Takedao Tunnel Hike (武田尾)
Last updated: December 14, 2025
Officially known at Mukogawa Gorge (武庫川渓谷), this is a gentle, family-oriented afternoon stroll along the old, abandoned JR Fukuchiyama Line railway tracks. There are several dark, creepy tunnels to pass through, so a headlamp or flashlight is imperative.
The hike: When you exit the train at Namaze station, go out the ticket gate, turn right, and head down the main road (with a Co-op Mini supermarket on your left) through the small tunnel. After the tunnel the road curves towards the right and meets a busy main road. Turn left, staying on the left shoulder of the really busy road on the narrow sidewalk. Head straight toward a big tunnel, but instead of going through the road tunnel, head through the pedestrian-only tunnel on your left. This tunnel will spit you out into the main tunnel shortly, so head left and walk through the noisy and busy tunnel. After the tunnel, follow the sidewalk along a huge transparent wall that separates you from the busy road. Follow this main road for about 10 minutes until reaching a large freeway overpass. Walk under the huge expressway overpass and take your first right. There’s a crosswalk here but no traffic light, so hopefully a car will stop and let you cross. Otherwise it might be a bit like playing the old video game Frogger. Cross the street and head toward the left for a short distance and then take your first right down a paved road that has some curvy switchbacks. There are no signposts so it’s very easy to get lost, but make sure you are descending towards the river. At the end of the paved road turn left and follow the dirt road that will eventually turn into a proper hiking trail. The path follows the left bank of the river most of the way, and if you look down you can still see the wooden railway ties in place, but the rails have been removed. Also, keep your eyes peeled on the left side of the path and you can see old railway signs from time to time. Anyway, you’ll soon come to a metal lookout point on your right. Climb the metal stairs and take in the scenery. From here the trail continues upstream for about 15 minutes until reaching the entrance for the first tunnel. This is a good warm-up of what to expect for most of the way, and if you let your eyes adjust to the dark, then a flashlight is not necessary in this first tunnel. After the first tunnel, the trail becomes a bit wild in the summer, with lots of overgrown foliage and the rhythmic pattern of half-buried wooden railroad ties. The river scenery on your right is nice, but to be honest would be a hundred times nicer if the river weren’t so polluted. There’s a factory upstream that is dumping some questionable waste into the river. Even if you could get down to the river bank, I would not swim here. Anyway, soon you’ll reach the second tunnel, which is one of the longest and scariest on the entire route. Due to the bend in the tunnel, a flashlight is absolutely necessary. If you suffer from claustrophobia then perhaps this is one hike to miss. If you’ve brought your kids then they’ll have a blast running through the tunnels playing hide and seek. Be careful of water dripping from the ceiling of the aging tunnels, as it can get muddy in places. After coming out of the the tunnel, you’ll soon pass through a really short tunnel that is only about 5 meters long. There are benches at some of the tunnel entrances if you feel the need for a break. Otherwise, just keep walking on the flat trail admiring the river scenery. The next tunnel will come in about 20 minutes or so, and ends at the base of a stunning railroad bridge that has been renovated. Immediately after crossing the bridge you’ll duck into another tunnel before popping out and following the right bank of the river (with the river on your left). Here the scenery resembles more of a walk in the park than a mountain stroll, and in the spring the cherry blossoms are a site to behold. You’ll soon reach your first signpost of the day, pointing towards Takedao (武田尾), which is still 1.6km away. After 5 minutes you’ll pass a lion carving on your right with a stone stairwell that leads to a forest filled with cherry blossoms. Feel free to explore it if you’ve got extra time. Otherwise, continue straight on through a short tunnel that is still completely made of brick. Just past the tunnel you’ll see a trail on your left that leads to a plaza and offers access to the river bank (again, don’t let your kids play in the filthy water). Soon after, you’ll pass through a final tunnel made of brick before reaching the end of the hike. Cross the bridge and you’ll see a new restaurant right in front of you. Turn right and then left, following the main road (past an ice cream shop that may or may not be open) for about 15 minutes to Takedao station(武田尾) on your right. If you’re keen for a hot spring bath, then instead of going to the station, continue walking along the river for another 15 minutes or so, and you’ll reach Takedao Onsen which usually allows day trippers access to their baths. The entire facility was rebuilt after experiencing a major flood.
All in all is a 2 to 3 hour hike depending on how many breaks you take.
When to go: This hike can easily be done year round. Make sure you bring a flashlight or headlamp, because two of the tunnels are impossible to traverse without one. If you’re there on a weekend you could rely on other groups, but during the week do not expect much other foot traffic. There is a very cool art event every September which uses some of the tunnels near Takedao station as a canvas for a giant art and music project. It’s highly recommended, and can be combined with a hike of the tunnels if you time it correctly. Search for Takedao Art Tunnel Event on Facebook and check out these photos from the 2013 event.
Access: From Osaka station, take train on the JR Fukuchiyama Line bound for Shin-sanda (新三田) and get off at Namaze (生瀬) station. A local train takes about 40 minutes, so if you want to save time, then take a rapid (kaisoku) train to either Kawanishi-Ikeda (川西池田) or Takarazuka (宝塚) stations, and change to the local train there. The return train is just two stops further north from Namaze, so take a local train all the way back to Osaka or again change to a rapid at Takrazuka or Kawanishi-Ikeda if you’re pressed for time.
Level of difficulty: 1 out of 5 (elevation change 〜100m)
Distance: 7km ( 2 to 3 hours)
Explore posts in the same categories: ArchiveTags: hiking, japan, Kansai, Takedao
You can comment below, or link to this permanent URL from your own site.
Hiking in Japan 
August 31, 2014 at 2:37 pm
Thanks, we did this walk last week. Your directions are spot on, thanks a lot!
