Let’s pick up where we left off.
After enjoying our first lunch aboard the Shiki-shima cruise train, we got off at Mizusawa Station in Iwate Prefecture and visited the factory of a local foundry company, OIGEN. It was a fascinating visit—but since this is a railway blog, let’s get back to the trains.
On the second morning, we rolled into Aomori Station. Everything was covered in snow—it felt like we had stepped into a winter postcard.
Just after stepping off the train, I spotted a sleek-looking train gliding into the opposite platform. Of course, I had to take a photo. That’s the “Tsugaru” in the top picture!
The Tsugaru is a limited express service operated by JR East, running between Akita and Aomori—two prefectural capitals in Japan’s snowy north. It uses the E751 series AC EMU.
If you’ve been following this blog for a while, you might be thinking, “Wait, haven’t I seen this train before?”
Good eye! The E751 series does look quite similar to the E653-1000 series that I wrote about 12 years ago. But look a little closer and you’ll notice the differences—especially in the headlights and the color scheme.
There’s also a technical distinction: the E751 is a single-system AC train, while the E653-1000 series is a dual-system AC/DC train.
The E751 series entered service in 2000, replacing the older 485-3000 series. A total of 18 cars were built, and today 12 of them remain in service, operating as 4-car sets.
E751 series—thanks for braving the northern winter!
Since this was a group tour, I couldn’t spend as much time observing the train as I would have liked.
Before wrapping up this post, let me share something special: a Suite Room on the Shiki-shima cruise train. The photo below shows the room after the beds had been made. I couldn’t find any pictures of this setup on JR East’s official website, so I hope this gives you a better idea of what it looks like at night.
More coming soon…
