Iya Valley Snow/Driving Feb?

Hi All,

At present, I am currently preparing for my holiday to Shikoku in February and had planned on visiting the Iya valley. I'm not scared of snow at all - but I don't want to drive in the stuff as I don't have experience driving in snow.

I was going to book something cool called the Chiiori Trust which is a 300 year old house but it seems as though the roads often have snow and ice only steep, windy and narrow roads. My question is - is the lower areas (such as Miyoshi?) the same? The only reason I ask is that I've booked accommodation but I'm considering driving around the Iya valley on the east.

I was hoping that someone who knows the area better would answer but perhaps the bump will help with that. I didn't want to leave you unanswered....

My only experience of this situation was our overnight trip to Hotel Iya Onsen in Jan 2012. There was a reasonable amount of snow falling at that time and it caused us some issues with access. It was the same night that numerous metres of snow fell in Niigata, and even though that's far away it may indicate a cold snap rather than this being the normal scenario. This old thread would support the theory that the area isn't usually so snowy http://www.japan-guide.com/forum/quereadisplay.html?0+80113

We rented a car with snow tires. I'd never driven in the snow but my husband had and the general guideline I went by was to accelerate and decelerate smoothly, not make any sudden movements and keep steadily moving. I found it required similar attention as driving on very wet roads.

At the risk of humiliating myself, I'll share the issues we had..... Where we went wrong was that was naively chose to head in from the western side, i.e. headed south on route 438 and then intended on heading west on route 439. We'd hoped to visit some sights on the way to the hotel to save on time. In taking this route, some gaijin idiocy ensued and we foolishly kept trying to drive up Mt Tsurugi, got stuck, couldn't get ourselves unstuck, then walked down the mountain to find some men at a worksite to come and rescue us. After that and with our tails firmly between our legs, we made our way back to route 192 (we wanted the country roads not the express way), drove west and then turned onto route 32 at Miyoshi. All of these not-so-"road-less-travelled" roads were fine to drive on in the increasing snowfall. Route 32 is narrow and windy but if you use caution, keep to the left, have your headlights on, use the horn to let people know when you're approaching a blind corner and stay really alert to the presence of others you'll be fine. It's a safe road with very beautiful scenery.

On a side note, we were unable to visit any sights that day because we'd wasted so much time being ignorant and foolish, and couldn't see them the next morning because the overnight snowfall resulted in closures to places, e.g. Kazurabashi. Again, I suspect this isn't a regular occurrence.

Have you tried contacting someone from Chiiori Trust to see if they have any insight? Their map suggests approaching from the west http://www.chiiori.org/_src/sc1650/chiiori_map140422_2.pdf

The following information is not related to the driving condition. Nevertheless, as one of the main attractions of the onsen is the rotenburo. You might want to reconsider if the cable car is still a problem in the coming month.

http://www.iyaonsen.co.jp/news/506.html

Thanks for the info. Originally, I was planning on staying at the Chiiori Trust house but they said that there is often snow on the roads. I also completed a quick Google Map search of their location and it's quite a distance (20 or so km's) from the main road.

At present, I have a day meal and onsen visit booked for Feb - with some accommodation close to the main road that goes from Takamatsu to Kochi.

That accommodation can be cancelled up to 2 or 3 days in advance - which would allow be to travel along the east coast of Shikoku. I'm still willing to hear more info if anyone has travelled this time of year.

Unlike your husband - I am not confident driving in snowy conditions....

Unlike your husband - I am not confident driving in snowy conditions....

My visit was in November last year, and I have noticed that some section of the road closer to Hotel Iya Onsen is narrow, sharp "U-turn", a few of blind spots, single traffic only, yet it is a two-way road. The section is not easy to navigate, extra care is paramount.
I have many, many years of driving experience, and definitely will not attempt the road in winter.

Although my husband was confident driving on the snowy road, I had never done it before. We both drove and handled it fine. As I said, it's all about using caution and common sense. That applies to the narrow, winding road also. If you're someone who can't handle that style of road, don't try it.

Thanks for all of the info guys. At present, I'm going to keep my accommodation in the Iya Valley as it's on the main road between Takamatsu and Kochi and is relatively straight. It also has an onsen which is good. I'll consider the conditions when I speak to people at my hotel which is around 15 KM's (30 minutes) from Hotel Iya Onsen.

Also apologies sal for not reading that you were fine with the conditions. I'm quite used to driving on Australian and Japanese windy roads. Anyone who has ever driven to Yunomine Onsen on the Kii Peninsula during a typhoon knows what I am talking about....

No problem. I re-read what I wrote and realised it may have been misunderstood. The road is narrower than any similar roads I've driven here in Australia, but of course the cars aren't as big. I'm sure you'll be fine. Have fun!

The main roads in the Iya Valley are also narrower than the main roads in most other tourist destinations in Japan.