北信温泉巡りの3目の湯：　栄村「トマトの国」

当たり？外れ？

心情的な理由から「当たり」。

と言うのは、2012年3月11日の東北地震の次の朝、栄村中心にｍ７の地震があった。その時に、日帰り温泉施設「トマトの国」の奥の山が崩れて、建物が潰される所でした。しかし、杉の木の林に守られて、建物が残りました。それでも修理は一年間ちょっとかかりました。

復興の頑張りでトマトの国を応援したくなる訳。

お湯は弱アルカリ性単純泉、無色透明、微塩味、無臭で、温度はぬるめの37℃。塩の味は分からなかったけど逆に何となく油の匂いはした様な気がする。つい最近にこの近くの松之山温泉（新潟県十日町）に行ったばかりなので、そのお湯の油の匂いの想いだけだったかもしれない。

施設は鉄筋コンクリートであまりセクシーじゃない。三角の窓から外の森が見えてユニークだな。浴場の壁にひびが入っていた。地震の関係かな？

トマトの国は食堂も宿泊施設もあり、車で3分にさかえクラブスキー場があり。

個人的に、栄村の温泉は秋山郷の切明温泉が一番好き。川の中で自然にわいてきて、自分で石をどけて浴場を作ると言うワイルドな温泉が大好き。（場所は秘湯通り、とんでもないところですが…）

しかし、地震復興で栄村を応援したい方にはトマトの国がお勧めです。

Northern Nagano Onsen Hopping Trip, stop #3: Tomato no Kuni in Sakae Village.

Was it a hit or miss?

Well, for sentimental reasons, I declare it a hit.

On March 11th, 2011, northeastern Japan was hit with a massive earthquake. At 3:59 the next morning, there was a magnitude 7 earthquake centered in Nagano Prefecture's Sakae Village. The earthquake caused a huge landslide just above the Tomato no Kuni bathhouse. Fortunately, the building was protected by a stand of cedar trees, and survived pretty much intact. It had to be closed for a little over a year for renovations, but is now once again open for business.

So in the spirit of rebuilding after the earthquake, I think Tomato no Kuni deserves 'hit' status.

Meaning 'tomato country', Tomato no Kuni's onsen water is slightly alkaline, a lukewarm 37 deg C, clear, no color, slight salt taste, no smell. That's what the brochure and signs say, but I personally couldn't taste and saltiness, and on the other hand, I detected a faint oily smell. It could have been just that I had recently been to Matsunoyama Onsen on the other side of the Nagano-Niigata border and its oily scented water was still fresh in my mind.

Tomato no Kuni's building is a decidely un-sexy ferroconcrete structure. The men's bath did have a funky triangle-shaped window that gave a peek of the forest outside. There is also a cafeteria as well as rooms for overnight accommodation. And Sakae Club Ski Area is only 3 minutes away by car.

Personally, my favorite onsen in Sakae Village is Kiriake Onsen in the Akiyama Gorge. The mineral water bubbles up naturally in the river bed, and you move rocks around to create your own bath. Very wild!

But if you're interested in helping to support Sakae Village's post-earthquake rebuilding efforts, then a sentimental dip in Tomato no Kuni's bath may be just the thing.

トマトの国 Tomato no Kuni
〒389-2702 長野県下水内郡栄村北信4413-1
Tel(0269)87-3030

当たり外れの飯山市・栄村温泉巡りの第2ヶ所：　いいやま湯滝温泉。

大当たりです！

温泉施設の世界の中で、場所を考えないで設計する事が多い。湯滝温泉は千曲川沿いの一を生かして、川のゆとりをたっぷり取り組んだ。

久しぶりに良い温泉に行ったって感じ。

説明させてください。

湯質は実は、大したお湯じゃない。単純泉の弱アルカリ(pH 8.32）で無色無味無臭。（温度はちょうど良い40℃ぐらいでした。）

でも、良いです。湯質にうるさい私にとっては湯滝温泉の第一印象は：　洒落ている。
受付の方の和服、
あちらこちらに手書きの注意書きではなくクラシックなフォントの丁寧な看板、
廊下と所々に飯山の伝統の「内山和紙」の装飾、
内風呂の千曲川の眺める大きな窓、
内風呂の地元の子供達の手作業で出来た壁画、
露天風呂の雪景色に合う庭園、
露天風呂石積み滝の湯口、
露天風呂の立派なハリを使った屋根、
拘ったメニューの食堂と川を眺めるテーブル、

どこ見てもお洒落！

言うのは失礼かもしれないけど、公社経営だととっても思えないお洒落な作り。なおかつ、大人500円と言う料金は安いか、同じ料金であるそから中の不潔な温泉施設が高いか。

飯山線上境駅から２００ｍと言う便利なアクセスだし。

湯滝温泉は長野県トップ100温泉の上位に入ると思った。

2nd stop on our recent northern Nagano hit-or-miss onsen tour: Iiyama City's Yutaki Onsen.

