Kisokaidō: Shionada (木曽街道:塩名田).

A view of the rural relay station of Shionada which during the Edo era was the 23rd station of the famous Kisokaidō (Nakasendō) road.
Nowadays it represents a small fraction of Saku city in Nagano prefecture and it is easy recognisable from a stone of the unique shape: the "Chikumagawa funatsunagi ishi", or Funatsunagi stone of the Chikuma river. As said above this stone is unique in its shape and gender but not in its function. Funatsugi literraly means "that connect, tie or link to a ship" and it self-explains why these kind of stones were set in proximity of a river for: secure a ship when the river overflows its banks. The Chikuma river was one of this kind. Flood after flood it dragged away its bridge leaving the traveller with no other choice but crossing it by foot or ship.