Japan Tourism / Charm of Train Journey through Valley Full of Ornamental Peach Blossoms in Gunma, Tochigi Prefectures

By Nobuyuki Koshi / Special to Ryoko Yomiuri Publication

15:54 JST, March 19, 2025

In 2000, Watarase Keikoku Railway Co. was hoping to increase ridership, and so it planted ornamental peach trees near Godo Station in Midori, Gunma Prefecture, after raising donations.

The company’s trains run on a route inherited from the Ashio Line, which was used to transport goods to and from the now defunct Ashio copper mine in neighboring Tochigi Prefecture.

Its peach trees have grown so tall they now conjure up visions of Togenkyo, a fabled Chinese paradise. But the station is not the only place along this Watarase Valley railway where you can view the blossoms. And there are also sightseeing trolley trains that allow yet another way to experience this burst of spring color.

My trip started at Aioi Station, the transfer station for Watarase Keikoku Railway and Tobu Railway trains. I bought a one-day ticket and boarded a local Watarase train. As soon as we had passed Omama Station, I could see the Watarase River from the window. At Kamikambai Station, there were cherry trees in bloom around the tracks, and the station itself looked like it hadn’t changed since the railway opened to the public. The small platform at Motojuku Station was immersed in more cherry trees, and just before the train arrived at Mizunuma Station, the view popped into color from the many cherry and peach blossoms at Kurohone Undo Koen sports park.

I got off at Hanawa Station, where many ornamental peach trees were in full flower, and walked to the road. Across the Watarase River from the station lies the settlement of Sayado-Ohata, where visitors can relax while taking in the weeping peach trees that have been planted in front of homes.

The local horticultural trend was set about 40 years ago, when a resident in the area was hospitalized in the city of Kiryu, Gunma Prefecture, and received an ornamental peach sapling from a patient in the neighboring bed. The resident planted the sapling in their home garden, and soon neighbors were planting peach trees in their own gardens and by the roadside. Locals subsequently formed a group that plants and manages weeping peach trees. With support from the local government, they have cultivated a landscape of splashy color and brightened up the community.

Back at Hanawa Station, I boarded another train and headed to Godo Station. There are about 300 ornamental peach trees around the stop, which, paired with the retro look of the station, made the place feel somehow nostalgic. At the Godo Station platform, there is a restaurant that features seating in one of Tobu Railway Co.’s old 1720-series Deluxe Romance train cars. Restaurant Seiryu, as it’s called, serves up a variety of dishes, such as set lunches with maitake mushrooms. If you would rather have your lunch out of doors, the restaurant also offers bento boxes that make for a nice picnic under the blossoms.

“Godo Station is a station of flowers, a paradise of pink and white peach blossoms,” said Tomokazu Shinagawa, president of Watarase Keikoku Railway. “If your timing is right, you can see both peach and cherry blossoms. So, take a ride on our trains and come see the peach trees grown by our employees.”

Once you’ve had your fill of the flowers, head on over to Tsudo Station, from where you can explore the Ashio copper mine. And on your way back, hop on the Torokko Watarase Keikoku sightseeing trolley train, which is open to the air and affords you an unimpeded view of the blossoms. Looking out at the Watarase River, I could smell the peach blossoms on the spring breeze. Now I could sense a subtle difference from the river I saw other times.

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Japan Tourism is presented in collaboration with Ryoko Yomiuri Publication, which publishes Ryoko Yomiuri, a monthly travel magazine. If you are interested in the original Japanese version of this story, click here.