まだまだ体力は満タン、元気であります（笑）。
　今回は孫の保護者「預け」役として九州に滞在する予定なのですが、いくつか、故地広島県でぜひ行きたい探訪先があり、カミさんの日程作成に従っての「いちばん近くにいられる福岡県・宗像」での滞在機会を捉えて、わたしひとりで弾丸往復ドライブ・約700kmを敢行いたしました。ちょっと過酷な日程なので、カミさんは別行動でゆったりしてもらった。
　故地での探索活動については「四百年間のいのちの履歴書」の本論部分に関わるので、また別途思索を深めたいと思いますが、この道中の１スポットとして、本州最西端・山口県の関門海峡側から「壇ノ浦」古戦場を見晴らせるポイントで一時休憩した様子であります。
　さすがに往復700kmとなると移動で運転している時間だけでも10時間程度。そのほかに故地でのあちこち探訪運転も加わるので、まぁ12-3時間はずっと運転。であるのに散歩ではない歩き行脚も約8,000歩。・・・高齢者ではありますが、なんとか冷静に日程をクリアできました。ありがたい。
　で、日本史上で関ヶ原と並ぶ「古戦場」壇ノ浦で帰路、元気を再生していた（笑）。
　壇ノ浦というと、なんとなく九州側から眺めるイメージが強かったのですが、長距離ドライブの間なので、「ここはどこ、わたしは誰？」状態で、しっかり確かめてはじめてこの画像が「本州側」からの眺望であることを再確認しておりました。疲労感MAX。
　しかし梅雨の晴れ間のダイナミックな雲の景観が愛でるような美感を見せてくれた。
　見知らぬ旅人同士、「あそこは何々で、ここはどうこう・・・」と会話を弾ませていた。こういうときお互い日本人の歴史意識には共通認識があるので、義経だ、安徳帝だと活発に意見交換（笑）。
　画角としては、右側が九州の北部海岸線・玄界灘方面で、左側が瀬戸内海方向。
　左側から攻めてきた義経・源氏方が潮のながれが開戦時には右から左に向かっていたのが、それが反転して左側からの流れに変わったタイミングを活かして戦勝した合戦ですね。それにしてもこの狭い海峡を見ていると、北海道と本州島のあいだの津軽海峡の荒々しさに思いが重なりますね。
　無事の旅路のいっとき、健康に感謝していたうれしい時間でした。

●お知らせ
拙書「作家と住空間」幻冬舎から電子書籍で発刊
お求めはAmazonで。
https://amzn.asia/d/eUiv9yO

English version⬇

[A Quick Round Trip Between Munakata, Kyushu, and My Hometown in Hiroshima Prefecture / The Afterglow of Dan-no-Ura]
I’ve successfully completed a whirlwind round trip from Munakata, Fukuoka Prefecture—the closest accommodation to Honshu on my Kyushu pilgrimage. The romance of the historic battlefields that have shaped Japanese history provided me with a moment of respite. …

　I’m still full of energy and in great shape (lol).
I’m currently in Kyushu to look after my grandchild, but since there were a few places I really wanted to visit in my hometown of Hiroshima Prefecture, I took advantage of a chance to stay in Munakata, Fukuoka—the closest location to my wife’s itinerary—and embarked on a solo round-trip drive of about 700 km. Since it was a bit of a grueling schedule, I let my wife take it easy and do her own thing.
　My explorations in my hometown are related to the main body of my book *A 400-Year History of Life*, so I’d like to delve deeper into those thoughts separately. But as one stop along the way, I took a brief break at a viewpoint overlooking the historic battlefield of Dan-no-Ura from the Kanmon Strait side in Yamaguchi Prefecture—the westernmost point of Honshu.
　As you might expect, a 700 km round trip means about 10 hours of driving alone. Add in all the driving around my hometown exploring various spots, and I was behind the wheel for a solid 12 to 13 hours. And on top of that, I walked about 8,000 steps—not just a casual stroll, but a proper pilgrimage. …I may be getting on in years, but I managed to get through the schedule without losing my cool. I’m grateful for that.
　So, on the way back, I was recharging my energy at Dan-no-Ura—a historic battlefield that ranks alongside Sekigahara in Japanese history (lol).
When I think of Dan-no-Ura, I’d always had a strong image of viewing it from the Kyushu side, but since I was in the middle of a long drive, I was in a “Where am I? Who am I?” state of mind. It wasn’t until I checked carefully that I confirmed this image was indeed the view from the “Honshu side.” Exhaustion at its peak.
However, the dynamic cloudscapes during a break in the rainy season offered a view of such beauty that I found myself admiring it.
As fellow travelers who didn’t know each other, we struck up a lively conversation: “That spot over there is such-and-such, and this one is so-and-so…” At times like this, since we share a common understanding of Japanese history, we actively exchanged opinions about Yoshitsune and Emperor Antoku (lol).
　In terms of the frame, the right side faces the northern coastline of Kyushu and the Genkai Sea, while the left side faces the Seto Inland Sea.
This was the battle where Yoshitsune and the Minamoto forces, attacking from the left, took advantage of the moment when the tidal current—which had been flowing from right to left at the start of the battle—reversed direction to flow from left to right, securing their victory. That said, looking at this narrow strait, my thoughts turn to the roughness of the Tsugaru Strait between Hokkaido and Honshu.
It was a joyful moment during my safe journey, a time to give thanks for my good health.

● Announcement
My book, “Writers and Living Spaces,” has been published as an e-book by Gentosha.
Available on Amazon.

Posted on 5月 23rd, 2026 by 三木 奎吾
Filed under: 未分類