Ten Keitora on the Nakasendō

With a free day, I jumped on the train and headed back to my local section of the Nakasendō for the umpteenth time.

The plan was to walk from Nakatsugawa to Ena — but on a whim, I jumped off at Ena instead, switched direction, and walked to Takenami through the forest and along quieter paths. I knew that stretch would be more peaceful, which was what I was after.

I also gave myself a small goal: photograph at least ten keitora trucks — those compact, mud-splattered little workhorses scattered across the Japanese countryside. I wasn’t allowed to catch a train home until I’d photographed at least ten.

Approaching Takenami Station I had nine, but after crossing Route 19, turning away from the station and making a little detour through the village, that number suddenly shot up to sixteen.

If there’s one thing more ubiquitous in rural Japan than a vegetable patch and rice field, it’s a keitora parked at an odd angle, often in the middle of nowhere. They used to come in white or silver, but in recent years they’ve evolved — and can now be spotted in any number of colours: orange, olive green, blue, and if you’re really lucky, bright pink.

Of the sixteen I photographed, these are the ten I kept.

#Ena #軽トラ #keitora #Nakasendō #walking #中山道