Stroll around the retro architecture while feeling the coolness on the Nakatsugawa promenade

The Nakatsugawa River, which flows near Morioka Castle Ruins Park in the center of Morioka City, is a river full of nature where you can enjoy a variety of expressions depending on the season, such as forget-me-nots and weeping cherry blossoms in the spring, snails in the early summer, colored leaves in the fall, and snow covered in the winter. Although it is a river that flows through a city, the water is so clear that you can see the bottom, and it is also known for seeing sweetfish in the summer, salmon swimming upstream in the fall, and migratory birds such as swans in the winter. The ''Nakatsugawa Walking Path'' has been constructed from the confluence with the Kitakami River upstream to the Nakatsugawa Bridge, making it a place for residents to relax and enjoy the seasons throughout the year.

The charm of Nakatsugawa is that you can see the historic townscape along with the natural scenery. There are many retro buildings along the river. Gozaku, a merchant house built from the late Edo period to the end of the Meiji period, still sells bamboo crafts and household goods; Iwate Bank Red Brick Building, a Western-style building built in 1911; and the former 90th Bank headquarters, built in 1910. The Morioka Takuboku/Kenji Seishunkan building, which is a preserved building, and the Konyamachi Banya building, which retains the vestiges of a fire station from the Taisho era and was reopened as an exchange and experience facility in April 2022, are all valuable buildings that convey the era.

In the summer when sweetfish are dancing, why not take a tour of the retro architecture while feeling the cool breeze of the Nakatsugawa River?