To reach Okabe station travelers had to pass this steep and narrow pass. The road goes along the steep valley having a rapid stream - the Okabe river - at the side. This road looks dangerous with no fence on the river side, and we wonder how people could safely pass this place when it rains and the soil becomes muddy and slippery. It is no question that this was one of the most dangerous parts of the Tokaido!

Hiroshige drew three men coming towards us; each of them - obviously local people - carrying brush-wood on his back. We see only the upper body of the last man, indicating that they are coming up a steep slope. He also drew two ladies walking away - a traveler carrying a heavy-looking parcel and a local lady with fire wood on her back.

The gray mountains seen far away are known as ‘Utsu no Yama’, as the vermillion subtitle on the right shows.