Welcome to Ehime Prefecture! It’s my pleasure to serve as your guide for today! To be honest, even though I was born in Niihama, which is a town in Ehime, I only recently rode the Yodo Line for the first time because it’s so far away. During my ride, we stopped at Futana Station, and when I glanced out the window and saw an elementary school. I was surprised to see that all the kids were waving at us on the train.

When the train started moving again, the kids ran alongside, waving goodbye. Seeing this, I couldn’t help but be happy that this kind of thing can be seen in other places, not just Ehime. What kind of memories will you make when seeing the scenery on this trip? I will be your conductor on this ride through the history of the Yodo Line. All aboard!

Do you know about the first rail line in Japan? It was created in 1872 and linked Shinbashi and Yokohama in Tokyo. The Yodo Line was created about fifty years later, which was considered to be a very early period in the history of railways. One might say its early development simply points to how many people needed it. For some context, Uwajima used to be a bustling place for the fishing industry. Matsuno, which is the town by Matsumaru Station, was known for its lumber and firewood. It wasn’t until some of the more important people in these towns asked for an efficient way to transport their products that the Yodo Line was constructed.

The first railway in Ehime was the Iyo railway, which could be seen from Matsuyama, and it had a steam engine just like the matchbox-like one seen in the novel Bocchan. The passenger cars were essentially wooden boxes, like the kind they’d use to transport mail. Can you imagine how small these trains were? Thirty years after the Iyo railway was up and running, the Uwajima railway, which would eventually become the Yodo Line, opened. By 1914 in the Taisho Era, the stations between Uwajima and Chikanaga stations were completed. Ten years after that, the line was extended all the way to Yoshino, and then across the entire prefecture of Ehime, even extending it all the way to Kochi Prefecture.

Back when it first opened, the first train that traveled the line was called a Koppel, which was made by a German company. The name is shared by the company and apparently comes from the German word for “coupling.” There’s even a replica of the train at Uwajima Station, so please take a look if you’re interested! The train had a decent amount of horsepower, but the Yodo Line ran through the mountains, and it struggled while climbing and descending the hills. When there were many passengers, there was an engine in the front pulling the cars and one in the back pushing. Sometimes they’d even ask the men to hop off to help push the train over hills. Sounds hard to believe, doesn’t it?

Time passed and Japan entered the Showa Era, and more powerful steam trains began running on the Yodo Line. They were very powerful and able to reliably climb mountains without any problems.

The steepest slopes were between North Uwajima Station and Muden Station. The loud noise it makes when it starts up is really like the sound of a starting pistol, making it feel like it’s just getting started. If you listen closely, you can hear the sound of the engine getting louder. There may even be some who can hear the wheels of the train spinning. It can become especially obvious during autumn when it’s easier for the wheels to slip. This is why the conductor has a large bottle of sand to help the wheels keep their traction. These hills are so steep that even modern train conductors do this.

But after clearing these steep hills, you’ll reach a tunnel. This one is the second tunnel built here, but the first one is right next to it. Back in the day, the trains puffed out clouds of smoke, so passengers would be told to shut their windows whenever they entered tunnels. If they didn’t shut them fast enough, the car would be filled with smoke, making even their nostrils black.

Riding a train back then, passengers would often see children commuting from Kochi Prefecture, who spoke in the Tosa dialect. The people from Ehime spoke the Iyo dialect, so if you were riding the train, you could hear both dialects at the same time. Some say that they spoke about their schools and teachers. Around that time, there were a lot of adults commuting to Uwajima, so even during the peak time in the morning when they used six cars, the train was completely full. Passengers consisted of older men or women with large belongings who worked as merchants. They’d bring seafood such as dried sea slugs or a special fried fish called jakoten to sell. Then on the way home, they’d bring rice or shiitake mushrooms to sell. There were so many types of people back then and they’d all get together to chat and interact on the train.

