World · East Asia & Pacific · 4 hrs ago
Tours open along Japan’s Kurobe canyon route through working power tunnels
Tours have begun on the Kurobe-Unazuki Canyon Route in Toyama Prefecture, central Japan.
The roughly 18-kilometer route connects the Kurobe Gorge Railway’s terminal station with Kurobe Dam and passes through tunnels used for hydroelectric power operations.
Visitors travel in vehicles built to move workers and equipment, switching between five types of transport.
The tours include a visit to the underground Kurobe River No.
4 Power Plant, which uses water stored in the dam to generate electricity.
The plant and dam were built during Japan’s postwar recovery, and the plant was completed in 1963 after seven years of construction; 171 workers died during the project, according to its operator.
The route remains an industrial environment, so visitors must wear hard hats and sturdy shoes and pass security checks.
More than half of the roughly 2,700 tour places available through November 30 were booked on the first day of sales.
Annual access is expected to be limited to 10,000 visitors during the route’s June-to-November operating season.
Tours have opened on the Kurobe-Unazuki Canyon Route in Toyama Prefecture, taking visitors through tunnels used by hydroelectric power operations.
The roughly 18-kilometer route connects the terminal station of the Kurobe Gorge Railway with Kurobe Dam.
Participants travel in vehicles designed to move construction equipment and visit the underground Kurobe River No. 4 Power Plant.
The route remains an operating industrial environment, and tours require hard hats, security checks and sturdy shoes.
More than half of the roughly 2,700 places available through Nov. 30 were booked on the first day of sales in July.
- Who
- Visitors on package tours, guided along the route.
- What
- Tours have opened along the Kurobe-Unazuki Canyon Route, passing through tunnels and visiting an underground hydroelectric power plant.
- When
- Tours began on Friday; the article does not state the date.
- Where
- The route runs through the mountains of Toyama Prefecture, central Japan, between the terminal station of the Kurobe Gorge Railway and Kurobe Dam.
- Why
- The tours aim to show visitors the infrastructure and difficult conditions involved in developing the area for hydroelectric power.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Inconvenience is part of the appeal
We are asking people to take on the challenge of something inconvenient. It's the kind of out-of-the-ordinary experience which people often say they are looking for
The rugged terrain was first surveyed for power generation.
Workers excavating the High Temperature Tunnel faced bedrock temperatures that reached 160 C.
The Kurobe River No. 4 Power Plant was completed after a seven-year construction period.
More than half of the roughly 2,700 tour places available through Nov. 30 were booked on the first day of sales.
Tours along the Kurobe-Unazuki Canyon Route began.
- Route length
- Roughly 18 kilometers
- Route endpoints
- Kurobe Gorge Railway terminal station and Kurobe Dam
- Power plant
- Kurobe River No. 4 Power Plant
- Plant completion
- 1963
- Construction deaths
- 171 workers, according to the operator
- Annual visitor limit
- 10,000 visitors a year during the operating season from June to November
Sources
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