Like the wooden bridge
The current bridge, completed in 1934, is 155 meters long and 11 meters wide.
It is a steel-framed reinforced concrete girder bridge that is open to vehicular traffic,
However, in order to maintain harmony with the landscape, the old wooden bridge has been retained.
The bridge face has a bowed shape, about 1 meter higher in the center, with wooden square latticework railings, giving the bridge the appearance of a wooden bridge.
Park Nakanoshima
The Watarigetsukyo Bridge spans the north bank and Nakanoshima, an island that forms a sandbar in the Katsura River,
A short bridge, the Watarigetsu Kobashi, crosses between Nakanoshima and the southern shore.
Most of Nakanoshima is in the Nakanoshima area of Arashiyama Park, a protected park.
The area is lined with beautiful trees, many of which are pine trees and cherry trees, and is crowded with visitors, especially during the cherry blossom viewing season.
Erected as an approach to the shrine
It is said that the bridge was first built in 836 by Dosho, a monk and disciple of Kukai, as a path for pilgrims to Horinji Temple located on the mountainside of Arashiyama, and was called Horinji Bridge.
It is also said that the bridge was initially located about 100 meters upstream.
Moon Crossing Bridge
In the Kamakura period (1185-1333), Emperor Kameyama watched the moon moving over the bridge and commented that it was like the moon moving across the bridge, which he called "Kumanashi Tsuki no Wataru.
This is why the bridge was later called "Watarigatsukibashi" (crossing the moon bridge).
In the old painting "Yamashiro Arashiyama Togetsu Bashi" (painted by Katsushika Hokusai), an arc-shaped bridge is depicted.
Moving the bridge
In 1606, Ryoui Kadokura, a merchant, cut down timber and other products from Kameoka to Arashiyama in order to send them to Kyoto,
The bridge was built in 1606 when Ryoto Kadokura, a merchant, constructed the Hozu River as a waterway so that products could be transported by boat from the upper reaches of the river,
The bridge was rebuilt in its present location and became the prototype of the Wataratsukibashi Bridge that remains to this day.
Changing River Names
The name of the river that flows under the Watarigatsukyo Bridge is administratively unified as the Katsuragawa River, but after the Watarigatsukyo Bridge, the name changes to the Katsuragawa River downstream, the Hozugawa River upstream, and the Oigawa River further upstream from Kameoka.
Elegant scenery
The upstream side of Watarazukibashi Bridge is a landing place for Hozu River cruises, and there is also a dock for houseboats and rental boats, where many boats can be seen.
Arashiyama and Sagano have many attractions, including Tenryuji Temple, a World Heritage Site, nearby Tenryuji Temple, Bamboo Grove Lane, Nison-in Temple, Gion-ji Temple, Nomiya Shrine, Daikaku-ji Temple, and Okochi Sanso Villa.