy to stay on the platform here to see a huge amount of trains, including freighters that seemed to pass through every 10 minutes or so, however my target train was certainly the one that stole the show with 381 series Super Yazumo train making an appearance. Being able to find these classic Japanese trains is becoming harder every year and it truly amazing that such a busy line still sees them.


381 series 'Super Yakumo' arriving at Kurashiki
I arrived at the car rental office a minute before opening, and true to Japanese efficiency, the door opened right on 9am. The poor chap working the counter was genuinely upset that the photocopier refused to print out a receipt and although I desperately wanted to get a move on, it was somewhat of a spectacle watching him try and get it going. Once I had the rental agreement and an immaculate hand written receipt in my possession, I was presented with a very clean little Mazda and I had exactly 7 hours and 40 minutes in which to exercise its full potential.

IRT 355 series rail on the privately owned Ibara railway crossing the Takahashi River at Kiyone
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It was quite easy for me to self navigate out of Kurashiki and minutes later found myself just outside my first stop at Kiyone. There is a private railway that branches off here and heads west to Kannabe over an incredible steel and concrete viaduct spanning the Takahashi river. The truss secion of the viaduct is around 700 meters long, however most of the entire railway is raised off the ground and continues on over a concrete viaduct as far as the eye can see. I found a parking spot at a disused soccer ground off the main road and waited around for a train to cross, which eventually appeared in the form of a single IRT 355 Series DMU rail car. A couple of fast moving yellow 115 series electric trains also passed by on the Hakubi line and I was quickly back on the road to find a spot for the first 381 series train to pass by.

One of the most beautiful trains in Japan - the 381 series Super Yakumo
I soon arrived at Hiwa, which lies just off the National Route 180 main road. Hiwa is a small town nestled in a small valley. Here, the railway exits a tunnel for around 500 meters for Hiwa station before entering another tunnel. I was able to get some good drone footage of a northbound 7-car 381 series train arriving, but certainly not the greatest spot so moved on after a short delay where I hadn’t noticed the traffic lights leading back onto the main road were on an interesting manual set up.

381 Series crossing the Ukan River at Kinoyama
I managed to get in front of this particular train, which was surprising as these trains operate upwards of 120kph, much faster than the speeds I was able to attain at this particular point in time. I hadn’t intended on chasing it, but shortly after I arrived at my next stop of Kinoyama, so did it. I had just enough time to catch it over the steel bridge entering the station.

A 4-car 381 series train at Kawamo
Unfortunately the rain had now arrived so I moved further up the line to Kawamo and found a another nice looking concrete/steel railway leading into town, even with a nice little (unofficial) car parking spot nearby where I could an keep an eye on things while waiting for the latest heavy shower to blow over. I only found a single KiHa 115 series train from Niimi roll by and as the minutes rolled by, gave up on this spot and moved on to the other side of the town. This turned out to be an excellent choice and just as the rain finally ceased, a 4-car 381 series train rolled over a bridge in front of me.

North bound 4-car set crossing the Takahashi river north of Kawamo
Next stop was at a very small somewhat isolated hamlet just south of Hokoku, linked only by a small road bridge crossing the Takahashi river. I was able to catch another yellow KiHa 115 series trains here and quickly moved to Hokoku station itself, which is quite similar to this little place - another single bridge crossing the river from the main road. There was a maintenance train parked up here, and the (unmanned) station itself is a very beautiful traditional style. Given the size of this town only, very few passengers use this stop.

18t maintenance diesel at Hokoku

Hokoku railway station
I missed a 381 series passing through Ikura, thanks to roadworks, so followed the road as far as Niimi. Niimi is quite large and an important railway junction about half way along the Hakubi line. It is also the terminating location for the JR West Kishin (Niimi-Himeji) and Geibi (Niimi-Hiroshima) lines. Due to the suburban nature and almost non-existantcar parking situation, I decided to head back south from here as I had passed a number of very promising photo locations on the way up.

Aerial view of Ikura with 2 car 213 series electric rail car set crossing the Takahashi River
I had a quick stops back at Ishiga for a 381 series arrival and then Ikura where I finally had time to get the drone up to catch a pair of diesel rail cars fly through. Ikura has a lot of potential for photography with good vantage points of the railway line & bridge at the southern and most industrious part of the town with towering cliffs all around.

