Nagara-gawa Ukai, cormorant fishing

photo by Ludger Heide · CC BY-SA 4.0

photo by Masabb at Japanese Wikipedia · CC BY 3.0

The cormorant masters of Nagara are imperial officials: they also fish for the Tennō.

From 18:15 the boats go down the Nagara lit only by the braziers at the bow; around 19:30 the cormorants (a cord round their necks stops them swallowing the large fish) start catching the ayu, which the master takes from the beak. The six masters (鵜匠) of Gifu, plus three in Seki, have held since 1949 the title of 宮内庁式部職鵜匠, officials of the Imperial Household: a hereditary post, only one master per family, and on eight evenings a year the fishing (御料鵜飼) is reserved for fish destined for the emperor's table.

Traditional fishing with trained cormorants, practised on the Nagara for at least 1,300 years, open to the public on viewing boats from 11 May to 15 October.

ℹ️ Boarding at 18:15, 18:45 or 19:15 depending on the package; the fishing starts around 19:30, and the show ends between 20:30 and 21:00. Tickets: adults 3,400 yen, children 1,700 yen; suspended on full-moon nights and when the river is in flood. Booking recommended.

🚉 うかいのりば · in front of the station

Sources: ukai-gifucity.jp · ukai-gifucity.jp · mlit.go.jp

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