Article in English Circumstance of the Town

The urban area of Matsumoto is encircled by Alps Mountains on the westside, Utsukushi-gahara Highlands on the eastside, Chikuhoku-mountains on the northside and Enrei Highlands on the southside. Standing on some open places, we can look at the mountains or the highlands over the townscape.

Putting back our eyesight to the ground, on the near side of the quasi-european house is standing the city-founded library. Its building, whose walls is thoroughly covered with shining glass, is of the super-modern style. The library is surrounded by the greenbelts. They had better to take a walk outside, if getting tired to read books.

A wooden house, of european style, neighboring on the westside of Kaichi School is the priest house which was built also in Meiji period.
A long greenbelts are lying on the westside of them. The narrow mountain-stream named Omazawa-gawa is surrounded by trees. The ravine made by the stream is narrow but deep. Such a landform shows us clearly its invasion-effect it used to have.
However, now surrounded by the bank-protection works, it runs quietly through the residential town.
For Kaichi is a town gotten between Oamzawa-gawa and Metoba-gawa, it has a great deal of water vein under the ground. There are not a few well-springs there. In Old Baba-cho there is the site of the well named Yanagni-no-Ido.

  松本の西方には北アルプス、東方には美ケ原高原、南方には塩嶺高原などが控えている。道路や駐車場など、少し開けた場所に立つと、これらの山並みを見ることができる。

▲住宅地の家並み越しに見える北アルプスの常念岳と横通岳

▲街の東方にそびえる袴越山
その奥には美ケ原高原

  街並みに目を戻すと、明治時代の疑似洋風建築のすぐ横には、ガラス張りの超モダンな市立中央図書館が並んでいる。図書館の周辺には緑が豊かで、読書に疲れたら散策するのもいい。

▲図書館の駐車場脇の樹林

▼樹林の下は大間沢川の小渓谷

  司祭館と中央図書館のすぐ西側には樹林帯があるが、それは大間沢川の渓谷を取り巻く段丘の縁をなしている。渓谷は深く、その昔、豪雨のあとで大間沢川が見せつけた浸食作用の名残りだ。
  今ではこの川は、都市化にともなう治水・護岸工事によって住宅街を静かに流れる小さな沢になっている。

  開智地区は大間沢川と女鳥羽川に挟まれた台地なので、地下には豊かな水脈（帯水層）があるらしい。旧馬場町には柳の井戸の跡がある【写真下】。