The SL Taiju is a steam train service operated by Tobu Railway which runs between Shimo-Imaichi Station and Kinugawa-Onsen Station in the greater Nikko region of Tochigi Prefecture. This is a special sightseeing train that usually runs only on weekends and national holidays. There are 3 daily return services on these days, each of which lasts around 35 minutes.
The SL Taiju is a revival of steam train travel by Tobu Railway and has been running since August 2017. Although steam trains were common on the Tobu Railway network in the past, Tobu’s last steam powered service finished in 1966. These new nostalgic steam train trips between Shimo-Imaichi Station and Kinugawa-Onsen Station have proved to be a very popular tourist attraction in the Nikko region.
The name “Taiju” literally means “big tree” and was a term used to refer to the Tokugawa Shogun, a military leader of Japan, whose spirit is enshrined at Nikko’s Toshogu Shrine. This name is also a reference to Tokyo Skytree which is also on the Tobu Railway network. The train actually consists of many parts which have been assembled from a variety of sources.
The steam locomotive at the front of the train is a JNR Class C11 series train. Altogether 381 of these locomotives were built in the 1930s and 1940s of which just 50 have been preserved. This locomotive is the C11 207 which was built in 1941 for Japan’s national railway. It was previously operated by JR Hokkaido and is notable for its distinctive double headlights. Nicknamed “kani-me” in Japanese which means “crab eyes”, these dual headlights were fitted to the engine because it used to run along a line in Hokkaido with extremely foggy weather conditions.
Photo Taken: April 13, 2024
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