Tamagawa Josui: Beginnings

I am happy to report that the effort required to introduce this run to you today was way more than worth it. The course is a joy, seeing the waterworks at the beginning of the canal was interesting, and the hot springs experience at the end of my run was a rich reward. Let me describe how I did it but then let me provide you with some alternatives that I think will be more straightforward and enjoyable.

My first priority for this run was to see the waterworks at the beginning of the Tamagawa Josui. The closest station to this is Hamura Station on the JR Ome line. You are very close to Yokota Airbase here. The Ome line begins from JR Tachikawa Station and can be reached from JR Shinjuku Station using the Chuo line. From Tachikawa Station there are 2 train lines that head toward Haijima and Hamura, but the Itsukaichi line crosses the Tamagawa after Haijima Station while only the Ome line will take you to Hamura. I intended to run from Hamura, back through Haijima, to TamagawaJosui Station along the canal (where I began the last time I ran along the canal), and then to run back upstream to Haijima Station and pick up my bag. I took a guess that I could reach the hot springs Yuranosato by bus from Haijima Station but I was wrong. The bus travels to JR Akishima Station, but there are only 3 buses an hour, so you need to check the schedule or walk there from Haijima Station, which is about a kilometer. The walk was pleasant, even if it was the 3rd time I passed that way in a day, and already completed a 22k run.

The course I decided upon was to see the canal waterworks, to run along it for as long as possible but as I could tell by the map that a significant section of the canal runs through private property without a thruway, I chose a section along the bank of the Tamagawa, with the plan to rejoin the canal near JR Haijima Station. I alighted the train at Haijima Station and found a coin locker inside the turnstiles. They do not have lockers outside the turnstiles at this time. When I returned, I explained at the ticket office that I only wanted to collect my bag, showing them my locker key and they let me retrieve it without having to purchase a ticket.

From Haijima, I boarded the train for Hamura and was there in a couple of minutes. Hamura is tiny and looking West I could see where the Tamagawa was flowing. From here it is a straightforward jog down the hill from the West exit of the station. You cross one traffic light and then you will reach the river and the waterworks can be examined and the canal and its path can be accessed by a set of stairs directly across the intersection.

After hanging around taking pictures and reading about the canal and its construction, I headed downstream along the canal until I reached the intersection where the canal meets the Tamagawa Kaido , a reasonably busy road without much space for more than cars (about 2 and a half kilometers from the start at the station). The diagonal turn to the right, running down the leisurely slope is fairly obvious and brought me back to the wide Tamagawa. Importantly, this section has plenty of toilets but no drinking fountains. I ran along the Tamagawa until I found the JR Itsukaichi train trestle (the name is written in small letters on the base of the bridge), but it is right at the 5 kilometer point. Pass under the bridge and head up of the bank. My advice is to stick with the tracks as best you can without crossing them until you pass JR Kumagawa Station. This area has a number of train tracks that can get you running in the wrong direction if you guess wrongly which one you just crossed. Keep in mind you are between the Tamagawa river proper and the canal. The toughest spot is in finding the canal again where there is a path along it. You need to find the entrance of Mizukuraido Park and this park has the path that puts you right back with the canal but the entrance to the park is not next to the canal (it is to the right if you are headed downstream), and it is not easy to find the entrance to the path once you get into the park--and if you cannot find it, you are trapped between the train tracks of the Hachiko line and the Ome line.

Tamagawa Josui Where it Begins

The fact is that if you ran this route backwards from TamagawaJosui Station (Seibu Haijima line) upstream, it is much more straightforward. The Mizukuraido Park is joined to the Nikkobashi Park (which appears to have a rock climbing practice monolith if you get bored). The connection of the two parks is obvious when running upstream through Nikkobashi Park. If heading downstream, Haijima Station is just ahead on the right.

From here to TamagawaJosui Station, there are no further obstacles and the route can be run on the dirt path under the shade of the trees or along the asphalt or dirt side roads. You get a bit of different surface depending on which side of the canal you are running.

As I mentioned earlier, the Yuranosato hot springs--think of it as a luxury version of a sento--are on the left bank, after you cross the train tracks of the Seibu Haijima line at the 8th kilometer on the map I have provided. Please find a link to this place here. Personally, I will not run this route without including this bath and a refreshment at the end of the run. It is just TOO comfortable to get out of the wet clothes and wash off the dust and then to relax there next to the canal with the woods to rest your eyes while you have a drink and a treat before getting back on the train for home.

The best section of this run was between Haijima Station and TamagawaJosui Station and if you run it as an out and back run, it is 14k.

SO MY SUGGESTION IS…that you go directly to Yuranosato with your bag and use their coin lockers they have for shoes at the entrance to store your bag before you start your run. There are some extra large lockers at the back for families, which I believe can hold your stuff. From there you have a lot of choice. You can run beyond TamagawaJosui Station—in fact, you could run to JR Mitaka Station, and ride the train back to JR Akishima Station (changing trains at JR Tachikawa Station) and ride the bus to the baths. But I found the elevation change running upstream to be almost unnoticeable and recommend the out and back. Alternatively, you could start at Yuranosato, run downstream and back the 14k and continue up to Hamura Station and ride back to Haijima. Anyway, this run is going to cost you train fare, the bath, buying water if you are not carrying it, and possibly bus fare. Enjoy!