Suganuma is one of the two small villages in Gokayama that kept their thatched farmhouses, and it is the quieter of them. It sits on the bank of the Sho River in the mountains of southern Toyama Prefecture, in a steep, forested valley that for centuries was cut off by deep snow for months at a time. A cluster of about nine gassho-zukuri houses, with steep thatched roofs said to resemble hands pressed together in prayer, stand together on a small terrace above the water, and the effect, particularly in morning mist, is of a village from a woodblock print.
The isolation shaped the economy. In the Edo period, the farmers of Gokayama produced silk and paper, and they also made saltpetre, the ingredient for gunpowder, in pits beneath their floors, a trade that a local lord kept secret. Smoke from the open hearth kept the thatch dry and pest-free, and the great attic floors held silkworms. The valley is also home to Kokiriko, a folk song accompanied by wooden clappers that is thought to be one of the oldest in Japan, and the local paper, washi, is still made by hand. The listing of the villages by UNESCO, in 1995, was shared with Shirakawa-go across the border in Gifu.
The road here is part of the interest. The valley road follows the river through deep cuttings, tunnels and bridges, with gentle bends and a lot of shade, and in winter it is closed or restricted by heavy snow, so check conditions from November to April. From Fukumitsu, a town of nearly twenty thousand with fuel and shops, it is some seventeen kilometres to the village, and the last section is narrow, with limited parking at the edge of the settlement. Fuel in the valley is scarce, so fill in town.
Spring brings fresh green, and autumn is gold and red, but the silence is what stays with you. Walk slowly, keep off the paddies, and remember that these are working homes. A bowl of soba or a cup of tea at a farmhouse cafe suits the place well.