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22:42, 26 February 2023 RaymondW talk contribs posted a new comment on Nagahara Castle (Glad to see this fortified palace profile up on JCastle. Thanks for creating the profile, ART. As you have mentioned, the Nagahara Goten Shoin is at Ashiura-Kannonji, a fortified temple with some nice ishigaki and a wooden gate. However, it is rarely open to the public, so I haven’t been able to get in and see the relocated building from Nagahara Goten yet. ART, if you have any photos of the inside of Nagahara Goten ruin, you should upload them here. You can easily see three of the four sid...)
22:40, 26 February 2023 RaymondW talk contribs posted a new comment on Tedori Castle (I’m glad to see that Eric has put up this mountaintop castle profile. There aren’t many castle profiles for Wakayama Prefecture, not because there aren’t many castles and castle ruins in Wakayama, but because it is so time-consuming to get them. Well, Tedori Castle is absolutely worth the effort. As Eric’s photos has shown here, this yamajiro is chock full of the earthwork features that castle fans love seeing such as baileys, horikiris (ditches), tateboris (ditches cut running vertically dow...)
22:34, 26 February 2023 RaymondW talk contribs posted a new comment on Kimura Castle (The ruins of Azuchi Port are overlooked by most people when they visit Azuchi Castle. As Eric’s photos have shown here, there are some extant stone walls and canals to be seen. Even though I have been to the site of Kimura Castle a few times in my exploration of Azuchi Port, I have not included it on my list of castles and castle ruins visited for the simple reason there are absolutely no castle ruins left from the days when the Rokkaku Clan ruled this region.)
05:57, 20 February 2023 ART talk contribs posted a new comment on Yamazaki Castle (I'll need to revisit... with, erm, a map next tiime!)
16:53, 19 February 2023 RaymondW talk contribs posted a new comment on Hikone Castle (The Hikone Castle profile and the associated sections about the castle town must be the most comprehensive source of information in English about Hikone Castle and the historical buildings from the former castle town. This collection of short articles is even more detailed and informative than many Hikone Castle websites in Japanese that I’ve come across. Eric, this is quite an achievement and thanks very much for putting in lots of hard yakka to get all this information under one roof for ca...)
16:48, 19 February 2023 RaymondW talk contribs posted a new comment on Kamaha Castle (Eric, thanks for adding this detailed castle profile to your JCastle website and bringing it to the attention of the expat Jcastle fan community. It is one of the many little-known castle gems in Shiga that some castle fans don’t know about. Your castle profile is superb and covers many things that I have read about the castle and heard from a volunteer guide at the museum. We often think that the Nakasendo just ran through the valley floor, but Kamaha Castle was built astride the older trail...)
16:42, 19 February 2023 RaymondW talk contribs posted a new comment on Minakuchi Castle (Good work on adding many more photos of this castle on JCastle. It’s been years since my previous visits, so perhaps I’m due for another re-visit. There are still a few castle ruins in the area that I haven’t visited yet. As always, there are too many castles and too little free time.)
16:40, 19 February 2023 RaymondW talk contribs posted a new comment on Hoshigasaki Castle (I’ve been to this little-known yamajiro ruin a few times, including one visit where I hiked from Hoshigaki Castle via Mt. Kagami across to Kotsuzumishiroyama Castle passing Iwakura Castle on the way. If a castle fan does this, it makes for a good combo of visiting several castle ruins and getting in an easy bushwalk for a few hours. The trail to Mt Kagami leads out from that dobashi-like trail heading away from Hoshigasaki Castle in one of your photos. Along the way up to Mt Kagami, there are...)
16:37, 19 February 2023 RaymondW talk contribs posted a new comment on Yamazaki Castle (Looking at your photos, it looks like the ishigaki remnants up at the upper part of the castle near the well has crumpled a lot more since my visits back in 2011 and 2012. Did you get a photo of Koguchi b? It was already fairly overgrown a decade ago when I visited, but sometimes castle ruins get spiffed up. Alternatively, it might decay some more and become hidden in even more undergrowth. There isn’t a lot to see at this castle ruin when compared to other yamajiro ruins in Kyoto, Osaka, and...)