There’s an old story that’s been passed on to this day about a boy who was on his way home when someone suddenly called out to him in a loud voice, asking if his father was doing well. It turned out to be none other than Sotaro Okada, the first mayor of the town of Matsuno. He was a very big-hearted man, who was also famous. Hearing such a well-known person speak to him stunned the boy, but he somehow managed to answer and say his father was fine. After that, the mayor told him a secret, but his voice was so loud that the entire train could hear him. It was a very on-brand incident for the mayor.

Girls who wanted to gossip about their love lives couldn’t do so in a loud voice otherwise the entire train could hear. So whenever the guys they liked boarded the train, they would instead look at each other and quietly gesture.

It took students about two hours to ride the steam train from Matsumaru Station to Uwajima Station. With that in mind, over the course of their three years in high school they’d spend at least a thousand hours riding the train. During this time they’d talk about random things with their classmates, make new friends, play cards on top of their bags, and so on. Many a memory was made on the train.

History is in the very exterior of these cars. Long ago, there was something called a ten yen pancake. Kids would excitedly wait for the train to pass by, wait for the right timing, and throw a ten yen coin on the tracks, resulting in it being crushed as flat as a pancake.

There are also tales of people walking across the bridge on their way home from watching a movie at Matsumaru Station. It was said that they’d put their ears to the rails in order to tell if the train was coming or not, and if it seemed safe, they’d cross. The bridge was very high up and was a thrill for them. Nowadays, doing this would get you into a lot of trouble, but back then, this was just a part of the adventurous hearts of young boys.

There were also stories of people stopping trains. Around when the Reiwa Era began, one evening around six, a train suddenly stopped after coming into contact with someone who had jumped onto the tracks. There were a lot of bamboo groves and at that time of night, deer were active. The engineer got out of the train, thinking that he’d hit another deer, but it was a piece of bamboo, which surprisingly hadn’t broken at all from the impact of the train. Though the engineer was relieved, he wasn’t able to move the train immediately since he had to clear the bamboo. Though he knew he had to do it as soon as possible before the train behind him got close, the bamboo was very tough, and his struggles were even discussed on the internet.

Some might wonder how the preceding train had been able to pass by only an hour and twenty minutes before if this bamboo was so tough. Up until bamboo sprouts out of the ground, it grows slowly, but as soon as it’s out, it grows very quickly. There are even records of it growing a full meter and thirty centimeters in a single day. It’s not too strange for it to have grown so much in a mere hour and twenty minutes.

There are also stories of derailment on the Yodo Line. Though it carries a lot of important memories for the people of the area, it’s doubtful whether it will continue to run. The population in the area has shrunk and many people drive their own cars now. With fewer passengers, as of the time of this recording, it takes about 449 yen to earn 100 yen off of the railroad. In other words, they’re in the red.

When I rode the train today, I only saw about five people. But back in the day, it was an invaluable resource for children since it was their way of getting to school and interacting with other children. Plus, there were views you could only see from the window of the train of the Hiromi and Shimato rivers that were surrounded by the countryside. There were many students who used their time on the train to review their lessons, leading people to say that the children who rode the Yodo Line were great students.

How did they feel about the Yodo Line?

There used to be a slogan saying that the train carried love, courage, and other intangible things, and I agree. I don’t think the train was just a vehicle that transported people and objects.
By the way, the elementary school children who waved at the train thought to do so by themselves. The children apparently didn’t want the very Yodo Line that their parents and older siblings rode to simply vanish. That’s why for the past few years, they’ve been waving at the trains, passing this tradition down to younger kids.

The people of Shikoku feel strongly not just about the Yodo Line but other railways as well. It may be that strong sense that has helped preserve the unchanging, beautiful scenery for all these years.

What kind of train are you riding? The one I rode was a hobby train called the “kappa” train. As the name may imply, it was a very fun train, filled with figurines of the mythical water-dweller known as the kappa. This isn’t the only type of train though. There are five in total.

The first one is called the Kiha 32-type. It’s white and light blue, just like the Yodo trains. Then there’s the Kiha 54-type, which is silver and light blue. These two are called Rail Buses, which are essentially buses that have train wheels. As such, the Kiha 32-type is only 16 meters long. If you look at the heaters under the seats, you’ll see that it actually says “bus heater.” The doors are also just like those of a bus. The engine is a diesel, just like on a bus. They’re said to have made their first appearance on the Yodo Line and because of how light and efficient they are, they were revolutionary for their time. Back then, they were ridiculed and some said they wouldn’t last long, but they’re still here, showing just how sturdy they are.