This was a huge hit!

In the world of day-use onsen facilities, it is really rare for the location and the architecture to take into account the setting. Yutaki Onsen on the other hand takes full advantage of its setting along the Chikuma River.

This was the first time in a while to experience A Really Good Onsen.

Allow me to explain.

First of all, the onsen water. Actually, their wasn't that much mineral content in the water. It was colorless, taste-less, smell-less, with the redeeming feature being that it was slightly alkalid (pH 8.32), and that the temperature was perfect for bathing, approx. 40 Deg C.

But that's okay. For me, a real snob when it comes to the quality of the onsen water, the primary impression I had of Yutaki was its overall classical style.

The lady at the entrance dressed in classy Japanese-style clothes.
No sloppy hand-written signs, only classy, professionally made ones with classic font.
Ample use of the local Uchiyama washi hand-made Japanese-style paper for the interior decorations.
A hefty picture-window for the indoor bath providing a beautiful view of the Chikuma River flowing by.
Murals on the walls of the indoor bath made by local school children.
A beautiful garden for the outdoor bath that looked beautiful with its covering of snow.
Yutaki's trademark 'taki' (waterfall) feature for the 'yu' to flow into the outdoor bath.
And an eating area with an elegant view of the river and the blue Yutaki Bridge and a restaurant featuring local cuisine.

Everywhere you look, classy elegance.

Located only 200 meters from Kamisakai Station on the JR Iiyama Line, access is a snatch. And with the price for adults only 500 yen, either Yutaki is really inexpensive or all the other similarly priced onsens with significantly less charm and thought are overpriced.

Not only does Yutaki Onsen make Nagano's Top 100, it has to be near the top of the list!

いいやま湯滝温泉 Iiyama Yutaki Onsen

長野県のトップ100温泉プロジェクトの調べ作業が続いています。友人のＰｅｔｅｒさんの英語の本はほぼ完成で、仕上がりの関係で飯山と栄村の温泉に行ってきました。まずは：

戸狩温泉　暁の湯　（飯山市）

戸狩温泉に日帰り施設は2つあります：　暁の湯と望の湯。
以前は自分が家族を連れて望みの湯に入ったので、全体の雰囲気を気に入った。ただ、その日は露天風呂が閉じてあって、入れなかったのが残念だった。（Ｐｅｔｅｒさんが行った時に露天風呂には入れて、トップ100だと判断したそうです。）
ただ、望の湯はスキーシーズン営業のみで、通年営業の暁の湯を掲載する様に言われたもので、今回はＰｅｔｅｒと私の長野トップ100温泉チームで入りに行きました。

その判断は？

まあ、当たり外れがある中で、

外れ！

湯質はｐＨが高い(8.50)割りに肌が思ったほどすべすべにならなかった。香りはかった。色は微黄色で、特に露天風呂の方に茶色湯花が沢山浮いていたからただの水道水ではなくて温泉だとの事は確実だ。ただ、温泉の香りがないと私には物足りないな。（ごめんね、厳しくて。）
しかし、「外れ」の理由はそれじゃない。
温度は内湯が熱め（42℃？）で長く入れなく、
露天風呂は雪のせいか、ぬるくて（37℃？）で逆に上がれなかった。でも、それは許す。人それぞれだし。（この上からの目線は何？）
何が「外れ」かというと、プラスチックバンブーが多過ぎて、尚且つ所々に割れていた事と、
露天風呂からの眺めは「山と田舎に囲まれたおらほうの湯」や「日本の原風景を思わせるのどかな田園の中の温泉」と言っている割にその噂の景色は塀でブロックされていて、
唯一見えるのは派手の激しいネオンサインでした。

アウト！

望の湯の方はその景色が見えるので、冬期間営業だけかもしれないけど、望の方はトップ100だな。

じゃ、グリーンシーズンで戸狩で温泉はどうすれば良い？
車で10分ぐらいの所に湯滝温泉がある。同じ500円なら、千曲川の景色や設備・雰囲気は完全に暁の湯よりお勧め。

（暁の湯さん、その塀は景色が見えるように工夫し、プラスチックではなくて天然な素材を使って、激しいネオン看板が丸見えの場所から移せば、トップ100になるのではないですか？）

In researching Nagano's Top 100 Onsens (it's a tough job, but somebody's gotta do it), and helping my buddy Peter finish his book on the subject, we had to fill in a few more details. Hence, a trip to Nagano's northernmost city and village, Iiyama and Sakae.

