Els Slots

2.00 The Netherlands - 10-Sep-24 -

One of the things I like most about visiting WHS is that it opens up lesser-known regions even when the WHS itself isn’t too great. This is certainly the case for Sado Island, a lovely example of a slowish, rural Japan. Sado's size is fairly large, it even is the second largest island (after Okinawa) outside of the four main islands of Japan. Its other major tourist attraction in addition to the WH-listed Gold Mines is the Toki (Crested Ibis), which has been reintroduced here after it had become extinct in Japan.

I started my visit at the two mines of Sado Kinzan: Sohdayu (400 years old) and Dohyu (100 years old). The combined entrance fee is 1500 yen (9 EUR). You’re not forced on a guided tour here as is so common at other WH mines, dragging yourself behind a guide elaborating in Polish or Spanish. You just walk through the tunnels and see the exhibits at your own pace. The information is displayed in both Japanese and English. The OUV of the Sado mines lies in its Edo-period way of mining, but – as with Rosia Montana which is recognized for its Roman way of mining -  it is hard to ‘unsee’ the alterations and additions later mining generations made at the same spot. I also did not notice anything particularly Japanese about the methods used, although, at the end of the tour of the Sohdayu mine, a display shows that Shinto rituals were performed to celebrate the discovery of a new vein or to pray for the ore to become softer.

The iconic image of the Sado mines shows the Dohyu mountain split almost in two halves (see main site photo). This 30m wide crack already started to appear during the Edo period when they started open-cast mining from the top and went in deeper and deeper. As part of the exterior visiting route of the Dohyu mine, you can walk up to where the crack is (see photo with this review).

As part of the inscription of the Sado Gold Mines, Japan agreed to acknowledge the fate of the Korean labourers who were sent to work here during the Second World War. I didn’t see any of this displayed at the two mines that I visited, but if it is there it would be more appropriate to the mines from the Meiji era (such as the Kitazawa Flotation Plant, which lies a bit further downhill). A separate section at the Aikawa History Museum was also promised. 

What is acknowledged in the presentation of the Edo-era mines is the fate of the “unregistered” or “homeless” people who were sent to work here from 1789 onward. These were Japanese men down on their luck that were rounded off the streets of big cities such as Edo, Osaka and Nagasaki to do hard labour as drainage workers for 10 years in the mines on Sado Island. There’s also a memorial shrine to them along the road just south of the main mines. 

From Sado Kinzan, I walked down for 30 minutes to the town of Aikawa. This is a pleasant hike, with views of the bits and pieces of mining history scattered in the surrounding landscape. A major stop is the Sado Bugyosho: a reconstruction of the former Magistrate's Office. The importance of the Edo-period Sado mines is partly derived from the many administrative records that have survived about its production and management. The Office comprises a vast complex, surrounded by a moat as all the precious gold was kept inside. At the exhibition in the Sohdayu mine, you can see a model of how it worked at the time, with offices, a mint and a smelting plant. Exhibits at the main office building are very sparse at the moment, or so understated that you must be Japanese to understand them. There is a bare room for example with only a sign ‘Oshirasu’ – later when I googled it, I saw that it means “Court of Law during the Edo period, in which the parties sat on white sand“. The second building that is open to the public has exhibits on the smelting process that was executed here.

Getting there on public transport

Although it’s not far from Tokyo, it’s a costly detour. A single train journey on the shinkansen from Tokyo to Niigata (2h) costs 68 EUR and the return jetfoil ticket to Sado Island from Niigata (1h) is over 80 EUR. Practically, you'd need to stay at least one night in Niigata. From Ryotsu port on Sado, bus #1 leaves about once an hour for the town of Aikawa. The schedule (which may change monthly) and routes can be found here. Some of those buses, including the 9.15 one that corresponds with the arrival of the 7.55 jetfoil from Niigata, continue directly to the Sado Gold Mines. Tickets can be purchased on the bus, using the old-school Japanese system paying the fare corresponding to a display above the driver, or you can get a one-day pass (1500 yen/9 EUR) at the Tourist Information Center at Ryotsu port. Catching the first jetfoil out and the last one back plus the bus inland, you will have about 5 hours in and around Aikawa and the Gold Mines, which is more than enough. 

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Philipp Peterer

2.50 Switzerland - 13-Aug-24 -

I hadn’t planned in the Sado Mines for my trip to Japan. But then the site was inscribed during while I was in Osaka region and I could not resist to reorganize my Tokyo part to squeeze it in.
I added Sado as part of my Tokyo loop by rental car, driving straight from Tokyo to Niigata.
The next morning I took the hydrofoil to Sado. It makes no sense to bring the car to the island as the ferry is slower (2.5h compared to the 1h by hydrofoil) and it’s more expensive to bring your car instead of renting one on the island for a few hours.
Car rental was very easy and uncomplicated. There are more companies in and around the port than I ever saw at any airport in Japan. I rented a small car for 9 hours for around 40 USD. The alternative would be using a bus, but I only saw 1 single bus the whole day I drove around the island, so plan this well, if you go public transport.
It takes longer than you might think to get around, as the max speed on the island is 50km/h and this is how fast other cars usually drive. I visited all 3 components, plus a scenic spot with cliffs (Senkakuwan Bay).
 
