The 273 Series: New Trans-Mountain Limited Express

EMU JR West 273 series, Limited Express “Yakumo,” stands at Matsue Station

Time really flies. On the day before returning home, I went to see the night view of Lake Shinji-ko in Matsue City. Unfortunately it was raining, but I could still enjoy the beautiful illuminations on the opposite shore (see the photo below).

Lake Shinji-ko is blessed with various aquatic products known as the “Delicacies of Lake Shinji-ko,” including shrimp, eel, whitebait, smelt, and shijimi clams. All of them taste wonderful, but shijimi is my personal favorite. It is a type of freshwater black clam commonly used in Japanese home cooking and widely available at grocery stores.

The day of departure finally came. I boarded the limited express “Yakumo (Overlapping Clouds)” at Matsue Station. A new model, the EMU JR West 273 series, has recently been introduced for the Yakumo service (see the top photo). The 273 series debuted on April 6 this year, replacing the old EMU 381 series. A total of 11 sets (44 cars) were built by Kinki Sharyo.

The highlight of this model is its remarkable curve-passing performance. By tilting its body using pendular technology, the 273 series can maintain higher speeds through the tight curves on the trans-mountain section penetrating the Chugoku Mountains. The ride is pleasantly smooth, even when running along the winding tracks. The light-brown body color also looks unique and vivid.

After enjoying the scenery of the mountains, I arrived at Okayama, which is the transfer station to Sanyo Shinkansen.

Night view of Lake Shinji-ko near Matsue Station

Related link:

・Official information about the new “Yakumo” limited express by JR West (Japanese only)

Holy Beach and Train in Shimane Prefecture

EMU Ichibata 5000 series stands at Matsue-Shinjiko-onsen Railyard

Continuing from my previous post, I would like to introduce one of the trains of the Ichibata Electric Railway. The EMU 5000 series is Ichibata’s high-end train (see the photo above). It has mainly been used as a limited express train connecting Dentetsu-Izumoshi and Izumotaisha-mae, transporting worshippers to the holy Izumotaisha Shrine. Each car is 18 meters long with a steel body, and one trainset consists of two motorcars. Unlike other trains, it has only four doors per unit.

As with the Ichibata 2100 series, which I introduced in an earlier post, the Ichibata 5000 series is also an ex-Keio 5000 series train. The Ichibata 2100 series still keeps the original design of the Keio 5000 series. On the other hand, the Ichibata 5000 series looks somewhat different. It was modified before moving from the Keio Line in 1998.

Many passengers take this “holy train” to visit Izumotaisha Shrine. Taking this opportunity, I would like to introduce a holy beach, “Inasanohama,” located near the shrine. According to a local legend, deities from all over Japan gather at Izumotaisha Shrine for an annual meeting held in October of the lunar calendar, and they are welcomed by local people here on this beach.

It is a beautiful bow-shaped sandy beach featuring a sacred rock named Benten-jima. It is said that the setting sun is especially stunning here, but the morning scenery was also beautiful (see the photo below).

I fully enjoyed both the holy beach and the train in Shimane Prefecture.

Inasanohama Beach near Izumotaisha-mae Station on the Ichibata Electric Railway

Related link:

・Official information about the trains of Ichibata Electric Railway (in Japanese)

Trains of the Ichibata Electric Railway

EMU 1000 series at Matsue-Shinjiko-onsen Station

Following my introduction of the EMU 2100 series, I’d like to show you some of the other trains operated by the Ichibata Electric Railway.

Before that, let me briefly review this railway. Ichibata is a local private railway company in Shimane Prefecture. It connects the cities of Matsue and Izumo, with a total operating length of 42.2 kilometers. The line is single-tracked, and the track gauge is 1,067 millimeters. Its electric system is 1,500 V DC.

The Kitamatsue Line serves as the main route between Matsue-Shinjiko-onsen and Dentetsu-Izumoshi (33.9 kilometers), while the Taisha Line branches off from Kawato to Izumotaisha-mae (8.3 kilometers).

