Narrow Road to the Deep North
- 予もいづれの年よりか、片雲の風にさそはれて、漂泊の思ひやまず、海浜にさすらへ
- There came a day when the clouds drifting along with the wind aroused a wanderlust in me, and I set off on a journey to roam along the seashores...
The Narrow Road to the Deep North (奥の細道 Oku no Hosomichi) is the title of famed haiku poet Matsuo Basho's most famous work, a poem-filled travelogue through Japan's remote northeastern region of Tohoku.
UnderstandBorn Matsuo Munefusa in 1644 in the town of Ueno near Kyoto, Matsuo Bashō (松尾芭蕉) is generally regarded as Japan's greatest haiku poet, largely responsible for creating the art form with its famous 5-7-5 syllable…
PrepareBack in 1689 Basho walked the entire distance, starting in late spring and taking over five months (156 days, to be precise) for the entire journey.
The RouteBasho's original itinerary is as follows, with modern place names or major nearby cities in parentheses where applicable.
DivergePerhaps you'd like to surpass the old poet and actually reach Aomori? Or go even further to what he would have called Ezogashima?
GoThe starting point of the trip was Tokyo, today served by Haneda & Narita airports.
Stay safeThe roaming bands of Ainu bandits that Basho feared — but did not encounter — are long since gone. Now the riskiest parts of the trip are inclement weather and the mountain ascents.
Go nextThe ending point of Ogaki is 30 minutes by rail from Nagoya, a Tokaido Shinkansen stop. Nagoya is home to the Chubu Centrair International Airport.
Recommended Reading
Sources and licences
- Guide text adapted from the Wikivoyage article "Narrow Road to the Deep North" by its contributors, available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Read on Wikivoyage · Contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0