Matsuhime Pass (1,250 m) is a

mountain pass A mountain pass is a navigable route through a mountain range or over a ridge. Since mountain ranges can present formidable barriers to travel, passes have played a key role in trade, war, and both Human migration, human and animal migration t ...

in-between Otsuki and Kosuge,

Yamanashi Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu. Yamanashi Prefecture has a population of 787,592 (1 February 2025) and has a geographic area of 4,465 km2 (1,724 sq mi). Yamanashi Prefecture borders Saitama Prefecture to the n ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

Outline

The mountain pass is named ''Matsuhime Tōge'', because Matsuhime, who was a daughter of Shingen Takeda, passed through the mountain pass when she got away from an army of

Nobunaga Oda was a Japanese ''daimyō'' and one of the leading figures of the Sengoku and Azuchi-Momoyama periods. He was the and regarded as the first "Great Unifier" of Japan. He is sometimes referred as the "Demon Daimyō" and "Demon King of the ...

in the

Sengoku period The was the period in History of Japan, Japanese history in which civil wars and social upheavals took place almost continuously in the 15th and 16th centuries. The Kyōtoku incident (1454), Ōnin War (1467), or (1493) are generally chosen as th ...

. At present, Japan National Route 139 which is an old road is passed through the mountain pass. The old road has been narrow (one lane going each way) and winding, because the area is a steep topo. But, got rid of rough road because Matsuhime Tunnel (3066m) which belongs to Matsuhime Bypass (3800m) opened in 2014. Furthermore, as the Matsuhime Bypass (3800m) was open to traffic as a new road of Japan National Route 139 in 2014, the old road was closed due to reconstruction from March to September 2015. The old road had been accessible from October 2015, but has been closed due to danger of falling rocks and landslides since 2019. The safety of one section of the old road was confirmed in 2020. For the above reason, the mountain pass has been accessible by car only from

Kosuge, Yamanashi is a village located in Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan. , the village had an estimated population of 701, and a population density of 13 persons per km2. The total area of the village is . Geography Kosuge is located in the mountainous far northe ...

since 2020.about suspension of traffic canceled
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Surrounding area

* Fukashiro Dam * Kazunogawa Dam

Transportation

Access to the mountain pass, is only a bus route. Matsuhime Bus stop

No	Via	Destination	Company	Note
Uenohara Line	Kosuge no Yu, Tsuru Pass	Uenohara Station	Fujikyu Bus	Runs on holidays only from April through November.

References

{{reflist

External links

Yamanashi Tourist

Mountain passes of Japan