【Pilgrimage to Initial D's Sacred Ground】Day trip - Downhill of "Haruna Mountain," the model of Akina Touge, and Ikaho Onsen edition.

As a fan of the masterpiece "Initial D," I went to Haruna Mountain in Gunma Prefecture, a place I always wanted to visit someday. The mountain road reminiscent of the "ditch drop" executed in the story and the battle starting point. Moreover, with the golden water called Ikaho Onsen and the stone steps, it was a trip filled with highlights and great satisfaction.

Here we go to the mecca of Initial D, Haruna Touge!

As a fan of "Initial D," I've always wanted to visit the model of Akina Touge, heading towards Haruna Touge. Haruna Touge is located in Haruna Lake Town, Takasaki City, Gunma Prefecture, and in the story, the course from the parking lot near Ikaho Onsen to the summit is depicted. Arriving at the parking lot while glancing at the famous stone steps of Ikaho Onsen, my excitement rises as the scenes I've seen many times come to life!

I will introduce the downhill by making round trips, so first, I will aim for the starting point at the summit.

The guardrails and stopping spaces that I've seen numerous times in the story appear, raising my excitement! Since many exchanges take place at the starting point before battles, it is a very memorable spot.

Near the area, there are manholes created in collaboration between the work and Shibukawa City. In addition to this course starting point, it seems they are also installed near the hot spring town and Shibukawa station. The manhole features a charming design depicting an AE86 and FD racing side by side.

Now, let's start the downhill. It's hidden behind trees, but I pass by the water intake tower on the left and head towards the mountain road. Haruna Touge has a wide road and is very easy and enjoyable to drive, with moderately sharp hairpin turns.

There are points where it seems possible to gain cornering speed by dropping the front wheels into the ditch, which is called "ditch drop."

In the story, it was executed in the five consecutive hairpins in the second half of the course, but there weren't any ditches there; they were instead found here and there in the first half of the course. Based on my experience, I've never seen such ditches, so as mentioned in the story, I could feel that it's a technique unique to this place.

I've arrived at the finish line at the municipal parking lot, and that's the finish.

After finishing the touge, I decided to climb the famous stone steps of Ikaho Onsen. There were many relatively new shops, and a lot of stylish cafes were in business.

At the small water branching point called Komaguchi on the stone steps, a glass window was installed, showing the hot spring flowing vigorously. The hot water of Ikaho Onsen is called "golden water," and it's said to be a sulfate spring that turns brown when exposed to air. In the ditches on the small streets, discoloration indicating the properties of the hot spring was observed.

From the stone steps, I could see the beautifully snow-covered mountains such as Tanigawadake and Junikadake. It was extremely beautiful, and combined with the atmosphere of the hot spring town, it evoked a sense of travel.

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