Katori, my favorite
Tamagawa gate and Omigawa gate
where Kurobe river is connected with Tonegawa
and Hitachi Tonegawa
May 15, 2008
report from Omigawa by KUBOYA, Katsuhi
The gate for Kurobe river [closed]
The gate for Tone river [open]
A section of a waterway, such as a canal, closed off with gates, in which vessels in transit are raised or lowered by raising or lowering the water level of that section.
A lock gate is a section of a waterway to raise or lower the water level in order to make ship go through canal or river.
The ships are put in the room which the doors partition, and get out when the water level becomes the same by opening and shutting the door. It was in September, 1959 that the Atamagawa gate completed. The electric steel-made roller gate is used now.
The former gates
The former sluice gates were made of iron, and opened and shut by hand power. The gate were closed by the fire fighter when it rained heavily in the upstream part of Tonegawa or the typhoon approached.
The Omigawa gate was completed in July, 1963. After Omigawa bridge opened in 1973, the ferryboat was abolished, and the scene to carry the thing to the rice field in the opposite bank by the boat was not seen.
Please note that it is dangerous to go only by the children though gate surroundingis a splendid fishing place.
12 faces Kagura [Shinto music and dance] in Sakainomiya
April 10, 2008
report from Omigawa by KUBOYA, Katsuhi
Sunday, March 23, 2008
This Shinto shrine is on the hill ground at 532, Komuro-dai, Ichino-wakeme, Katori City, 1.8Km south from Suigou station,Narita line.
The Shinto music and dancing in this shrine was not presented for 20 years from 1968.
"It is not possible to make an excuse to children when we break off the culture that has been succeeded for 200 years from Edo period."
It was feelings of the member who had started up activity this for the revival.
The practice for the revival started in 1985. Though the members had a hard time on the way, the effort bore fruit, and "12 faces Kagura in Sakainomiya" revived on March 27, 1988. I should talk about this to you all.
It is told that the shrine "Sakai-no-miya"[Sakai means boundary] was named from the shrine being at the boundary of the Katori-gun and the Kaijoh-gun when the old Omigawa-machi was in the area of the Kaijoh-gun in ancient times.
It started at 12 o'clock Sunday, March 23, and half the number of the people who gathered was children.
Our indispensable vehicle"ferry boat of Tomita"
April 1, 2008
report from Omigawa by KUBOYA, Katsuhi
It was in August, 1973 that the Omigawa Ohashi bridge opened.
After that, 35 years passed. Tomita's ferryboat is still used.
It sails from 7 o'clock to 17 o'clock of every day at intervals of one hour.
This ferry is indispensable transportation for the school children who go across the river Tonegawa to school.
The elderly person who commutes to Tomita's hospital, the junior high school or the high school student also use this boat.
The captain of this boat is Mr. Ogawa (72 years old) now.
Mr. Ogawa said,"I am a captain for six years. I see 12 children's faces every morning and it makes me energetic."
Fare(one way)
- Adult
- 80 yen
- Bicycle
- 100 yen
- Motorcycle
- 120 yen
Starting time（from Tomita）
- 7:15～9:00 as needed
- 10:00
- 11:00
- 12:00
- 14:00
- 15:00
- 16:00
- 17:00
There are about 350m width of a river between Tomita and Tomita-Shinden, and it takes 5 or 6 minutes.
The white flag stands when there is a guest in the opposite bank.
There is a distance of about 2km from Tomita's ferryboat place to Omigawa Ohashi.
Mizu-no-Sato [Village of water] Fureai-bashi bridge
April 1, 2008
report from Omigawa by KUBOYA, Katsuhi
This bridge opened in March, 1998.
The bridge is between the Kurobe river and the Tonegawa main stream, and is laid in the waterway that runs to Atamagawa sluice.
The bridge is
- length : 100m , width : 3.0m
- the steel cable-stayed bridge
- Passage for river management.
It matches to the nearby planetarium building.
With this bridge , the route to round the embankment of Kurobe river and Tonegawa river was completed.
Many people are walking in the morning and the evening. The car cannot pass the bridge.
This circumference is a place popular as a splendid fishing place.
The lighting installation is prepared for in the bridge, and the light is scheduled to be improved in summer when various water sports events are opened.