The darkest road in Yokohama: tunnel of trees 木の横浜のトンネル

My visits to Yokohama always seem to be the same: start at Sakuragicho station, walk along the waterfront, passing the red brick warehouse, the cruise ship terminal, through Yamashita park, and then on to Motomachi. If we still have energy, we go up the hill into Yamate. And invariably, we walk through Chinatown on the way home, preferably at night, when the place really comes alive.

These visits are often the same because I’m bringing visitors from the States, and I know they’ll like it. But as a result, I know next to nothing about the rest of Yokohama.

Recently, while searching for Sou Fujimoto’s House OM, I noticed a very unusual street. From aerial photographs, the street appears to be nothing but an uninterrupted stretch of trees. But the driving directions insist that this is a road:

Fortunately, the spies at Google drive their Streetview-mobile through this stretch of forest, and it’s rather magical. In the first two pictures, we are approaching the entrance from the southern entrance (map). In the third picture, we have entered the woods, and are looking south, back towards the entrance of the woods. (Notice the blue ‘crow nets’ カラスネット protecting the neighborhood garbage.)

Approaching from the south

Closer to the entrance

In the woods, looking back at entrance

Here we are in the middle of the forest road, facing north and south from the same spot (map). It is virtually as dark as night. Facing south, it is so dark you can see the light from the car’s headlights.

Facing north

Facing south (see the headlights)

Two more pictures moving north, the first in the darkest spot of the road, and the second as we approach the exit. The third picture is outside the northern exit, looking back (south) towards the tunnel of trees (map).

The darkest spot

Close to the northern exit

North entrance looking south

Here is a Streetview from inside the forest:

And here’s the aerial view:

Despite the magical wooden path, we are literally a 5-minute walk from Keikyu-Tomioka Station 京急富岡駅, which looks like this:

 

And just 1km to the east is Namiki Danchi 並木団地 (housing estate) (map), seen here in 1978:

 

Coincidentally, namiki 並木 means “rows of trees” or “tree-lined”. Here is Namiki today: