Hagiwara is a small town located in the norther part of Gero. It takes just 15 minutes from Gero Onsen area by car. On the other hand, it is located at 40km south of Takayama. It seems to be a normal town but the history is very unique. It has been connected with Takayama, which is the central city of Hida region.
In Sengoku period, when lots of samurais battled to conquer and widen their territory, Hida region was governed by a samurai named Kanamori. He made some castles in Hida for the control, and one of them was located in Hagiwara town. The castle does not currently exist but still you can see it actually was in the town.
Once the castle was made, people started to open their shops such as grocery stores and hotels for travelers. Some of them are still there like the sake brewery and the Japanese sweet shop. So Takayama has been the center of region in terms of politics and economics but Hagiwara has also had an important role of traffic and transportation to Takayama from the southern of country.
Not only shops but antiques still there. Each of them has the history and mostly related to Hida region or Takayama. You will get in touch with those deep stories.
You can easily access from both Takayama and Gero hot spring so you must visit Hagiwara if you want to dive into the local cultures especially the historical side. Honestly, you just enjoy tasting sake if you are not interested in the stories!