16:33, 19 February 2023 RaymondW talk contribs posted a new comment on Shuuchi Castle (It’s good to see this mountaintop castle profile up on JCastle. Great photos as always. This yamajiro stands out in my mind not because of its extant ishigaki but rather for my first 10 minutes on site when my wife and I came across three snakes including one that just didn’t want to slither away. Unlike you, we went on ANZAC Day nearly 8 years ago and not in prime yamajiro-hunting season during the colder months. My wife and I didn’t know there was an outlying fort which protected the wester...)
17:24, 2 February 2023 ART talk contribs posted a new comment on Tsukui Castle (Tsukuijō is a castle site in two or three parts. There are the terraces at the foot of the castle mount which constituted the castle’s kyokan (residential area). These are located over a medieval-style bridge across a deep creek. On the other side of the creek where there are park facilities and a parking area there is also some terracing of the hillside; a latter day daikansho (feudal administrative centre) was located here after the abandonment of the medieval castle. The main area of Tsu...)
00:38, 1 February 2023 AnneMcL talk contribs posted a new comment on Ishinomaki Castle (Thank you!)
13:34, 31 January 2023 ART talk contribs posted a new comment on Ishinomaki Castle (Well done with the detailed profile!)
15:31, 23 January 2023 ART talk contribs posted a new comment on Tsutsujigasaki Palace (Tsutsujiǵasaki-yakata, the castellated residence of three generations of the Takeda Clan - Nobutora, Shingen, Katsuyori - has many outer ruins. In recent years one portion in the south which was formerly built over with housing has been reclaimed and preserved as a park. This is the Baiō Bailey. There is dorui (earthen ramparts), mizubori (a moat) and even some ishigaki (stone-piled masonry) here, as well as explanation panels and some other ruins. It's worth coming through here on the way t...)
15:31, 23 January 2023 ART talk contribs posted a new comment on Yumurayama Castle (Yumurayamajō is a Sengoku period yamajiro (mountaintop castle) site overlooking Yumura, an onsen neighbourhood in Kōfu. Ruins include earthworks and some bits of old masonry. I had been prepared to be disappointed in one aspect coming because I knew that there was once a reconstructed miyagura (watchtower) built here but that it had been torn down after becoming dilapidated. However, much to my delight, I found a completely new miyagura there in its place! The new miyagura was constructed at...)
15:06, 23 January 2023 ART talk contribs posted a new comment on Ashigara Castle (There's a few more baileys further down, but what's interesting is that the karabori get wider the further down one goes! I wrote about this site: 'Ashigarajō is an earthworks fort site straddling a mountain pass. The main bailey is well maintained as mountain parkland. Features include kuruwa (baileys), karabori (dry moats), and other earthworks, such as trenches and dorui (earthen ramparts). The further one goes from the main bailey the quieter it becomes, and, although it was busy the day...)
10:48, 23 January 2023 ART talk contribs posted a new comment on Senpuku Castle (I went here this weekend. I had a lovely time. I thought this site was fantastic. Considering you went in June it probably wasn't worth persevering. The recommended route is to go up from the lefthand side when approaching the temple and climb the hill via the cemetery there. There are signposts and some stairways with handrails all made of wood. This route takes one by several smartly delineated moats, both karabori and tatebori. The karabori to the rear of the main bailey is wide, and the t...)
10:32, 19 January 2023 ART talk contribs posted a new comment on Yumurayama Castle (I've made a slight update. A new miyagura (watch tower) was built here at the end of last year! It looks better than the old one (from what i can tell). I'll comment my other impressions of this site later perhaps.)
15:37, 12 January 2023 ART talk contribs posted a new comment on Nochiseyama Castle (I went here and was made up with it. I visited most of the vast site, climbing up from behind the Hachiman shrine to see that ridge spur. There was a well formed dobashi and trench complex there, as well as lots of terracing, so I’m glad I went up that way. Much of the old stone work is difficult to see as it is on the outside of the main bailey without sub-baileys to give easy purchase below. So, rather dubiously in the muddy conditions, I got down at various points around the slope, and too...)
20:29, 9 January 2023 Eric talk contribs posted a new comment on Castles of Koka - 28 New Castle Profiles from Shiga Prefecture (no, I posted the original article direct on FB, but not this update. This is mostly as a record and for anyone not following the FB page. I made some minor updates after re-reading it recently but nothing major since I first posted to FB.)
