Shio no Michi

The location of Shinano Province within Japan.

Shio no Michi (塩しおの道みち, Salt Road) was an old kaidō, or road, in ancient Japan and was used to transport salt from the ocean to the inland central Honshū. In the Middle Ages, salt was brought both from the Sea of Japan and the Pacific Ocean to Shinano Province for processing. The road leading from the Sea of Japan to Shinano Province was called the Chikuni Kaidō (千せん国こく街道かいどう), whereas the road leading from the Pacific Ocean was called the Sanshū Kaidō (三さん州しゅう街道かいどう).

Stations of the Chikuni Kaidō

On the Echigo Province side of the route, it was called the Itoigawa Kaidō, but on the Shinano Province side, it was called Chikuni Kaidō. The Sawado-juku and Sano-juku pair and the Ida-juku and Imori-juku pair each essentially functioned as one post station.

Niigata Prefecture

1. Itoigawa-juku (糸魚川いといがわ宿やど) (Itoigawa)

2. Yamaguchi-juku (山口やまぐち宿やど) (Itoigawa)

Nagano Prefecture

3. Ōami-juku (大網おおあみ宿やど) (Otari)

4. Kuruma-juku (来馬らいば宿やど) (Otari)

5. Chikuni-juku (千せん国こく宿やど) (Otari)

6. Shiojima Shinden-juku (塩しお島新田しましんでん宿やど) (Hakuba)

7. Iida-juku (飯田いいだ宿やど) and Iimori-juku (飯森いいもり宿やど) (Hakuba)

8. Sawado-juku (沢さわ度ど宿やど) and Sano-juku (佐さ野宿のじゅく) (Hakuba)

9. Uminokuchi-juku (海ノ口うみのくち宿やど) (Ōmachi)

10. Ōmachi-juku (大町おおまち宿やど) (Ōmachi)

11. Ikeda-juku (池田いけだ宿やど) (Ikeda)

12. Hotaka-juku (保高ほだか宿やど) (Azumino)

13. Nariai Shinden-juku (成なり相しょう新田宿しんでんじゅく) (Azumino)

14. Matsumoto-juku (松本まつもと宿やど) (Matsumoto)

Stations of the Sanshū Kaidō

Okazaki-juku in the 1830s, as depicted by Hiroshige in The Fifty-three Stations of the Tōkaidō

Keisai Eisen's print of Shiojiri-shuku, part of The Sixty-nine Stations of the Kiso Kaidō series

The salt was initially carried from Mikawa Bay by boats traveling up the Yahagi River and its tributary, the Tomoe River. From Toyota, it was carried by horse, marking the start of the Sanshū Kaidō.

Aichi Prefecture

1. Okazaki-shuku (岡崎おかざき宿やど) (Okazaki) (also part of the Tōkaidō)

2. Kugyūdaira-juku (九久平くぎゅうだいら宿やど) (Toyota)

3. Asuke-juku (足助あすけ宿やど) (Toyota)

4. Busetsu-juku (武節ぶせつ宿やど) (Toyota)

Nagano Prefecture

5. Neba-juku (根羽ねば宿やど) (Neba)

6. Hiraya-juku (平谷ひらや宿やど) (Hiraya)

7. Namiai-juku (浪なみ合宿がっしゅく) (Namiai)

8. Komaba-juku (駒場こまば宿やど) (Achi)

9. Iida-juku (飯田いいだ宿やど) (Iida)

10. Ichida-juku (市田いちだ宿やど) (Takamori)

11. Ōjima-juku (大島おおしま宿やど) (Matsukawa)

12. Katabora-juku (片桐かたぎり宿やど) (Matsukawa)

13. Iijima-juku (飯島いいじま宿やど) (Iijima)

14. Akazu Uwabu-juku (赤須あかす上うえ穂ほ宿やど) (Komagane)

15. Miyada-juku (宮田みやた宿やど) (Miyada)

16. Inabe-juku (伊那部いなべ宿やど) (Ina)

17. Matsujima-juku (松島まつしま宿やど) (Minowa)

18. Miyagi-juku (宮木みやぎ宿やど) (Tatsuno)

19. Ono-juku (小しょう野宿のじゅく) (Shiojiri)

20. Shiojiri-shuku (塩尻しおじり宿やど) (Shiojiri) (also part of the Nakasendō)

See also

• Kaidō
• Edo Five Routes