The EMU 1000 series consists of former Tokyu 1000 series trains. A total of three sets—six units—were transferred to Ichibata in 2014 and 2015 after being rebuilt from intermediate cars into driving cars. Each set is composed of one motor car and one trailer car (1M1T). The motor car is equipped with four 130 kW induction motors. The propulsion system uses an IGBT–VVVF inverter. The front design is similar to that of the Fukushima Kotsu 1000 series EMU.

The 7000 series is Ichibata’s first newly built model in 86 years. Four cars were manufactured by Kinki Sharyo and Goto Kogyo between 2016 and 2018. Each car is a large 20-meter-long stainless-steel vehicle equipped with two 270 kW induction motors (0.5M) and an IGBT–VVVF control system. Both longitudinal and transverse seating are provided. The front design resembles that of the JR West 225 series EMU.

7000 series electric car at the Matsue-Shinjiko-onsen rail yard

Related link:

・Official information about the trains of the Ichibata Electric Railway (in Japanese)

Beautiful Garden and Train in Shimane Prefecture

Set 2104 of the Ichibata EMU 2100 series standing at Kawato Station

Continuing from what I covered last time, I would like to introduce a beautiful Japanese garden and a charming local train in Shimane Prefecture.

After spending a night on the Sunrise Express, I got off the train at Yasugi Station on the San-in Main Line the next morning. My destination was the Adachi Museum of Art in Yasugi City, Shimane Prefecture. The museum was founded by Adachi Zenko, a businessman born in the area. It is well known for its seamless harmony between modern Japanese-style paintings inside and the traditional gardens outside. These gardens have been ranked Number One among Japanese-style gardens by The Journal of Japanese Gardening, published in the United States.

After enjoying both the paintings and the gardens, I took the Ichibata Electric Railway and headed toward Izumotaisha-mae. On the way, I came across an orange-colored train—Set 2104 of the EMU 2100 series—at Kawato Station. This nostalgic train was transferred from the Keio Electric Railway in 1995. Its former name was the Keio EMU 5000 series, a well-regarded commuter train that served from the 1960s through the 1990s. It even won the 1964 Laurel Prize from the Japan Railfan Club as the most outstanding newly introduced train of the previous year. The curved front windows and double rounded headlights of this more-than-50-year-old train felt nostalgic, yet still very stylish. Incidentally, the body color of Set 2104 is inspired by Ichibata’s old baggage car, the DeHaNi 50 series.

(To be continued…)

Japanese-style garden at the Adachi Museum of Art

Related link:

・Official information about the EMU, Ichibata Electric Railway (in Japanese)

Short Trip to Shimane Prefecture by Sunrise Express

EMU 285 series, Sunrise Izumo and Sunrise Seto, standing at Tokyo Station

I recently took the Sunrise Express for the first time in my life and visited Shimane Prefecture. Today, I’d like to share some photos of this train with you.

Let me start by briefly reviewing Shimane Prefecture and the Sunrise Express. Shimane is located in the western part of Japan, facing the Sea of Japan. Its population is about 0.7 million, making it the second least populous prefecture in the country. To travel from Tokyo to Shimane, one of the most convenient means of transportation is the Sunrise Express. It is an overnight sleeper train with comfortable berths. Connecting Tokyo and Izumo-shi, the train travels across three JR companies: JR East, JR Central, and JR West.

The 14-car EMU 285 series operates as both Sunrise Izumo and Sunrise Seto from Tokyo to Okayama. After arriving at Okayama station, the train is split in two. The Sunrise Izumo (a 7-car set) continues to Izumoshi in Shimane Prefecture, while the other 7-car set heads to Takamatsu as the Sunrise Seto.

The EMU 285 series is owned by JR West and JR Central. A total of five sets—35 cars—were built in 1998 by Kinki Sharyo, Nippon Sharyo, and Kawasaki Heavy Industries. I think that sleeper EMUs like this are quite unique. I used a B-class (standard-class) single room. Its window was very large, allowing me to fully enjoy the night view of downtown Tokyo before I eventually drifted off to sleep.

To be continued…

Interior of the single room in the B-class (standard-class) sleeping car

Related link:

・Official information about Sunrise Express by JR West (in Japanese)