Katakai River Course

Katakai River Course<

Course Data

Length : 19 km (11.8 miles)

Approximate time : 3hours (cycling time: 50 min)

Elevation : 207m

Difficulty : ★★☆☆☆

Course Summary

This half-day cycling course takes around 3 hours, starting in Usuda near KURABITO STAY where Sankei Nishiki sake rice is grown organically under contract for Kamenoumi Tsuchiya Brewing, then continuing to nearby Osawa where Hitogokochi sake rice is grown for Fuyou Sake Brewery. Cycle along the banks of the Katakai River, with plenty of stops where you can enjoy visiting hives kept by young beekeepers, the Kiuchi Sake Brewery in the Osawa area, and Teishoji Temple with its enchanting moss, as well as exploring the left bank of the Chikuma River with its enchanting scenery of mountains and rice fields and rich cultural heritage.

Course Map

Course Details

After leaving KURABITO STAY, make your way slowly past Usuda’s shopping street with its KURABITO FRIENDLY stores. The first stopping point is the rice fields where organic farmer Katsuji Tajima grows Sankei Nishiki, which is then used by Kamenoumi Tsuchiya Shuzo to make their Akanesasu BIO sake.

Next head toward Asama Garden, where young beekeepers collect honey made from flowers in the local area just upstream of the rice fields. On the way, you’ll climb country roads while being treated to views of the fields that line the banks of the Katakai River. Take a break at Asama Garden to enjoy a special honey-based drink and talk to the beekeepers about their work.

Leaving the garden, it’s time to go downhill toward Kiuchi Sake Brewery in the Osawa area. You’ll tour the historic brewery, then follow the Katakai River as it passes through the fields to reach the ancient Teishoji Temple with its five-story pagoda and moss-covered garden, which has long watched over farmers and farming in the Saku area.

Then you’ll return to the Katakai River, following it upstream along country roads to the farming area of Osawa, where high-quality is rice is grown thanks to the abundant river water. You’ll visit the rice fields surrounding Suwa Temple, where Hitogokochi sake rice is grown for Fuyou Sake Brewery, before returning to KURABITO STAY. And in the evening, you’ll enjoy the sake Tsukuyomi from Fuyou Sake Brewery and Akanesasu BIO from Kamenoumi Tsuchiya Brewing, both made from rice from the fields you visited.

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