Former Mikuni Kaido Road

The Mikuni Kaido was a 200-kilometer trade route linking the Sea of Japan coast to the major arteries of Honshu. In the Settaya district of Nagaoka, a short preserved stretch of the original stone-paved road still connects several centuries-old businesses, including the Koshi no Murasaki Soy Sauce Brewery and the Yoshinogawa Sake Brewery. At the entrance stands a Jizo statue roughly 200 years old, its base carved with directions: right for Edo, left for the mountain road. Daimyo lords passing through Settaya are said to have stepped out of their palanquins to walk this section on foot as a gesture of respect to the shogun.