From Matsuyama Airport to Nametoko Gorge, leaving at Mima IC and driving the mountain road of Prefectural Road 270

The Forestry Agency gives about 110 km and about 120 minutes from Matsuyama IC to Mizugiwa Lodge

No official page was found that says how many minutes it takes by car from Matsuyama Airport to Nametoko Gorge. The official page that was found giving a road route and a time by car is the Forestry Agency’s “Nametoko Natural Recreation Forest” page. Its starting point is Matsuyama IC, not Matsuyama Airport. The “By car” field reads as follows.

・【滑床渓谷】松山IC→（松山自動車道）→三間IC→（県道57号線→県道8号線→県道270号線（※））→水際のロッジ（旧森の国ホテル）（約110km、約120分） （※）カーナビで示されることのある県道317号線は、狭い悪路となりますのでご注意ください

Translation: “- [Nametoko Gorge] Matsuyama IC → (Matsuyama Expressway) → Mima IC → (Prefectural Road 57 → Prefectural Road 8 → Prefectural Road 270 ()) → Mizugiwa Lodge (former Mori-no-Kuni Hotel) (about 110 km, about 120 minutes). () Please note that Prefectural Road 317, which a car navigation system may show, is a narrow, rough road.”

Source: 滑床自然休養林：林野庁

The other numbers have different starting points and end points. They are listed together here.

What it says	Source	Start and end
About 110 km, about 120 minutes	Forestry Agency, “Nametoko Natural Recreation Forest”	From Matsuyama IC to Mizugiwa Lodge (水際のロッジ) (former Mori-no-Kuni Hotel)
Prefectural Roads 22 and 190, about 15 minutes	Iyokan Net, “From Matsuyama Airport to Uwajima Station”	From Matsuyama Airport to Yogominami IC
About 1 hour 30 minutes	Matsuno Town, “Access to the town” (updated December 18, 2017)	Matsuyama - Matsuno Town (Matsumaru) (the original joins them with “-”)

The guide on Ehime Prefecture’s tourism site continues from Yogominami IC to Uwajima Asahi IC, and is not a route that leaves at Mima IC. The number on the Matsuno Town page is up to Matsuno Town (Matsumaru), not the time to the gorge. The time from Yogominami IC to Matsuyama IC could not be confirmed on official pages.

This article divides the route into 13 points, following the Forestry Agency’s route (leaving at Mima IC).

Leave at Mima IC, not Uwajima Asahi IC

The Forestry Agency’s page lists other destinations from the same Matsuyama IC. For Narukawa Gorge (成川渓谷) you leave at Uwajima Asahi IC, and for Nametoko Gorge you leave at Mima IC.

・【成川渓谷】松山IC→（松山自動車道）→宇和島朝日IC→一般道→成川渓谷休養センター（約100km、約90分）

Translation: “- [Narukawa Gorge] Matsuyama IC → (Matsuyama Expressway) → Uwajima Asahi IC → general road → Narukawa Gorge Recreation Center (about 100 km, about 90 minutes)”

The “Michi-no-Eki Information | Nijinomori Park Matsuno” page of the Shikoku Regional Development Bureau, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, also gives “Mima IC” as the “nearest access IC.”

The route that leaves at Uwajima Asahi IC is described in the Uwajima Castle article. The route that enters from Uwajima Asahi IC on National Route 320 appears, on the Forestry Agency’s page, in the route to the trailheads of Mt. Sanbongui (三本杭) and Mt. Onigajo (鬼ヶ城山) (the Kuroson Super Forest Road, 黒尊スーパー林道).

The expressway from Matsuyama IC to Mima IC is the same road as in the Uwajima Castle article

From Matsuyama IC to Seiyo-Uwa IC, it is the same Matsuyama Expressway as in the Uwajima Castle article. The rest areas that official pages list on the outbound side are two: Iyonada SA and Uchiko PA. Their facilities and parking spaces are as follows.

Item	Iyonada SA (outbound)	Uchiko PA (outbound)
Parking	8 large-vehicle, 38 small-vehicle spaces	5 large-vehicle, 10 small-vehicle spaces
Construction	Road-surface repair work until October 30, 2026 (Reiwa 8)	Not stated

The Iyonada SA page has the following.

以下の期間、舗装補修工事に伴い、駐車マスが最大約半分まで減少、トレーラーマスが利用不可となります。 令和8年8月24日（月曜）～令和8年10月30日（金曜）

Translation: “During the following period, because of road-surface repair work, the parking spaces will be reduced by up to about half, and the trailer spaces will be unavailable. Monday, August 24, 2026 to Friday, October 30, 2026”

Source: 伊予灘サービスエリア（下り）（サービス・営業時間・配置MAP）｜NEXCO西日本のSA・PA情報サイトt

The position of Mima IC was checked in map data (OpenStreetMap). In the order of interchanges in map data, it is Seiyo-Uwa IC, Mima IC, Uwajima-Kita IC. In the map of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism’s night closure notice too, they are drawn in the order Seiyo-Uwa IC, Mima IC, Uwajima-Kita IC.

