Article

01362 ／かみのくにちょう

Hokkaido 檜山郡

Kaminokuni Town

A hill fort, its buildings marked flat.

Katsuyama Castle, foot of Iozan

Photo by On-neko (CC BY-SA 4.0)

01 ／ Iozan burial mounds

Over 600 mounds at the foot,thought to be residents' graves.

Iozan is 159 m high and is also called the keep of Katsuyama Castle. The town records that white grave markers stand in the sea wind at its foot, showing over 600 burial mounds thought to be graves of the castle's residents. From the summit you can see Okushiri Island and Oshima floating in the Sea of Japan.

159 m high
Over 600 burial mounds
Thought to be the residents' graves

02 ／ Amanogawa Bridge

Bronze plates with relief starssit between the railings.

Amanogawa Bridge in Kaminokuni Town — Photo by BATACHAN (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Amanogawa Bridge is 188 m long and 15.5 m wide. Between its railings are bronze relief plates of the twelve zodiac constellations, and the town says the stars that form them glow at night. The river's name is said to come from the kanji written for Tsuga (also read Tega), the old name of Kaminokuni.

188 m long, 15.5 m wide
Relief of 12 zodiac constellations
Second-class river, 28.6 km long

03 ／ Old Sasanami Residence

A house said to be the modelfor herring lodges, nationally listed.

The Sasanami family long ran a herring fishery in Kaminokuni, among other trades. The main house is said to have been built in the early 19th century by the fifth head of the family, and the town calls it the oldest surviving traditional dwelling in Hokkaido. The main house and attached storehouse were designated Important Cultural Properties in 1992.

Said to date from the early 19th century
1992: main house and storehouse designated
Fiscal 2018: rice and document storehouses added

Kaminokuni Town from the sky

Now and 1974–78. Tap a photo to zoom in.

Now1974–78

Wide (about 6 km across)

Close (about 1.5 km across)

Now (shot September–October 2022)Shot 1974–78

Source: Geospatial Information Authority of Japan (GSI) GSI Tiles（全国最新写真（シームレス）／国土画像情報（第一期：1974〜1978年撮影））

Open in GSI Maps (now)Open in GSI Maps (1974–78)

Living here

No station; 73 minutes by bus from Kikonai.

about 4,000 people
Rural district town

There is no railway station in the town. On the Hakodate Bus Esashi-Kikonai Line (from October 1, 2026), the town's timetable shows 73 minutes with no change from Kikonai Station Front, by the Hokkaido Shinkansen and Hokkaido Railway Dosan Isaribi Line station, to Otome.

People living here: 4,306people
Area: 547.72km²
Households: 2,053households
Rent (average for rentals): —
Healthcare: 0 hospitals ／ 3 clinics

Area and habitable land at the same scalee-Stat B1101 / B1103

Children waiting for childcare: —0 nurseries and similar
Home purchase subsidy: —
Average annual temperature: —

These 3 items are waiting on a nationwide data source. We do not fill them with estimates.

ACCESS

Where you can go from here.

Kaminokuni Town in Japan41.801°N 140.121°E

to KikonaiLocal bus73min

Travel times follow 上ノ国町公式『交通アクセス』（https://www.town.kaminokuni.lg.jp/hotnews/detail/00003545.html）に載る『路線バス【江差木古内線】運行時刻表【令和８年１０月１日から】』（PDF https://www.town.kaminokuni.lg.jp/hotnews/files/00003500/00003545/20261008110907.pdf 。PDF の作成は 2026-03-24・更新 2026-10-01、題は『R061001折込_バス時刻表_Ver1.1』。運行は函館バス江差営業所〈PDF の問い合わせ先〉）。江差方面行（上り）の木古内駅前発 2便 9:40・3便 12:40・4便 16:35 は、町役場のある大留の停留所『大留』に 10:53・13:53・17:48 に着く＝3本とも73分（途中、湯ノ岱で5分停車）。1便は神明 6:58 始発で木古内駅前を通らない。逆向き（木古内方面行・下り）の大留発は 1便 7:42・2便 10:42・3便 13:12 で、木古内駅前着は 9:00・12:00・14:30 ＝3本とも78分（4便は大留 16:34 発・湯ノ岱止まりで木古内に着かない）。PDF の表頭に『所要時間：約112分』（木古内～道立江差病院） (checked 2026-10-29). They vary by time of day.

Shape

Borders 6 municipalities.

Territory of Kaminokuni Town

Boundaries: National Land Numerical Information (Administrative Area Data), MLIT. Processed by Machigatari.Lakes: National Land Numerical Information (Lake Data), MLIT. Processed by Machigatari. Prepared with the approval of the Director-General of the Geospatial Information Authority of Japan, using its Digital Map 25000 (Spatial Data Framework) and Digital Map 25000 (Place Names and Public Facilities). (承認番号平27情使、第585号)

North to south

31.2km

Kikonai Town, Matsumae Town, Assabu Town, Esashi Town, Fukushima Town, Shiriuchi Town

Kaminokuni Town isthis kind of town.

01Katsuyama Castle Site is a hill fort built by Nobuhiro Takeda in the late 15th century and one of the sites of the national historic site Kaminokuni Tate Sites. Building and well sites are marked flat, and fences, dry moats and bridges are being rebuilt
02White grave markers stand for over 600 burial mounds at the foot of Iozan, the railings of Amanogawa Bridge carry relief of the twelve zodiac constellations, and the town calls the Old Sasanami Residence the oldest surviving traditional dwelling in Hokkaido
03The town has no railway station; a Hakodate Bus route bus runs from Kikonai Station Front to Otome

If something caught your eye, ask the town itself.

Kaminokuni Town official site ↗Wikipedia ↗

From this town's themes