Iwadono Castle, Katsuyama Castle, Yamura Castle

The second update of my personal castle visits jumps from the first castle of 2020 back in time to the first castle visit of 2019, Iwadono Castle. This is a site I had wanted to visit for a long time, but I was waiting for a perfect weather winter day for the great views of Mt. Fuji. At some po

Iwadono Castle, Katsuyama Castle, Yamura Castle

2020/05/03

The second update of my personal castle visits jumps from the first castle of 2020 back in time to the first castle visit of 2019, Iwadono Castle. This is a site I had wanted to visit for a long time, but I was waiting for a perfect weather winter day for the great views of Mt. Fuji. At some point the trails got closed due to erosion from heavy rains and my wait extended to a couple years. Unfortunately, in August 2019 the trails were agin closed due to a rockslide and remain closed today. See the Iwadono Castle profile for more details. I was very lucky to visit when I did and get these great photos of both the castle ruins and Mt. Fuji.

From Iwadono, I also visited nearby home castle of the Oyamada family, Yamura Castle and it's mountain fortress, Katsuyama Castle just across the river.

Yamura Castle / 谷村城

The school grounds occupy much of what was the former Yamura Castle. Unfortunately, there are no significant remains to be seen today but excavations have uncovered stone work and a well on the school grounds. Yamura Castle is just a few minutes walk from the station and should be visited with Katsuyama Castle, the mountain redoubt of Yamura Castle. The hill in the background I s actually Katsuyama Castle. There is a better picture below showing this.

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