Each rail bus has its own unique design. For instance, the kappa train is green, but there’s also a yellow train called the Shiman trolley. Though trolleys run in all different parts of Japan, the Yodo Line was the first to call these types of trains trolleys. When the Shimanto River was beginning to become famous as the last clean and clear stream, it’s said that a promotion was started where they removed the windows from the train cars so that passengers could enjoy the scenery as if they were in a trolley. The current design was done by the same person who designed the famous Seven Stars deluxe sleeping car excursion train.

Also, last, but not least is the Tetsudo Hobby Train, which has a front that almost looks like a bullet train. Despite resembling one, this train runs through the countryside—a unique quality that is often advertised by magazines. The locals often say that they’re taking the first bullet train of the day as a trendy way of saying that they’re taking the first train of the day from Uwajima.

The different trains are all very interesting, aren’t they? Though they’re all just regular trains, they’ve become trains for sightseeing. What trains will you ride on your journey?
You’re almost at the second station.

You’re almost at Futana Station now. Be sure to wave back at the kids when you see them! I’ll now tell you the scenery you should keep an eye out for. Please watch for it on both ways of your journey today.

One such spot to look out for is the engine shed where the engines rest. The one at Uwajima Station is shaped like a fan. Right before you reach Uwajima on the way back, you’ll see it on the left side. Only the frame remains now, but the rotating platform was used to put the train engines in the shed. It’s said that during the war, a tunnel was dug through the mountain to hide the train.

Another spot to keep your eyes open for is the countryside scenery with Mt. Onigajo in the background. The Yodo Line passes through Kihoku and goes towards Matsuno, and the character for “demon” it has in its name comes from Mt. Onigajo. At a thousand or more meters tall, it certainly feels like there may be some demons living there, but that’s not where it gets its name from. Back in the Kamakura Era, there was a powerful warrior known as Oniou, and this is said to be his birthplace. When his lord was defeated, he returned here with the head of his lord, holed up in the mountains, and mourned for him.

The next must-see spot is the view of Hiromigawa from Matsumaru Station. When the train exits the ravine and enters a curve towards the station, you’ll be met with a huge river. When you get out at Matsumaru, I’d encourage you to wait on the platform for the train to leave so you can take a better look at the view. After leaving the station, you’ll be met with the atmosphere of the old-fashioned drinking establishments in front of the station. Doesn’t this feel like the start of a new journey?

I found out about this view from Mr. Dotsubo, a photographer for the railway. He knows everything about the Yodo Line, so I asked him about the beauty of the railway and its fans. Please have a listen!

I really learned a lot from Mr. Dotsubo. For example, you can still buy handwritten tickets at Chikanaga Station. Though you can only do so in the JR Shikoku area now, you used to be able to buy bullet train tickets from here. There are still people now who specifically go to this station to get handwritten tickets for test-taking students for good luck.

Here we go again! Just a little further and we’ll reach Chikanaga Station.

Now that we’re at Chikanaga Station, we’re only ten minutes away from Matsumaru. When we arrive, I’ll take you around and introduce you to places I’d like you to see.

Incidentally, beyond Matsumaru Station, there are Yoshino and Matsuchi stations, and from there, the rest of Kochi Prefecture. The shortest platform in Shikoku is located at Matsuchi Station. The long platform you have seen is a remnant of the days when six-car trains ran on the Yodo Line. Matsuchi Station is newer, so the platform is shorter. Please visit the farthest end of Ehime when you have time again.

Deer are also very common at Matsuchi Station. The train has to stop for a while if it hits a deer, but when the conductor apologizes for the delay, the passenger’s supposed to say that it’s OK as long as they get back home sometime today. That’s just how the Yodo Line is. It’s a very relaxed atmosphere. I encourage you to try adopting that same feeling of relaxation and to take your time while on this trip.