EF64 #1020 with short container train at Kawamo
I was tempted to stay put, until I missed a south bound freighter roll through while packing up. This prompted me to just throw everything on the back seat apart from the camera and drone which rode shotgun with me up front. The Mazda did a good job getting me back to Kawamo in good time, apart from the slow part around the road works and I made it in good time back to the bridge. I had also managed to shake off the ever threatening rain and soon EF64 #1020, a superb tri-bo electric locomotive in an interesting white and blue livery came past with a somewhat disappointing load. I have a particular affection for these beautiful machines being very similar in design and closely related to the 6K class locomotives I found working in China many years ago.

381 series 4-car set along the Takahasi River near Hirose
Moving on further south, I found a rare recess in the main road just south of Hirose and began to set up the drone for what I thought would make an interesting piece of drone footage. While still in the car the Japanese police pulled up behind me, so I popped the drone under a plastic bag and pretended to look like I was doing some important navigating business on Google maps. I wasn’t exactly sure what they wanted, possibly a welfare check but I had my international drivers license ready for them and as he approached my window, I unleashed my barrage of Japanese vocabulary beginning with “Hai!” (yes), “Nandeska?!” (What is this?) and “Arigato gozaimas!” (thank you). One of them had the giggles and had to retreat back to the car, while the other decided to engage, telling me many things that I couldn’t understand. The only thing I could think to do was whip out a page of emergency translations I had printed for times like these. I quickly scanned the paper for something intelligent to say, but ended up asking for directions to the local KFC and after five minutes of pointing and gesturing towards Okayama, followed by some hand movements towards the cliffs above, I finally figured out he was referring to possible rock falls. They left after they were satisfied I knew how to acquire some fried chicken and once they were out of sight, I sent the drone up to catch quite an amazing 5 minute video of a 381 series train snaking its way through the valley.

115 series electric train south of Hokoku

Tail end drivers cab of the 381 series Super Yakumo
Before long, I was back to Kawamo station and decided to get some more photos of from the bridges here. I managed two trains, a north bound Niimi limited express with a yellow KiHa 115 series electric train and the fabulous Super Yakumo, a 381 series train in a one off purple livery. This train also has a streamlined rear cab, almost resembling an observation car.

JR Freight EF64 #1047 Tri-Bo electric locomotive with a container train at Bitchū-Hirose
My final spot on the line was at Bitchū-Hirose station where I found a north bound freight train passing through with another EF64 locomotive, this time in standard solid blue livery, with a container train. A pair of KiHa 115 series electric trains also made stops, one of which was an much less common one of the class having being built from recycled passenger cars. This type has quite a distinguished appearance with a much more square-front than their more pure siblings.

Standard KiHa 115 series

Later version KiHa 115 series train set
I had a great run out of Kurashiki, butgetting back proved to be much more problematic with heavy traffic and an unusually high amount of slow drivers, mostly in Subaru’s. I’m not sure what it is about Subaru drivers I encounter all around the world? Anyway, I finally made it back after topping up the tank and allowing the brakes to stop smelling, before driving the car back to the car rental office a few minutes after closing time where I found the same clerk who was overjoyed at my arrival. Not because I had finally decided to bring the car back, but so he could present me with a crisp printed out receipt that he had obviously being waiting all day to present me. I had a quick dinner here, knowing that everything would be closed after my late arrival into Izumo. From Kurashiki, I boarded my train, which of course I had booked to be a 381 series train which whisked me up towards Izumo.

DD200 class Diesel-hydraulic #10 at Kurashiki

381 series train interior
The train ride to Izumo was very nice, too bad it was all in darkness, but I could make out a few of the places I had visited along the way. These 381’s are very quiet. The seats are incredibly comfortable and the cabin was meticulously clean. It is hard to believe they are at the end of their (well earned) service life as they are better than many of the much newer and modern trains I have travelled on in other parts of the world. Notable rail traffic, other than the typical commuter trains seen were a DD200 class diesel roll past with a container train (just prior to departure from Kurashiki), the Sunrise Izumo sleeper train near Niimi, which I would shortly ride on, and a number of EF64 electric freight locomotives at Hoki-Daisen. My hotel was the very comfortable Izumo Dormy Inn, the closest vacant one I was able to find to the railway station.

Locomotives/Trains seen :
Electric Trains :
-
115 series (JR West)
-
213 series (JR West)
-
381 series (JR West)
Diesel Trains :
-
355 series (IRT)
Diesel Locomotives :
-
DD200 (JR Freight)
-
Maintenance Diesel, class unknown (preserved)
Electric Locomotives :
-
EF64 class (JR Freight)
-
EF66 class (JR Freight)
-
EF210 class (JR Freight)
September 15 - Sanin Main Line

A lone KiHa 120 diesel railcar near Hamada
Today would be used to explore the San’in mainline, one of the railways I had always wanted to visit after seeing many photos showing a busy line with large viaducts and freight trains hugging the coast. I had booked a car with Times Car Rental again, with another small white Mazda compact car to zip around the country side with.