Aikawa area
This is the main location and it seems to be the island’s main attraction. There were tons of tourists, a museum and a big souvenir shop. You can get into the two mines Zoe mentioned. The first one feels like Disneyland, as they filled the mine with robots (yes, robots, not just puppets. Welcome to Japan) to demonstrate the different works in the old mines.
The second one is basically empty (apart from a room they use to mature the local Sake) but leads outside to a view spot of the mountain. A few hundred meters before the mines you can find the Toukouba Mines Remnants, just off the street. A bit further north, there is the Odachi Pit, but it’s currently und renovation. This area is where you need to go to tick the site. There are lots of other POI in the area. Mine entrances etc. It depends on your time availability and stamina, how many of these you want to visit.
 
Tsurushi Area
The area is a few km off the main road. Go for the marker https://maps.app.goo.gl/Wo21AYgN32wg2oRY8 on google maps. There is a small parking lot and an info board. The “sights” are all in the forest. There are pretty good markers that lead you from place to place and an info board for each place. But basically you are just walking around the forest, as there is not much (rather nothing) left of the buildings that used to be there. It was still a pleasant walk in the forest though. It took me around one hour to see it all and I was the only one there. Not as popular as the main site. I would skip this part if you don’t have to urge to see all components and/or don’t like spiders.
 
Nishimikawa Placer Gold Mine
This one is in the south of Sado. Go for https://maps.app.goo.gl/pMxYCBnqw3jDdj86A. The info board shows all the POI. It’s a village and some of the places are houses, that still exist. Of course there are also “there used to be” places with nothing left to see. There is a parking lot (at least I assumed it’s one) close to place no 12. I whole loop will take approximately 2hours. There were people from the village, but no other tourists. I did also not see any shops, restaurants or other infrastructure. The road from/to the placer mine is very small, so hope for no counter traffic.
 
If you have more time, spend a few days on Sado. It’s very relaxed and there are some nice hiking routes I would have liked to follow.

Zoë Sheng

2.00 Chinese-Canadian - 28-Jan-18 -

Sado Island is a short ferry ride away from Niigata, which has good connections from Tokyo naturally, but also others such as Sapporo, Fukuoka. The main destination for Niigata is usually to see tehe golden leaf season which is in late autumn. Another reason would be the mines on Sado island, but Sado itself has several places to visit such as the Toki Forest Park.

The mines are unfortunately quite far away from the towns. There is a bus to the west coast and you would have to change again to reach the mines but that second bus time schedule is quite infrequent. So it is doable by public transport but I highly suggest you get that International Driving Permit for renting a car from the ferry port. If you are more than one person it is already worth it and the distances are not far. The locals drive very slowly here so you need to get used to that. The tourist information center at the ferry port also has an excellent map for all the attractions which can easily be stretched to a two day visit. 

Once you get to the west coast the scenery becomes really green and beautiful. It would be worth driving along the coast north and back towards the ferry port from there if you have the time on hand. The hills really look like you just landed on a different island in comparison to the flat areas of east Sado. The Sado gold mines are easy to find and has plenty of parking. They didn't speak any English but buying a ticket is made easy with the English pamphlet that offers several options. Option 1 and 2 are simply visits to the mines on your own. If you are in a group you can book a your guide ahead but I think it would be in Japanese.

Mine A is rather boring. You get to read some wooden boards about the mining techniques. It appears what the find special here is the imported techniques from other countries to improve the mining. Some from China and some from Europe. It will take around 20 minutes to get through this mine and then you get to a museum which is another 10 minutes or so. The odded thing was a giant gold brick in a plastic case with a hole big enough for your arm to reach in. If you can reach in, grab the brick and pull it out you win some price - but it is actually impossible to do so from the design already. Your arm cannot reach in properly and even if you finally reach the gold brick there is no grip on it as it is so heavy... The museum is almost entirely in Japanese though so you can look at the miniature models and the reconstructed mine shaft (or whatever that was) but you will not take too much time here. Both mine visits end up at the museum shop so don't buy anything yet if you are still going back to the entrance as you don't want to carry it around and up the hill. There are vending machines (hey, it's Japan!) for refreshments and I think in summer time there is a small cafe that opens.

Mine B goes along the cart tracks and leads to outside. The scenery outside is great and the small hike up to the collapsed mountain is worth it although the numbering was confusing and I almost missed this part. There are warning signs that you should not go inside the fenced off area but there are also clear signs that people still do from leaving some cigarette butts and snack bars in the bushes past the fence. The area between the mine shafts has an old shed with machinery. In a typical Japanese style they even managed to get a super clean toilet into the building across. Once you get through another mine shaft the view takes you further away from the collapsed mountain but this view is amazing. Stroll along for a few across the countryside and it leads back to the shed and you can take the same mine shaft to the exit to finish this tour.

Totally worth going for the combo ticket to see it all. The golden ticket also made me feel like I'm going to a Chocolate Factory soon. I treated it like it was gold and sealed it off in a small bag to ensure it would get back home in mint condition. If you only have time (due to that bus schedule) then do the mine that leads outside.