Where is the Highest Altitude Train Station on JR East?
“The closest railway to the sky” - JR Kohada Line.
JR Kohada Line connects Kohanazawa Station (Shinanuma City, Yamanashi Prefecture) to Mijizaka Station (Mijizaka City, Nagano Prefecture), with a total length of 78.9 km as the East Japan Railway’s Heda Highland Line. It is affectionately called the Heda Highland Line.
It runs across the Heda Highland Plateau, an area with elevations over 1000 meters, with JR stations between Chirihashi Station and Nobesawa Station reaching an elevation of 1375 m. Nobesawa Station is the highest JR station of all, with a total of 9 stations entering the top 10 highest points on JR lines. Traveling towards Mijizaka, you can view the Yakedake Mountains on the left side of the train as it runs through the highland area.
In fact, the hometown of New Line Cinema’s Hayao Miyazaki is located in Kohama-cho, Kohama-gun, Kohama-maru, and it takes about an hour to drive from Kohanazawa Station. Kohama-cho is located in the eastern part of Nagano Prefecture, attracting hordes of fans for pilgrimage.
Yamanashi Prefecture Kohanazawa Station
Highest Elevation Point Top 10
Route Elevation
We arrived at Nobesawa Station, which is the highest point on the JR line. Elevation 1345.67m
Going in the Chirihashi direction will take you to the highest point of the JR railway (1375m) and the railway itself. It's a worthwhile moment to pass through this area by train.
Railway Shrine
Elevation 1375 meters. The large pillar marking this location is a symbol. Next to it is a shrine built to wish for the safety of visitors. The Japanese pronunciation of 1375m can be read as ‘Minatsu-sama-yoke’ (‘everyone happy’), so it is popular not only among railway enthusiasts.
Nagano Prefecture Namamuki Village
A giant radio telescope suddenly appeared in the vast fields. Its accuracy ranks among the best in the world, capable of observing ‘millimeter waves’ – electromagnetic waves with very short wavelengths, to explore the dark parts of the universe and search for supermassive black holes in the Milky Way. The radio telescope with Yakedake Mountain as a backdrop, combined with countless solar light communicators, formed a strange space.
Radio Telescope
National Astronomical Observatory
On March 9th this year, we visited Nobesawa National Astronomical Observatory, but due to the impact of infectious diseases, it was not allowed to enter the building within the prefecture.
Trip Cancelled
Nobesawa National Astronomical Observatory
Nagano Prefecture Namamuki Village was selected as one of the three best places in Japan to view the night sky. For friends who like to take photos of the night sky, it is worth recommending this place. At Nobesawa National Astronomical Observatory, you can call it ‘the closest place to the universe’.