The toll can be read as paid up to Seiyo-Uwa IC

The result of a search on Doraplaza (NEXCO East Japan’s toll and route search) from Matsuyama IC to Seiyo-Uwa IC on October 13, 2026 for a standard car is as follows.

Section	Regular toll
Matsuyama IC to Ozu IC	1,300 yen
Ozu IC to Ozu-Kitatada IC (Ozu Road)	Free
Ozu-Kitatada IC to Seiyo-Uwa IC	590 yen
Total	1,890 yen

This is a search result, not an official toll table. This search starts at Matsuyama IC, and does not include the section from Matsuyama Airport to Yogominami IC and Matsuyama IC.

A search with “Mima” as the arrival IC showed “No IC matches the reading of the arrival IC.” and gave no toll. In the NEXCO West Japan “ETC-only toll gates” map (as of February 17, 2026), Seiyo-Uwa IC is a gray circle meaning “IC with no toll gate,” and a gray line meaning “toll-free section” extends from there downward (toward Uwajima). Mima IC is not drawn in the map. From this map, the section beyond Seiyo-Uwa IC can be read as one with no toll. Whether the toll up to Mima IC is 1,890 yen has not been confirmed on official pages.

That Ozu Road is toll-free is also written on an Ehime Prefecture page.

一般国道56号大洲道路（6.3km）は、四国8の字ネットワークの一部を形成する無料の自動車専用道路として、国土交通省により整備されています。

Translation: “National Route 56 Ozu Road (6.3 km) has been developed by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism as a toll-free motor vehicle-only road that forms part of the Shikoku Figure-8 Network.”

Source: 高規格幹線道路（四国8の字ネットワーク・中四国連携ルート） - 愛媛県庁公式ホームページ（道路建設課）

Night closures on the expressway: Matsuyama IC to Ozu North IC until the morning of October 17, and the sections including Mima IC from November

As of October 13, 2026, night closures of the Matsuyama Expressway have been announced in advance by each manager. If you will be driving from evening into the night, please look at this table.

The hours in the NEXCO West Japan notice are this one sentence.

夜間通行止めは、毎夜19時から翌朝6時まで実施します。

Translation: “The night closures will be carried out every night from 19:00 to 6:00 the next morning.”

Source: 四国内の高速道路の対面通行区間において秋季夜間通行止めを実施します | NEXCO 西日本 企業情報

Section	Schedule	Hours and manager
Matsuyama IC to Ozu North IC, both directions	14 nights excluding Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, from the night of Monday, September 28, 2026 to the morning of Saturday, October 17. Reserve days: from the night of Monday, October 19 to the morning of Friday, October 23	19:00 to 6:00 the next morning, NEXCO West Japan
Ozu South IC to Seiyo-Uwa IC, both directions	5 nights from the night of Monday, October 26, 2026 to the morning of Saturday, October 31	19:00 to 6:00 the next morning, NEXCO West Japan
Seiyo-Uwa IC to Uwajima-Sakashitatsu IC	Night of Monday, Nov. 2 to morning of Tuesday, Nov. 3; night of Wednesday, Nov. 4 to morning of Saturday, Nov. 7	20:00 to 6:00 the next morning, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism
Seiyo-Uwa IC to Uwajima-Kita IC	Night of Monday, Nov. 9 to morning of Saturday, Nov. 14; night of Monday, Nov. 16 to morning of Saturday, Nov. 21; night of Tuesday, Nov. 24 to morning of Saturday, Nov. 28. Reserve days: night of Monday, Nov. 30 to morning of Saturday, Dec. 5	20:00 to 6:00 the next morning, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism

In the maps of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism’s notice (Attachments 2 and 3), Mima IC is drawn inside the closed section. The detour in the Ministry’s notice is National Route 56 (the existing road). Ozu IC to Ozu-Kitatada IC (from the night of November 30) is also in the same notice.

The NEXCO West Japan notice also has the following.

土曜日・日曜日・祝日に夜間通行止めは行いませんが、金曜日の夜間通行止めの解除が土曜の早朝となります。

Translation: “Night closures are not carried out on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, but the Friday night closure is lifted in the early morning of Saturday.”

