Mount Naeba

A shield volcano on the border between Niigata and Nagano prefectures. It is 2,145 meters above sea level. The mountain is a typical aspite volcano of the Nasu volcanic system, composed of pyroxene andesite, and is designated as part of Joshinetsu Kogen National Park. On the southwestern face of the summit is a vast lava field stretching four kilometers in length, and it is said that the mountain's name comes from the fact that during the early summer snowmelt, the alpine plant Miyamai sprouts young shoots in the marshland, making it look like a rice paddy. Ime Shrine is enshrined in the inner sanctuary at the summit, and the mountain has long been famous as a place of faith, and in the Middle Ages it was also a training ground for mountain ascetics. On the eastern foot of the mountain at the front entrance, there is the Kiyotsugawa Gorge created by the erosion of the Kiyotsugawa River, hot springs such as Akayu, Koide, and Kaikake, and fully equipped ski resorts such as the Naeba Ski Resort. To get to the trailhead, take a bus from Echigo-Yuzawa Station on the Joetsu Shinkansen to Yagizawa, then there are the Mitsumataguchi trailhead, which starts from Mitsumata-juku on the Mikuni Kaido road, and the Akiyamaguchi trailhead, which starts from Akiyamago on the western foot, and both take 4 to 5 hours to reach the summit.

[Hisao Yamazaki]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

新潟、長野の県境にある楯(たて)状火山。標高2145メートル。山体は輝石安山岩で構成される那須火山系(なすかざんけい)の模式的アスピーテ式火山で、上信越高原国立公園地区に指定されている。山頂の南西面には長さ4キロメートルに及ぶ広大な溶岩原があり、初夏の雪解け期には高山植物のミヤマイが湿原に若芽を吹いて、苗代(なわしろ)田のようにみえるところから山名が生まれたといわれる。頂上の奥の院には伊米(いめ)神社が祀(まつ)られており、古くから信仰の山として名高く、中世は山伏の修験(しゅげん)道場でもあった。表口の東麓(とうろく)は清津川の侵食による清津川峡谷や、赤湯、小出(こいで)、貝掛(かいかけ)などの温泉場や、苗場スキー場など設備の完備したスキー場がある。登山口は上越新幹線越後(えちご)湯沢駅から八木沢(やぎざわ)までバスで行き、三国(みくに)街道の三俣(みつまた)宿から登る三俣口と、西麓の秋山郷(あきやまごう)から登る秋山口などがあり、いずれも頂上まで4～5時間で登れる。

［山崎久雄］

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