17:52, 7 January 2023 ART talk contribs posted a new comment on Kanegasaki Castle (So, it seems back in 2018 when the 'Kanegasaki Castle (Iwate)' profile was created, some pictures here got replaced with pictures from there. I just sent one picture to the Iwate profile which showed a masugata road; it waited five years but it has finally been re-united with its fellows. The other picture already had a duplicate on the Iwate profile so i deleted it here. I think the original pictures here showed Kanegasaki Shrine. It's not really the castle site though; i'll upload some pict...)
18:34, 4 January 2023 ART talk contribs posted a new comment on Castles of Koka - 28 New Castle Profiles from Shiga Prefecture ((You haven't linked this page on FB, right? I didn't see it.))
19:53, 1 January 2023 ART talk contribs posted a new comment on Kofu Castle (Some clarification on this castle's origins. The castle as seen today largely took shape in the early Edo period. Before 1583 it was the site of a Takeda controlled fort called 一条小山城. Initially a yakata was built in the late Heian period, and Takeda Nobutora is thought also to have fortified the hill with the construction of Tsutsujigasaki-yakata.)
08:30, 1 January 2023 ART talk contribs posted a new comment on Minakuchi Castle (I was able to re-visit at some point. It's a neat little site. The original castle was much larger, encompassing the adjacent sports field.)
14:19, 30 December 2022 Eric talk contribs posted a new comment on Ansho Castle (wow, sounds like an awesome day. So many good stories out there meeting like-minded castle people along the way. Ansho is the original proper castle name, Anjo came about because of the city name. All older sources list it as Ansho.)
14:15, 30 December 2022 Eric talk contribs posted a new comment on Ansho Castle (Ansho is the original proper name off 安祥, as per more authoritative sources, not wikipedia. I suspect reading it as Anjo came about from the city name.)
12:41, 30 December 2022 ART talk contribs posted a new comment on Hikone Castle (Just been through all of the new bukeyashiki profiles. Amazing!)
12:38, 30 December 2022 ART talk contribs posted a new comment on Murayama Residence (some of the samurai homes in Sasayama and Kanagasaki are cafes. it's a good idea.)
12:36, 30 December 2022 ART talk contribs posted a new comment on Ohmura Residence (contrast with the ashigaru homes is pretty stark. i wonder if the family is still considered a cut above the residents of the ashigaru hovels.)
12:34, 30 December 2022 ART talk contribs posted a new comment on Taniyama Residence (this one looks heavily modified!)
14:30, 28 December 2022 ART talk contribs posted a new comment on Sakasai Castle (Mallet golf!)
14:24, 28 December 2022 ART talk contribs posted a new comment on Ansho Castle (It's very dedicated of you to return to a site like this!)
14:09, 28 December 2022 ART talk contribs posted a new comment on Sawayama Castle (I see. Good stuff.)
14:05, 28 December 2022 ART talk contribs posted a new comment on Hikone Castle Town (Well done, Eric, this is really incredible. I had been down a few old roads near the castle in Hikone before and was impressed by the sense of times bygone, but I had no idea about how much remained. I hope the municipality can develop these valuable assets. (Also had no idea there was an English term for 'Kuichigai'!))
06:43, 28 December 2022 ART talk contribs posted a new comment on Koga Castle (Excellent profile, Furinkazan! ^ ^)
06:42, 28 December 2022 ART talk contribs posted a new comment on Musashi Masugata Castle (I switched the alternative and lead names, thanks!)
02:46, 28 December 2022 Furinkazan talk contribs posted a new comment on Musashi Masugatayama Castle (Like ART, I visited this site, on 16/12/2022, only because it's next to the Nihon Minka-en. After checking the name of this castle, it should be Masugata castle. It is situated on Masugatayama, but the castle name doesn't have the -yama in it. So it appears on the site of Kawasaki city: https://www.city.kawasaki.jp/880/page/0000000109.html)
01:19, 28 December 2022 Furinkazan talk contribs posted a new comment on Sakasai Castle (On 14/12/2022, I saw a comment on Google Maps about the path to the newly built yagura of Mito castle to be closed until the 19th of January. And apparently, the museum at Tsuchiura is temporarily closed. So I completely changed my plans for today, 15/12/2022. I went to Sakasai castle in the morning. I visited this castle in 2009 and used my then 'smartphone' to take pictures. These are actually awful, and since long I wanted to visit this place again. Sadly, it's really out of the way, and n...)
