Nakagawa River

A river that flows through both Tochigi and Ibaraki prefectures. It is a first-class river with a length of 150 km and a drainage area of ​​3,270 square km. It has a total of 176 tributaries, including the Yosasa River, Houki River, and Ara River on the Tochigi side, and the O River, Fujii River, and Hinuma River on the Ibaraki side. It originates at Mount Nasu (1,915 meters), flows through Nasunohara, crosses a gorge-like shape between the Torinoko and Toriashi mountain massifs in the Yamizo Mountain Range, enters Ibaraki prefecture, and forms a natural levee along the coast before emptying into the Pacific Ocean at the border between Hitachinaka City and Oarai Town. The middle reaches (Kurobane-Ogawa) were an ancient road stretching from Shimotsuke Kokufu to Oshu Shirakawa, and the Nasu no Kuni no Miyatsuko Monument remains here. Water transport was developed in the Middle Ages, and in the early modern period the river prospered with the transport of marine products upstream and agricultural products downstream. It also transported rice from southern Oshu to Edo. During the Meiji and Taisho periods, steamships also operated between Nakaminato and Mito. The upper reaches of the river are the Nasu volcanoes, Nasu Onsen, and a villa area, while the middle reaches are natural park areas such as the Nakagawa River, Mashiko, and Gozenyama, as well as a sweetfish fish pond and tobacco production area, and the lower reaches are a specialty area for burdock. The mouth of the river where it joins the Hinuma River is a scenic spot with the Iwafune Sunset, one of the Eight Views of Mito. You can also see salmon swimming upstream.

[Akitoshi Sakurai]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

栃木、茨城両県を流れる川。延長150キロメートル、流域面積3270平方キロメートルの一級河川。支流は栃木県側で余笹(よささ)川、箒(ほうき)川、荒(あら)川、茨城県側で緒(お)川、藤井川、涸沼(ひぬま)川など合計176をもつ。那須岳(なすだけ)（1915メートル）に源を発し、那須野原を流れて、八溝(やみぞ)山地の鷲子(とりのこ)山塊と鶏足(とりあし)山塊の間を峡谷状に横断、茨城県に入り沿岸に自然堤防をつくりながらひたちなか市と大洗町の境界で太平洋に注ぐ。中流（黒羽(くろばね)―小川）沿いは下野(しもつけ)国府より奥州白河(しらかわ)に続く古道にあたり、また那須国造碑(なすのくにのみやつこのひ)が残る。中世から水運が開け、近世には上り荷は海産物、下り荷は農産物の運送で活況を呈し、また、奥州南部から江戸へ送る米も運ばれた。明治・大正時代には那珂湊(なかみなと)―水戸間に汽船も運航した。上流は那須火山群と那須温泉や別荘地帯、中流は那珂川、益子(ましこ)、御前(ごぜん)山など自然公園地帯をなし、アユの簗場(やなば)とタバコ生産地帯、下流はゴボウの特産地で、涸沼川と合流する河口は水戸八景の一つ「岩船夕照(いわふねのせきしょう)」の景勝地である。また、サケの遡上(そじょう)がみられる。

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