Source: 四国内の高速道路の対面通行区間において秋季夜間通行止めを実施します | NEXCO 西日本 企業情報

Closures may be postponed to the reserve days because of the weather and other reasons. By the time you read this article, the period may have passed, or the schedule may have changed. The contacts of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism are the Ozu River and National Highway Office (0893-24-6526, 8:30-17:15 except Saturdays, Sundays and holidays) and the Japan Road Traffic Information Center (050-3369-6638, 24 hours).

After leaving Mima IC: the Forestry Agency’s route is Prefectural Roads 57, 8 and 270

The Forestry Agency’s route writes only “Prefectural Road 57 → Prefectural Road 8 → Prefectural Road 270” after Mima IC. Names of national routes do not appear.

In map data, these roads are recorded in the following order. Michi-no-Eki Nijinomori Park Matsuno (道の駅 虹の森公園まつの) is recorded in a map data search as being on National Route 381.

Order	Road or point	Record in map data
1	Prefectural Road 57	Hiromi-Mima-Uwajima Line
2	Road shared by National Routes 381 and 441	Recorded as National Route 381
3	Michi-no-Eki Nijinomori Park Matsuno	Faces National Route 381
4	Prefectural Road 8	Nishitosa-Matsuno Line
5	Prefectural Road 270	Nametoko-Matsuno Line

How to enter National Route 441 from Prefectural Road 57, and how to turn from National Route 381 onto Prefectural Road 8, could not be confirmed on official pages. This will be added after driving it and checking.

Nijinomori Park Matsuno is a roadside station whose parking lot can be used 24 hours

The page of the Shikoku Regional Development Bureau, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, describes the parking as follows.

駐車場：普通車73台／大型5台／身障者用なし（24時間利用可能）

Translation: “Parking: 73 standard cars / 5 large vehicles / none for disabled drivers (usable 24 hours)”

The business hours are 10:00 to 17:00 for Osakana-kan (おさかな館), the glass workshop, the local products shop and Mori-no-Kuni Farm (森の国ファーム), and 8:30 to 17:00 for Kagomori Market (かごもり市場). The closing day is January 1, and Mori-no-Kuni Farm is closed on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. The contact number is 0895-20-5006.

The page of the national Michi-no-Eki liaison council gives the parking as “Large: 3, standard cars: 76 (1 for disabled drivers),” which differs from the Bureau’s numbers. Neither page gives the hours of the toilets.

At the fork of Prefectural Road 8 and Prefectural Road 317, the Forestry Agency’s guide is Prefectural Road 8

The Forestry Agency adds the following line as a note to the route.

（※）カーナビで示されることのある県道317号線は、狭い悪路となりますのでご注意ください

Translation: “(*) Please note that Prefectural Road 317, which a car navigation system may show, is a narrow, rough road.”

Source: 滑床自然休養林：林野庁

In map data, beyond Nijinomori Park Matsuno, Prefectural Road 8 and Prefectural Road 317 are recorded as the same road (Nishitosa-Matsuno Line), overlapping. At the fork beyond that, Prefectural Road 317 (Meguro-Matsumaru Line) and Prefectural Road 8 split into separate roads. In map data, Prefectural Road 317 connects partway along Prefectural Road 270.

No official page was found that gives the width of Prefectural Road 317 or whether vehicles can pass each other on it. What the Forestry Agency writes is the one line above.

Prefectural Road 270 is listed in Ehime Prefecture’s pre-set traffic restriction sections (special traffic restriction sections)

Ehime Prefecture’s “Links about Ehime road information” (updated March 2, 2026) has a list of sections where traffic is restricted. The definition is as follows.

事前通行規制とは、豪雨や地震などの異常気象時に、土砂崩れや落石等の恐れのある箇所を被害が発生する前に 通行を規制することです。

Translation: “Pre-set traffic restriction means restricting traffic, before damage occurs, at places where there is a risk of landslides or falling rocks during abnormal weather such as heavy rain or earthquakes.”

Source: 愛媛県道路情報に関するリンク - 愛媛県庁公式ホームページ（道路維持課）

There are two kinds of pre-set traffic restriction sections, and Prefectural Road 270, and Prefectural Road 317, on which the Forestry Agency writes a caution, are in the table of the second kind, “special traffic restriction sections (22 sections).” The sections in this table are decided as follows.

気象・現地の状況等を判断して危険が予想される場合に通行規制します。

Translation: “Traffic is restricted when danger is expected, judging from the weather and conditions on site.”

Source: 愛媛県道路情報に関するリンク - 愛媛県庁公式ホームページ（道路維持課）

For the roads on this route, the table lists the following two.

