The Iwami Ginzan World Heritage Silver Mines

Inside the Ryugenji Mabu mine shaft.

The vast quantity of silver mined from the Iwami Ginzan Silver Mines in the mountains of Shimane Prefecture's Oda City once made Japan the world's third largest producer of silver. The mines of Iwami were in continuous production from the Sengoku (Warring States) Period in the 1520s, all the way up until the beginning of the 20th century when Iwami could no longer compete with mines elsewhere in the world. The Iwami Ginzan Silver Mines were granted the distinction of World Heritage Status in 2007. Despite the fanfare, Iwami Ginzan is both remote and not well known. I was fortunate to stumble across a small advertisement for a day trip to Iwami Ginzan in a travel brochure. Because of this overall lack of awareness, tourism facilities near the Iwami area are just now being developed. The lack of awareness also results in a lack of crowds which makes a visit to Iwami all the more enjoyable. Even more good news for foreigners, many of the museums and sites in Iwami offer a foreigner discount of up to a 50%! Just show your passport or alien registration card.

The entrance to the Okubo-Mabu.

     Iwami makes a perfect day trip for anyone staying in Matsue. Get an early morning train (I recommend the 7:18am local train ¥1110/one way, or the 8:36am Super Matsukaze ¥2260/one way non-reserved) from Matsue to Odashi Station. An express train will take just under an hour, a local train about an hour and a half. Try to get to Odashi before or after the 10 o'clock hour because there are no buses to Iwami during that time. Once in Iwami, the most interesting things to visit are the mine shafts themselves. Known as "Mabu" (間歩) in Japanese, there are 2 that you can go into, the most well advertised of which is the Ryugenji-Mabu (龍源寺間歩). Located all the way at the top of the road in the town of Omori, Ryugenji-Mabu is 2.3 kilometers (1.4 miles) from the Omori bus stop. You can walk or rent a bicycle at the bus stop (¥500 for a regular bike, ¥700 for an electric assisted bike). Show your passport or alien registration card at the Ryugenji-Mabu ticket office and the regular ¥400 ticket will cost you just ¥200! Mined mostly in the period before the introduction of dynamite, the developed part of Ryugenji-Mabu goes back 158m (~518ft) into the side of a mountain before turning left and exiting through a tunnel dug in the 20th century to make the mine tourist friendly. The mine's tunnel continues another 90m (almost 300ft) past this point, but it narrows in both width and height. The rock further back is also unstable. There are several smaller side tunnels and narrow rooms along Ryugenji-Mabu's main shaft - many of which are large enough to go into - that were created when the veins of silver were dug out of the mountain. In addition to the historic environment, the 60 something Fº temperature inside Ryugenji was a great way to beat the fierce summer sun. For the slightly expensive price of ¥3800, one can tour the other mine shaft open to tourism, the Okubo-Mabu (大久保間歩). The tours are conducted by the World Heritage Center (in Japanese only though English pamphlets are readily available) and admission is limited to four tours a day, 9:30, 10:30, 12:15, and 1:15, weekends and national holidays only. The Okubo-Mabu was continuously mined from about the middle of the 1500s until the beginning of the 20th century making it one of, if not

The remains of an ore cart track in the Okubo-Mabu.

the longest operating mine in the area. It is also much larger then Ryugenji and functionally undeveloped. You will have to wear boots and a helmet, and carry a flashlight while touring this mine. In addition to making you feel like a real miner, the Okubo-Mabu is a living history lesson. The walls of the mine have two different textures as a result of the different methods used to mine the tunnel. The Pre-Edo/pre-dynamite parts of the mine shaft were carved by hand and are fairly smooth, squared off and quite small. The parts of the tunnel that were mined or expanded in the later part of the mine's history, after the introduction of dynamite, are rough, full of drill holes and large. Parts of the tunnel are almost 3 stories high. Deep (some seemingly bottomless) ore shafts leading off of the main tunnel, the remains of the ore cart tracks and the beautiful hike to, from, and around the Okubo-Mabu are other things to look forward to on the tour.

The main street of Omori.

    After touring the mines take a stroll down the streets of the barely-modernized village of Omori. Apart from the paved streets, a/c units and some power lines, the wooden and stuccoed buildings of Omori will give you the feel of Edo Period Japan. There are many stores, ryokans, samurai residences and other historical structures that visitors are allowed to enter and walk around. There is also a hiking path to the remains of Yamabuki Castle which makes a loop from the entrance of the Ryugenji-Mabu to Seisuiji Temple. Don't expect to see stone foundations, however, all that remains of Yamabuki Castle is some slopes where the walls once were and the flat areas on top of those walls. The trail is best climbed for its unobstructed views of Mt. Sanbe, 1126m (3693ft), the highest mountain in Shimane Prefecture, the port villages of Maji and Yunotsu, and the Sea of Japan.

Mt. Sanbe from the ruins of Yamabuki Castle.

   In addition to the Mabus and Omori, the Iwami Ginzan World Heritage Site also encompasses the port onsen village of Yunotsu, where supplies for the mines were brought in from Hakata Port, and the port village of Maji, where Iwami Ginzan's silver was exported. Historical onsens and ryokans, slick-ways and mooring rings carved out of the rocks, castle ruins, coastal hiking trails and swimming beaches await. I didn't make it to either port village on my trip but I enjoyed Iwami enough to go again and pick up what I missed. Happy travels!