KiHa 187 series rail car at Orii station on the San'in mainline, north coast of Honshu
The San’in mainline is the longest in Japan, covering just over 675 kilometers from Kyoto to Shimonoseki, the farther point west on Honshu island, with 157 stations in between. There are no trains that run the entire distance, however, and the railway appears to be split up into five distinct sections. I would focus on a 130 kilometer section between Izumo and Masuda. Although I seemed to be covering less ground in very packed days previously, I was able to utilize the motorway and travel, legally, at much higher speeds than before. Despite this, I took the slower coastal road on the way down to Masuda, which follows the railway line a lot closer and would enable me to make quick stops along the way if needed.


KiHa 120 rail car at Orii
Railway traffic on my chosen line seemed to be unfortunately very light. Freight trains have run on this section in the past, but only during times when other lines were temporarily closed, so none were seen. The only trains found during the entire day turned out to be single unit KiHa 120 diesel rail cars for local services and twin car diesel KiHa 126 & 187 series railcars for express trains.

KiHa 187 series diesel rail car set at Iwami Fukumitsu
There was no rain forecast over the next couple of days, however the sky today was particularly gloomy with patches of low cloud. On the way out of town I spotted the train depot home to the 381 series trains next to Izumojinzai railway station, but didn’t stop here and continued on to Tagi, around 15 kilometers west of Izumo. Although I found a nice bridge crossing the Tagi river estuary, I couldn’t get a good vantage point of it and due to the extremely narrow busy roads with no parking available, I continued onwards.

KiHa 187 series railcars near Yunotsu
I decided to bypass Isotake and Nima and head straight for Iwami-Fukumitsu where I was able to catch a fast moving KiHa 187 train heading for Izumoshi. With no scheduled trains passing through for another half hour or so, I moved on to the city of Gotsu. Gotsu was the terminus location for the for the Sankō Line until 2018 when JR closed it due to poor patronage - a great shame as this is a particular scenic line which would have been well worth a day in itself, even though it too saw very light traffic in recent years.

Express train approaching Gotsu crossing the Gonokawa River
I found a good position on the bank of the Gonokawa river near a double deck road bridge which gives a good view of the rail bridge. The bridge itself is over 400 meters in length and comprises of six small girder sections and five 200’ truss sections. Unfortunately the center arch was undergoing works so was mostly obscured by scaffolding, but I was able to find three trains crossing with 45 minutes – a single KiHa E120 railcar, an express KiHa 187 series twin railcar set and a KiHa 126 series twin railcar set.

A KiHa 126 series rail car set departs Gotsu for Izumoshi
My major goal was next, the small town of Orii. Orii has one of the best viewing locations on the line. Just west of town is a rest stop which has a restaurant and some other small shops as well as a nice garden with outdoor seating giving a view of the railway line. From this point, the line exits a tunnel and curves around towards Orii with the beach in the background. On a sunny day, this is a superb location. In gloomy weather such as today, not so much – but still good enough to wait for a few trains nonetheless.

A cheerful railway sign at Orii viewpoint

Lunch time at the restaurant at the Orii viewpoint
I found three services during my time here, all single car KiHa 120 series diesel railcars and I even had enough time to tuck into a hearty lunch of Katsu curry while waiting. As no one was around, I was also able to get the drone up for some shots from the usually unseen side, by flying out over the water.

A kiHa 187 series express train near Masuda
Izumo to get the car back. While I was ultimately able to reach the office before closing time, I decided to use the cars satellite navigation system, rather than trust my gut instinct. For some reason the Mazda decided it wanted to visit its birth city and send me down a toll-road towards Hiroshima, rather than what it was told to do. Once I was on, I had no choice but to drive to the next available exit, almost 20 kilometers away, to retrace my steps back towards Hamada. To say the car was severely punished for its insubordination for its insolence was an understatement. After returning the little Mazda back at the car rental office, and now in darkness, I headed straight for the railway station which was very close by to see if I could find anything on the platforms. The same 7-car 381 series that had brought me to Izumo the previous evening was just arriving. A KiHa 120 series rail car was already readying for departure back to Masuda. After all this excitement, I pulled out my emergency communication sheet to ask for directions for the local KFC for tea.


