🗺️ Keage Incline

The Biwa Canal is an artificial waterway that connects Otsu and Kyoto. Since its completion during the Meiji era, it has been in use to this day. It consists of the "First Canal," which is approximately 20 kilometers long, the "Second Canal," which is about 7.4 kilometers long, and the "Canal Branch," which is around 3.3 kilometers long. The areas of Otsu in Shiga, Yamashina in Kyoto, and Okazaki are collectively referred to as the Keage area. It has become a popular tourist destination due to the many historically significant buildings and unique landscapes found throughout. For example, the "First Phase Keage Power Station," which began operations in 1981, is Japan's first hydroelectric power station that generates electricity using general water. There is also the "Old Imperial Waterway Pump Room," which is registered as a national tangible cultural property. Among these, the "Keage Incline" is a landmark site in the area and one of Kyoto's famous tourist attractions. The Keage Incline is a sloped railway that connects Keage Wharf with the downstream Nanzenji Wharf, stretching approximately 582 meters long with a height difference of 36 meters. It has now become a historical site, but the railway tracks are still preserved, allowing visitors to walk freely along them. Nearby, there is also the tunnel "Spiral MANPO" that runs beneath the Keage Incline, and the aqueduct bridge "Suirakukaku" within Nanzenji, both of which feature many noteworthy buildings worth seeing. The sides of the railway ruins are lined with cherry blossom trees, and in spring, when the cherry blossoms are in full bloom, the view is breathtaking, making it one of the representative cherry blossom viewing spots in Kyoto.

One of the areas of the artificial canal "Biwa Lake Canal" that connects Otsu in Shiga with Kyoto. The former inclined railway site, which is about 582 meters long, retains the railway and allows visitors to walk freely. There are many meticulously crafted historical buildings in the surrounding area, making it a famous cherry blossom viewing spot in spring.