Izushi, Hyōgo

Izushi (出石町, Izushi-chō^?) was a town in Izushi District, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan.

As of 1 October 2010^[update] Izushi district has an estimated population of 10,259. Because of yearly flooding problems and cheaper modes of transit, Izushi`s ancient river port has long been closed. The railways were also taken out, leaving Izushi accessible by car, bus, and bike only. The average weather temperatures in the Toyooka area range between -3° Celsius (26°F) in January to 35° Celsius (95°F)in August.

On April 1, 2005, Izushi, along with the towns of Kinosaki, Hidaka and Takeno (all from Kinosaki District), and the town of Tantō (also from Izushi District), was merged into the expanded city of Toyooka and no longer exists as an independent municipality.

Izushi Junior High School's sister school is Whitman Middle School in Seattle. The short-term homestay program has been successful for both schools and has been running, with some exceptions, since March 1999.

Izushi has castle ruins, a popular local scenic spot. The first and original castle's location on top of Mount Ariko was too difficult for even the ruling family and their retainers to reach easily and, in 1604, it was moved to the base of the mountain. It is the second castle's location which now a popular tourist spot and a beautiful backdrop for several local matsuri (festivals), such as the Kimono Matsuri (September), Kenka Danjiri (Fighting Floats—October), Oshiro Matsuri (Castle Festival—November) and Hatsu Uma (First Horseride—March). While the castle itself does not exist anymore, the two front guardhouses were restored in 1968. The original castle foundations are still on top of the mountain and are accessible by hiking only.

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