Kitanakagawa

The middle Teshio River winds through wooded hills in the northern interior of Ezo. Ainu place names describe features of its banks, among them Ponpira, “small cliff”. The river linked inland communities with the coast, carrying exchanges of mountain and marine products. In 1797 a Matsumae survey party traveled upstream from the river mouth as far as Otoineppu, recording a route through this extensive river country.