Kanmon tunnel: walking to another island.

Opening in 1958 at the time the Kanmon roadway tunnel stretching between Honshu and Kyushu was the longest stretch of underwater tunnel in the world. The tunnel connects Shimonoseki in Honshu to Mojiko in Kyushu. For those who love numbers the tunnel itself spans 3461 meters and at its deepest point the tunnel is 58 meters below sea level. The tunnels construction was a turbulent one and 53 workers were killed during its construction. Its construction was also halted due to the outbreak of the second world war. The initial construction began in 1937 but did not officially open until 1958.

Below this tunnel one can find the topic of today’s entry the Kanmon pedestrian tunnel which can be reached on both sides via elevators. This modern luxury means the length visitors must walk to complete the tunnel is only 780 meters. The tunnel is completely free, and guests can grab a stamp from the location which is cleverly split in two. One half at both sides of the tunnel. The walk takes around 20 minutes to complete and even offers a photo spot where the tunnel crosses into a new island.

This experience is certainly a fun one to say I walked into a new island of Japan. Both the town of Mojiko and Shimonoseki offer visitors lots to explore. I have plans to revisit Mojiko properly at some point as upon my arrival I was shocked to find a very European looking town full of retro vibes and old wooden buildings. The harbour was beautiful and the view looking towards Honshu would look stunning at nighttime.

Shimonoseki has a tower that can be visited, theme park and Ferris wheel and even a famous London red bus. the town offers numerous local eateries and trainlines into Yamaguchi and the shinkansen towards Hakata or Tokyo. Both towns overlook the sea and provide a chance to enjoy the coast. I fully recommend walking the tunnel at least one way and exploring both towns. The shinkansen can be picked up again on the Honshu side in Shimonoseki so perhaps taking a local train from Hakata to Mojiko and walking the tunnel would serve visitors better who will take the shinkansen back to Tokyo for international flights. The local train offers good scenery of Kyushu and cheaper than paying the Shinkansen for this leg.