Shimane · Matsue, SodeshiNo.1053★★★Open in map →

Lake Shinji Shijimi Clams

foodThe classic — done right

Brackish water makes the yamato shijimi of Lake Shinji thicker than clams from a river. On the south shore at Sodeshi, the fishery co-operative sells the morning's catch from its own counter, on the days the boats are allowed out.

FromMatsue Station
~20 minJR local train, one stop
Get off atNogi Station (JR San'in Main Line)
On foot
Lake Shinji Shijimi Clams

Directions ↗

Where it is

14 more notes in Shimane · open the map →

What to look for — in walking order

The co-operative's shijimi counterthe fishery's own window on the shore, where the day's catch is set out graded by size
Lake Shinji sunset viewpointa terrace and car park laid out on the bank for the view west across open water
Yomegashimathe small wooded island just offshore, which the setting sun lines up with on certain dates
Sodeshi Jizoa stone jizo standing at the water's edge, the landmark for the sunset viewpoint
Shimane Art Museuma lakeside museum a few minutes north-east, its lawn opening straight onto the water

How to actually get there

Matsue Station to Nogi Station (JR San'in Main Line, one stop).
Nogi Station to the lakeshore road, Route 9 (walk north, around fifteen minutes).
Look in at the co-operative's shijimi counter, on the lake side of the road.
Follow the shore north-east past the sunset terrace, Sodeshi Jizo and Shimane Art Museum.

JR San'in Main Line, one stop from Matsue: Matsue Station to Nogi Station is a single stop south-west on the San'in Main Line. From Nogi it is roughly fifteen minutes on foot north, through quiet residential streets, to the lakeshore road. Nogi is a small local station and the service is not dense, so read the platform board before you plan the return.
Return from Nogi Station: One stop back on the San'in Main Line brings you to Matsue Station. Gaps open up in the local timetable, so check the departure before you settle in anywhere. If you would rather not wait, the walk back along the lakeshore to Matsue Station is level the whole way and passes Shimane Art Museum.

Directions from my location (Google Maps) ↗

About the place

The water here is neither river nor sea. The Hii River brings fresh water down from the Chugoku mountains, and salt water pushes back up the Ohashi River from Nakaumi. That mix suits the yamato shijimi, a small clam that grows thicker in brackish water than in fresh, and Shimane lands more of it than any other prefecture. On the seventh largest lake in Japan, fishermen work it with a long-handled rake called a joren, dragged across the bed from a boat. The fishery is rationed rather than open: the days the boats may go out, the hours they may work and the amount they may take are all fixed. The counter at Sodeshi keeps the same calendar.

How to enjoy it

Come in the morning for the working lake: the boats go out early, and the catch reaches the counter once it is ashore. Late afternoon gives you the other half of the same place, because the bank in front of the counter faces west and the sun goes down behind Yomegashima. Shijimi reaches most Matsue tables as shijimi-jiru, a miso soup of the clams, so you can taste it without cooking any.

Background & history

The food of this lake is counted in sevens. The Shinjiko Shicchin, remembered locally by the tongue-twister su-mo-u-a-shi-ko-shi, names seven creatures of the brackish water — sea bass and eel among them — and shijimi is the last syllable of the phrase. Only the clam grew into an industry. Because an emptied bed does not refill quickly, the fishermen wrote their own limits on days and quantities rather than fishing it out. In November 2005 the lake was listed with neighbouring Nakaumi under the Ramsar Convention as a wetland of international importance.

Before you go

Cash: The counter is a shop rather than a ticketed attraction, so there is nothing to pay to look. Clams are sold by weight and graded by size, and what you pay moves with the season and the catch. A fishery counter is not certain to take cards, so carry cash if you mean to buy.
Good to know: The counter follows the fishing calendar, not shop hours: it opens Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, and stays shut on Wednesdays, weekends and public holidays. The shore itself is open at any hour, but this is Sea-of-Japan weather — the west-facing bank takes the wind straight off the water in winter.
Another way: You can skip the train from Matsue Station and walk instead: head west to the lake, then follow the shore south-west past Shimane Art Museum until the path meets Route 9 at Sodeshi. Route 9 buses also run along this stretch of the south shore.
After you get off: From Nogi Station, walk north through the Hamanogi streets until you reach Route 9, which runs along the south shore of the lake. The co-operative stands on the lake side of that road, with the sunset terrace and Yomegashima immediately to the west.