Trains at Izumo station ; 7-car electric 381 series train (left) & KiHa E120 series diesel rail car (right)

Locomotives/Trains seen :
Electric Trains :
-
381 series (JR West)
Diesel Trains :
-
KiHa E120 series (JR West)
-
KiHa 126 series (JR West)
-
KiHa 187 series (JR West)
September 16 - Hōki-Daisen, Yonago & Izumo
I woke up to a glorious bright sunny day and after checking out of the hotel, stowed the bags and headed straight to Izumo train station. I decided to head to Hōki-Daisen first to get a photograph on the Sunrise Izumo train, Japan’s last remaining sleeper train and the same one I would be catching later that evening to get me to Fuji. Hōki-Daisen station is located in the large coastal city of Yonago, around 65 kilometers east of Izumo, where the Hakubi and San’in railway lines separate. I could have taken a local train here, but decided to catch an express 381 series train while I had the chance. The benefit to this was there were only five stops, as opposed to fourteen.

381 series train arriving at Izumoshi station

Mini irrigation channel in the streets of Kaya with locks
I began the walk through Kaya to my chosen location around a kilometer away near some small rice fields adjacent to the railway line. It was barely 8am, but the temperature was already soaring and I was very happy to make it in good time to set up. I got the drone up to scout around, but due to the severe sun glare and no shade, I was unable to make out the train as it came towards me. By the time I realized it was only meters away, I decided to ditch the idea of getting a substandard video and went for the camera instead, getting a decent going away shot in full sun.

The Sunrise Izumo passing through Hōki-Daisen
Back at Hōki-Daisen station, I was quite amazed at the amount of trains passing through the station with at least seven different types seen. Most of these were made up of local services with the majority of them being diesel or electric railcars.


Trains at Hōki-Daisen station ; 381 series (left) and EF64's 1024 & 1034 plus 187 series railcars on the platform
I was very happy to see some more 381 series trains pass by, but the highlight was definitely the JR Freight EF64 class electric locomotives. These electric locomotives run on 1500v DC power and ride on three twin-axle bogies, a good design for mountainous routes (i.e. lots of curves). Two of them were present, #1024 shut down and #1034 shunting flat cars around the small container yard. 132 of these very handsome machines were built from 1964 until 1982. The two I found here were from the later batch, known as the EF64-1000 series. Small pockets of these locomotives can be found in some parts of Japan, however the majority of the class has been withdrawn from service, making it a real treat to see. Their age doesn’t seem to show, as these two looked like they were fresh off the factory floor. I have never seen freight locomotives in any part of the world maintained to such a high standard.

EF64 class locomotives #1024 and #1034 at Hōki-Daisen
Before heading back to Izumo, I took a local train to Yonago railway station for around half an hour. Like Hōki-Daisen, Yonago is also a junction station being the originating point for the short Sakai line north to Sakaiminato. Yonago station has six platforms connected by overhead walkways. To the south is the main depot for locomotives and rail cars. There is a very large freight rail yard a short distance south of the station, which looks like it has lost its importance altogether as it was completely devoid of any rail wagons when I passed through.


Snow plough at Yonago
Being very spoiled for choice for different trains to photograph, I started with the rail depot where I was able to take a lot of photos from the station platform with the assistance of my telephoto zoom lens. One of the most interesting pieces I found was a new self-propelled diesel-hydraulic snow plough. I haven’t been able to obtain a class or model number for this machine, but have found it is one of three built and measures 27 meters in length with a weight of 56 tons. It was also about as useless rubber lips on a woodpecker on a day like today.

DE10 class C-B diesel-electric locomotive

KiHa 126 series railcar set arriving at Yonago
I was also very happy to find a DE10 class locomotive. The DE10’s were quite numerous with 708 units being built over 12 years from 1966. There were six sub-classes built during the production run with various upgrades. The one at Yonago, #1058, is a 1970 built DE10-1000 version. They are rather unique compared to many other diesels in Japan running on C-B bogies, i.e. one three axle bogie and one twin axle bogie. They also had steam heating fitted for use on passenger trains. The locomotive yard had a wide variety of diesel passenger rail car types as well including KiHa 40’s 47’s, 126’s and 187’s. At least five of the class KiHa 40’s and 47’s were painted in different liveries celebrating Japanese anime “GeGeGe no Kitarō”. These very colorful rail cars ran in pairs with two different sets seen in operation serving the Sakai line and a fifth unit was found shut down in the yard.