June 11, 2015 at 5:19 pm
I live fairly close to this trail, and you’ve described it accurately. Just to update a couple of things, though: The river isn’t as polluted as it used to be, so I don’t know whether that factory upstream has closed down, or cleaned up their operations, but the river looks fine. Also, there are no longer any shops in the “town” at Takedao. (They were actually in the process of demolishing the former restaurant when I passed by the other day.) It looks as if they are doing some extensive flood/landslide mitigation works, so maybe they plan to rebuild it at some point in the future. But for now, no cold beers after the hike. :-(
July 19, 2015 at 1:13 am
Thank you so much for the detailed info. Thoroughly enjoyed the trip.
October 19, 2015 at 4:52 pm
October 18, 2015
We did this trail and it was great! Very flat, easy hiking. The directions laid out above were correct and concise with the exception that there is no ‘town’ to walk through. There is a lot of construction at the end of the trail before the Takedao station. However, after the train station there is a lovely red bridge leading to some ryokans on the left and right side of the river.
September 5, 2016 at 5:28 pm
Hello! Tried to take a few friends here today (Sept. 5, 2016) but unfortunately it is closed. After you walk down the switchback paved road and turn left along the river, you will find the dirt road is seriously blocked, guard and all. The guard said the work would be done in November 2016. Not sure what kind of work they were doing but there was heavy construction equipment. Perhaps you could approach the walk from Takedao instead of Namaze but I’m not sure how far along the construction goes or if there are other blockades.
Cheers,
Lindsay
September 5, 2016 at 11:57 pm
Lindsay, that must have been disappointing. But yes, it’s business as usual at the Takedao end. I think you can go as far as the red railway bridge (or at least up to the tunnel just before that).
September 6, 2016 at 11:46 am
Great to know, thanks! Maybe I’ll try that next time.
November 6, 2016 at 3:14 pm
The tunnels are closed for construction until November 15!
January 3, 2017 at 7:42 pm
This recently opened as an “official” hiking trail, with the path now very safe for everyone, proper pedestrian bridges, safety rails, fencing, signs etc. Just did the hike today (January 3, 2017) with my 6-year-old daughter and 8-year-old son. Happy to share more details and photos if you like.
January 3, 2017 at 8:00 pm
Cheers Richard for the update. I knew they were doing some work on the trail. Did they install lights in the tunnels as well, or do you still need a headlamp/torch?
March 1, 2017 at 9:58 am
Apologies for very slow reply. No lights in the tunnels – you still need to bring a headlamp or torch.
October 10, 2017 at 1:47 pm
The road under the large expressway bridge has been redone very recently. The gas/service station is gone, but there is a pedestrian crossing at the turnoff. (Good luck getting across!)
July 15, 2018 at 10:07 am
If you do the full walk from Namaze to Takedao, it’s actually 7 km rather than 5 km (an important difference when walking with a 7 year old in scorching hot weather! – though she did just fine)
July 15, 2018 at 12:20 pm
JP thanks for the update. Sorry to hear about the heat (hopefully you didn’t do that one yesterday in this dreadful humidity). I’ll update this hike description to reflect the true distance.
Thanks
Wes
September 17, 2018 at 5:46 pm
The important works on the national road 176 are still running, so the access from Namaze is still noisy but safe.
Today (2018 9 17 national holyday) I’ve found to leaflet that present the access to the walk from Namaze, from Takedao and from Nishinomiyanajio. In the reverse there is a description of the walk itself. On the leaflet (all in japanese but with many photos) there is a website adress where you can found the leaflet to print : http://nishinomiya-kanko.jp/haisen2017/
The walk has become very safe for instance: the old rusty bridges are know doubled by some recent wood constructions, and also there are some place to make pic nic (for instance in sakuranoen (yakusho sansou) – 桜の園 (亦楽山荘) – part of Takarazuka sakuranomori project : https://www.sakuramori.net/
BUT there is no lights in the tunnels, because it would certainly remove a specificity to this very easy familial walk.
In Takedao the rebuilding works are still running, and today there are 3 houses near the parkings. Perhaps some restaurants or tea rooms or refreshment places will reopen soon. The onsen near the station is still existing.
September 17, 2018 at 8:53 pm
Xavier, Thanks so much for the updated information. Much appreaciated!
Wes
April 4, 2019 at 7:40 am
Thanks to the writers and all the above posters for all the helpful pointers.
There is an updated Japanese map of Namaze – Takedao route here
https://nishinomiya-kanko.jp/fukuchiyamasen_haisenjiki2019/
July 5, 2019 at 9:00 pm
Hi, we did the trail today and your instructional guide was spot on! Really helped us get through the trail with so much ease, so thank you@
March 16, 2023 at 1:03 pm
Great hike, we also did the Cherry blossom trail too
However I want to update you to the latest happenings.
1. Red Bridge is no longer, its being replaced by a blue one which is under construction
2. A new tunnel and road being made next to the busy road you walk along for 20mins, this stays on your left.
3. Due to new road works there is NO COSMOS GAS STATION!!
So as said once you pass under the overpass take the first right and let it take you down to the river to start the course.
At the end, there is a wonderful little shokudo, restaurant, that are charming and welcoming. They don’t speak English but the menu is in English and instructions set out to help foreigners. So Beer and Sake is back on!!
Great walk and definitely easy and family friendly.
August 15, 2025 at 11:51 pm
You need to update your directions. There was lots of road construction going on and your directions were useless. Please update. We went there 4/2025.
December 14, 2025 at 8:56 pm
John,
Many thanks for your comment and for pointing out the really terrible directions. I just rewalked this hike based on your feedback and have completely updated the hiking description to reflect the most recent conditions. I apologize for not getting this updated sooner.