Shibu Pass - Shibutoge

A pass on the border between Nagano and Gunma prefectures. It is 2,152 meters above sea level. National Route 292 runs through it. In the early modern period, the pass passed on the north side of Mt. Yokote and was also called Kusatsu Pass. Rice, sake, and rapeseed oil were transported from Nagano to Kusatsu, and sulfur, firewood, charcoal, and other goods were transported from Kusatsu to Nagano. The pass fell into decline with the opening of the railway, but tourism development progressed from the 1950s, and a new road was built, and the pass passed south of the summit of Mt. Yokote. In 1970, about 41 kilometers of the section connecting Shiga Kogen in Nagano Prefecture and Kusatsu Onsen in Gunma Prefecture became a toll road (it became free in 1992, National Route 292), and although it runs at one of the highest paved roads in the country, it is closed in winter. A lift runs from the pass to the top of Yokote Mountain, even in summer, and from here the views of the Joetsu mountain range, the Northern Alps, Shiga Highlands and Kusatsu below are magnificent.

[Hiroyoshi Kobayashi]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

長野・群馬の県境にある峠。標高2152メートル。国道292号が走る。近世の峠は横手山の北側を通り、草津峠ともよばれた。長野からは米や酒、菜種(なたね)油を草津へ、草津からは硫黄(いおう)、薪炭(しんたん)などの物資を長野へ運んだ。鉄道の開通で衰退したが、昭和30年代から観光開発が進み、新しい道路ができ、横手山頂の南を通る峠となった。1970年（昭和45）長野県志賀高原と群馬県草津温泉を結ぶ区間を含む約41キロメートルが有料道路となり（1992年無料化。国道292号）、舗装された車道としては全国有数の高さを走るが冬季は閉鎖される。峠には横手山頂までのリフトが夏も稼動し、ここからの上越の山並みや北アルプス連峰、眼下の志賀高原や草津の眺望はすばらしい。

［小林寛義］

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