01:15, 28 December 2022 Furinkazan talk contribs posted a new comment on Edo Castle (On 14/12/2022, I went to 2 gates I've never been to. These were the Tayasu and Shimizu gates. I thought the Shimizumon to have a very particular defensive system. It's like an open masugata gate, and I'm glad to have seen it.)
01:07, 28 December 2022 Furinkazan talk contribs posted a new comment on Shinagawa Battery Islands (On 14/12/2022, I visited this site for a second time. The weather was better than in 2016 and I took more time to visit the 3rd battery. I walked a longer distance on the Rainbow bridge also, to get some other angles of the batteries.)
00:47, 28 December 2022 Furinkazan talk contribs posted a new comment on Nishio Castle (On 13/12/2022, I encountered a man training to be a guide at Ansho castle, who lives nearby Nishio castle. He proposed to visit the castle together. I wanted to visit this one again since the Ushitora turret and a part of the byobudobei(earthen rampart in folding screen shape) have been reconstructed since my last visit in 2014.)
00:36, 28 December 2022 Furinkazan talk contribs posted a new comment on Ansho Castle (Due to the rain on 13/12/2022, I changed my plans and went first to the Anjô city museum, located next to the Anjôjô ruins. It was still raining when I finished visiting the museum, but went to the castle ruins. There are now a temple and a shrine on the former castle grounds. Of the castle there isn't much to see. At the temple there was a group of elderly persons. They were training to guide people around the place in expectation of next year's Taiga drama's attraction to the site. A lady o...)
00:28, 28 December 2022 Furinkazan talk contribs posted a new comment on Iga Ueno Castle (On 12/12/2022 I went to Iga-Ueno. I took 2 trains to there. The second one is a wanman, just one car and there aren't a lot of them to reach Iga-Ueno, so plan carefully. From Iga-Ueno station I took the local train to Uenoshi station. I then had to rid of my big luggage and tried the coin locker at the station, but even the biggest was just 2 cm not deep enough. I went to the tourist information desk in the Haitopia bldg. in front of the station. Normally they take care of some luggages, but...)
00:23, 28 December 2022 Furinkazan talk contribs posted a new comment on Yamato Koriyama Castle (On 11/12/2022 I visited this site again. I appreciated it more than on my first visit in 2010. I came from the JR Kôriyama station. It's about a 1.2km walk. First I went to the outer north bailey's gate and went straight to the moat around the still surviving buildings. The path around the honmaru is closed, due to works being done. The reconstructed bridge is a marvel. It wasn't there in 2010. I went also on the tenshudai(donjon foundation).)
23:52, 27 December 2022 Furinkazan talk contribs posted a new comment on Osaka Castle (Since my last visit in 2019, I wanted to go around the castle and that's what I did on 09/12/2022. I spent the whole day walking all around the site and saw several buildings I never saw before, like the Ichibanyagura and Inuiyagura. The weather was astounding and I strolled leisurely around the different baileys.)
23:29, 27 December 2022 Furinkazan talk contribs posted a new comment on Kishiwada Castle (I visited this site again on 08/12/2022. I got off the train at Higashi-Kishiwada station on the JR Hanwa line. From there it's a 2km walk to the castle. There is a small collection of weapons and armors in the museum of the tenshu(donjon). You have a nice surrounding view from the top of it. The site is well maintained.)
22:52, 27 December 2022 Eric talk contribs posted a new comment on Sawayama Castle (There is another Sawayama gate a few kilos away too. It's just a bit tricky to get to, if I remember correctly.)
22:52, 27 December 2022 Eric talk contribs deleted comment #2271 on Sawayama Castle
22:51, 27 December 2022 Eric talk contribs posted a new comment on Sawayama Castle (There is another Sawayama gate a few kilos away too. It's just a bit tricky to get to, if I remember correctly.)
22:50, 27 December 2022 Eric talk contribs posted a new comment on Sawayama Castle (There is some cool stuff at that temple though. I just didn't post because it wasn't castle related. I loved the tiles buried in the walls too, supposedly to help stop or deflect bullets, so for a temple it was "prepared"!)

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