North Shore of Lake Shinji Part 1

 

My day 43 walk now heads along the north shore of Lake Shinji.

The 7th largest lake in Japan, Shinjiko was originally the sea between the mainland and the island that became the Shimane Peninsula.

Consequently it is a brackish lake with salinity about 10% of seawater.

It is fed primarily by the Hii River which reaches the sea after passing through Lake Shinji, then the Ohashi River through Matsue, and then into the Nakaumi Lagoon before passing through the narrow strait at Sakaiminato.

An artificial channel, called the Sada River, was dug in the Edo Period between the NW part of the lake, past Sada Shrine, to the Sea of Japan at what is now Kashima.

The lake has shrunk over time due to sedimentation, but land reclamation in the latter hald of the 20th century has reduced it by 10%. Izumo Airport is located on the new land.

A lot of fish and other food is harvested from the lake specifically Shinjiko Shicchin, the Seven Treasures of Shinjiko; Sea Bass, Shrimp, Eel, Smelt, Clams, Carp, & Icefish.

However the main product is a small clam, which makes up 90% of the catch.

The lake is roughly rectangular, and measures about 17k East to West, and 6k North to South. The circumference is about 47k

The south shore has the main San-in Line of JR railway and a very busy road, National Route 9. This northern shore has a very small road and the Ichibata Railway and is much, much quieter and prettier.

The previous post in the series was on Saka Shrine, the origin of sake in Japan.

If you would like to subscribe by email, just leave your email address in the comments below. It will not be published or made public. I post new content almost every day, and send out an email about twice a month with short descriptions and links to the last ten posts