Winter 2021 Kazurabashi Bridge Vine Repair Closure
December 23, 2020
The Kazurabashi Vine Bridge will be closed for part of this winter
Every 3 years the vines for the
Iya-no-Kazurabashi Bridge are replaced by local craftsmen, using about 6 tons of fresh vines that are taken from the surrounding mountains. This winter will be the next repair period, which means the bidge will be closed for about six weeks
from Tuesday January 12, 2021 until the end of February.
During this time visitors will not be able to cross the bridge, but you can go to watch the re-construction from the adjacent vehicle bridge a bit further down the river.
Alternately, if you are not planning to visit Iya during this time but you are still curious to see the repair progress, you can instead see a free Live Camera
of the Kazurabashi and follow the re-construction for yourself !! The button link below is for the government website that hosts the video but it may look black if checking at night (please note that daylight hours during winter in Japan would be about 10PM to 8AM GMT London, or about 5:00PM to 3:00AM EST New York):
Also, please note that the Oku-Iya Niju Kazurabashi (Double Vine Bridges) are not open in the winter from December 1 to March 31. For a full list of winter season closures, please check here:
From January 9, 2024 until February 15 the Iya-no-Kazurabashi in Nishi-Iya will be closed in order to replace the vines.
Several sights and places to stay either fully close or have limited schedules in the winter season from December 1 until March 31, particularly in the Oku-Iya area.
On Saturday morning November 4th the annual Oku-Iya Harvest Festival will be held in the 'downtown' area of Kyojo where lots of Iya foods will be on offer!
Join the fun with the local people this summer at a variety of events that are happening all across the Iya Valley and Miyoshi City area!
As of April 22, 2023 the main road into Oku-Iya (Higashi-Iya) has been patched up and is now passable again, and local bus service is now back to normal.
On April 6th bus service will begin again to and from Oku-Iya, but the necessary road detour will create delays for the entire bus route.
A driving route detour is now necessary for reaching Oku-Iya. Bus access is now possible again, but delays are necessary.
Spring has arrived a little earlier than usually to the Iya Valley, and the dazzling cherry blossoms are starting to paint the valley pink!
On Feb 25, 2023 the 24th Annual Shikoku Sake Festival returns to Miyoshi's Ikeda town, with lots of regional brewers serving their finest sake!