Route	Section	Length
Prefectural Road 270, Nametoko-Matsuno Line	From Nametoko, Uwajima to Fujigao, Matsuno-cho, Kitauwa-gun (北宇和郡松野町字藤ヶ生)	2.0 km
Prefectural Road 317, Meguro-Matsumaru Line	From Wakayama (若山), Matsuno-cho, Kitauwa-gun to Kumeji (久米地), Matsuno-cho, Kitauwa-gun	5.0 km

This table has no column for a rainfall standard, so you cannot know beforehand how many millimeters of rain will close the road. The telephone guide on the same page gives, for national routes and prefectural roads not managed by the national government, the Ehime Prefecture Civil Engineering Department Road Maintenance Division (089-912-2720). Road information within Ehime is available from the Japan Road Traffic Information Center (050-3369-6638).

How to drive on days of heavy rain or typhoons is summarized in the article “Heavy rain and typhoons: roads in Ehime that become impassable.” The Forestry Agency’s page also says to collect information on road closures and the weather before you go out.

On road width, passing and large vehicles, the only official guide found is one line about Prefectural Road 317

No official page was found that describes the road width, passing, or the passage of large vehicles on Prefectural Road 270, Prefectural Road 8, and National Routes 381 and 441. The Forestry Agency’s one line, “Prefectural Road 317 is a narrow, rough road,” is the only description found.

The Matsuno Town “Nametoko Gorge” page (updated December 18, 2017) has the following sentence about the road entering from the Uwajima side.

梅が成峠を越えての滑床街道は、険しい山道の旅ということもあり、早朝からになる。

Translation: “The Nametoko Road over Umegana Pass (梅が成峠) is a trip along a steep mountain road, so it starts early in the morning.”

Source: 滑床渓谷 - 松野町公式ホームページ

This is about the road from the Uwajima side, which is different from the route in this article (via Mima IC).

As of October 13, 2026, no official notice about construction or closures on this route was found on the pages of Ehime Prefecture and Matsuno Town. That only means it was not found, not that there is none. How to check before you leave is summarized in the article “Where to check Ehime road information before you leave.”

The gorge parking lot has about 150 spaces and is free. Mannenso is closed on Mondays

The Forestry Agency writes the parking as follows.

・滑床渓谷 約150台・無料

Translation: “- Nametoko Gorge: about 150 spaces, free”

The “Nametoko Gorge” page of Iyokan Net also writes the parking as “Yes, about 150 spaces” and the parking fee as “free.” Business hours, guidance when the lot is full, and the location of toilets could not be confirmed on official pages.

About “Nametoko Visitor Center Mannenso” (滑床ビジターセンター万年荘), the rest area at the entrance of the gorge, Iyokan Net writes the following.

万年荘は、「足摺宇和海国立公園」に属する滑床渓谷の入り口にある休憩所です。

Translation: “Mannenso is a rest area at the entrance of Nametoko Gorge, which belongs to ‘Ashizuri-Uwakai National Park.’”

The hours are 9:00-17:00, the closing day is Monday (the next day if Monday is a holiday), and it has toilets and parking, free, with the number of spaces not given. October 13, 2026 is a Tuesday.

The Forestry Agency lists “Mizugiwa Lodge (former Mori-no-Kuni Hotel)” as lodging inside the gorge. A Matsuno Town article of March 23, 2020 says this facility reopened on March 20, 2020 (Reiwa 2). Its present operating status could not be confirmed on the town’s pages.

For walking times on the promenade, the Shikoku Regional Forest Office writes “[40 minutes from Mannen Bridge]” (Yukiwa Falls, 雪輪の滝) and “[10 minutes from Mannen Bridge]” (Deai-nameri, 出合滑). The Matsuno Town page writes, for Yukiwa Falls, “you climb a steep mountain path along the gorge for a little over an hour,” which is written differently. Iyokan Net writes that the promenade along the gorge is about 12 km.

What comes next for this article

The positions of the points and the order of interchanges were checked with OpenStreetMap. The position of the entrance of Nametoko Gorge is a rough guide near the end of Prefectural Road 270, and the exact position of the parking lot has not been checked. The point numbers will be the same as the chapter numbers in the driving video. This article was written only from official pages and map data, and has not been driven yet.

What could not be confirmed on official pages is as follows.

• The driving time from Matsuyama Airport to Nametoko Gorge (the Forestry Agency gives about 120 minutes from Matsuyama IC)
• The time and toll from Yogominami IC to Matsuyama IC
• How to turn from Mima IC via Prefectural Road 57 onto the national route and Prefectural Road 8
• The road width, passing, and passage of large vehicles on Prefectural Road 8, Prefectural Road 270, and National Routes 381 and 441
• The business hours and exact position of the gorge parking lot
• The present operating status of Mizugiwa Lodge
• Information on the Matsuno Town Tourism Association’s site (the content of the page could not be retrieved)