First stop: Akatsuki no Yu in Iiyama City's Togari Onsen.

In Togari Onsen, there are two day-use onsen bathhouses, Nozomi no Yu and Akatsuki no Yu.

Both Peter and I had been to Nozomi on separate occasions. I enjoyed it for its ambience, but unfortunately the outdoor bath was closed when I went. Peter also liked it enough to include in his Top 100 book. However, we got word that Nozomi was only open during the ski season, and to include Akatsuki (which is open year-round) instead.

Hence, our trip to snowy Iiyama to check out Akatsuki.

In the world of onsens, there are hits and there are misses.

Akatsuki, unfortunately, is a big miss.

The onsen water didn't have any particular smell, but it did have a yellowish tint and at least the outdoor bath had 'yu-bana' (flakes of onsen minerals), proof that this wasn't just ordinary tapwater. For me, though, lack of an onsen smell is disappointing. (Yes, I'me an onsen snob.)

But that's not the reason Akatsuki is a miss.

The water temperature was a bit too hot (42C?) for the indoor bath and, perhaps due to the snow, too cool (37C?) for the outdoor one. But everyone has their own personal preferences so I withhold judgement in that regards.

No, the reason Akatsuki is a fail is for the heaps of fake plastic bamboo used all over, and not only that, but it is noticeably cracked in places. And furthermore, there is a huge, garish neon sign towering over the bath. Akatsuki promotes itself as having a view of the peaceful countryside and mountains, but all of that is blocked by a fence, leaving the neon monstrosity as the most noticeable feature.

Use natural materials for your bath surround, change the fence so it allows views of the highly-touted picturesque countryside, and move that darn sign, and Akatsuki would make the Top 100. Meanwhile, stick with Nozomi. What about in the green season? 10 minutes down the road is Yutaki Onsen, which, for the same 500 yen price, offers a much better view (this one overlooking the Chikuma River) and has much more elegant facilities. See the next entry.

戸狩温泉Togari Onsen

９８年の冬五輪のボブスレーとリュージュは長野市の飯綱山の麓にある「スパイラル」（長野市ボブスレー・リュージュパーク）で行われた。アジア初の人工凍結コースで、現在も見学が出来る。日によっては体験もできる！

１３日にうちの子供達を連れて、スパイラルを見学しに行った。「チャレンジカップ」というボブスレー大会が開催されていたのでちょうど見れた。テレビで見るより、目の前で１２５ｋｍの速度を出しているボブスレーが通れば、刺激だ。

平成２４年度そり競技体験の予定は下記の通り

長野ボブスレー・リュージュ・スケルトン連盟
１月２６日（土）、２月２日（土）
１５００円～

長野市スポーツフェスティバル
２月３日（日）
無料

この冬はスパイラルでボブスレーやリュージュ、スケルトンの見学もしくは体験をどうぞ、来てください！

During the '98 Nagano Winter Olympics, the bobsleigh and luge events were held at a dedicated track called "Spiral". Located at the foot of Izuna Mountain above central Nagano City, Spiral is the first artificially cooled course in Asia. The venue is open for visiting for free, and several times during the year visitors are given the chance to actually ride down the course.

On January 13th, I took our kids to check out Spiral. We happened to time it while the Challenge Cup bobsleigh competition was taking place. It's one thing to watch the sliding on TV, it's an entirely different thing to feel the sled whizz right by in front of your face. Intense!

Bobsleigh / Luge / Skeleton sledding trial dates for the rest of the 2013 season are as follows:

Nagano Prefecture Bobsleigh Luge Skeleton Federation
26-Jan (Sat) and 02-Feb (Sat)
JPY1,500~

Nagano City Sports Festival
03-Feb (Sun)
Free

Spiral

長野ボブスレー・リュージュ・スケルトン連盟 Nagano Bobsleigh, Luge, Skeleton Federation
(体験Trials)

この冬に長野に来るもう一つな理由:
安曇野にある大王わさび農園でプラレールチャリティフェアが開催されています。２月１７日まで週末の休日で行われて、子供達が人気のトミカ・プラレールのセットと遊べる。うちの息子達が保育園の頃に連れて行った事があるので、大喜びだった。冬のわさび農園はまた静かでいい雰囲気。

Another reason to come to Nagano this winter:
The Daio Wasabi Farm in Azumino will once again hold its Tomica Toy Train Charity Fair. The fair runs on weekends and holidays through February 17th. When our sons were in preschool, we took them to the fair and they absolutely loved getting to play with all the Tomica toy trains.
And the wasabi fields are especially tranquil in winter, perfect for a family stroll.

大王わさび農場 Daio Wasabi Farm