Kinugawa River

The Kinugawa River runs through the gorge below Kinugawa Kan, the water clear and fast over a bed of pale stones. The river bends through the cut between the cliffs, with hotel buildings stacked along both banks at intervals. In the distance, two large ryokans rise above the trees on the far side of the gorge, both still in operation. A footbridge spans the river at the middle distance, suspended on cables anchored into the cliffs. A small concrete pump-house on the far bank houses one of the spring intakes that supplies the surrounding hotels with thermal water.

The Kinugawa River gave Kinugawa Onsen its name and its trade. Hot springs were first discovered on the river's west bank in 1691 by Numao Shigebei and other villagers; the bath was originally called Taki Onsen, reserved for daimyo and the monks of Nikko Toshogu, and opened to the general public in the Meiji period. In 1927 the Taki and Fujiwara springs were combined and renamed Kinugawa Onsen. Kinugawa Kan opened in December 1942 on the gorge above the river and operated for nearly six decades before entering business suspension in June 1999. The river has been here for longer than any of the hotels along its banks, and will outlast them.