Saves as a new trip plan. The original stays as-is.
This 261 km route runs from Sanjo to Karuizawa, passing through Niigata and Nagano. In the past 30 days, 55 bear sightings were reported within 5 km of the route. The past 7 days account for 20 of them. The latest sighting was reported 2 days ago near Joetsu, Niigata.
This is an active bear corridor. Drive through with full caution, but rerouting is the safer choice.
1 places within 1 km of your route, passing through Niigata, Nagano.
A bear was sighted in Nakago-ku Miyanohara, Joetsu City, Niigata on 2026-05-23 afternoon.
Joetsu, Niigata
One bear was sighted near the Miyanohara railroad crossing on the Echigo Tokimeki Railway. It moved toward the mountains.
Joetsu, Niigata
A bear-like animal was sighted from the Himesayuri Path (body length unknown).
Sanjo, Niigata
Around 2:50 AM on May 23, a bear was sighted in Tai, Itakura Ward, Joetsu City.
Joetsu, Niigata
One bear about 100 centimeters in body length was sighted 400 meters west of the Shimoaono Community Hall in the Ao-no area.
Joetsu, Niigata
At around 11:20 on May 19, a single bear approximately 100 cm long was sighted about 400 m west of Shimo-Aono Kaikan in Aono, Joetsu City, and a report was made to the city hall. Joetsu Police and the city are urging local residents to be cautious.
Joetsu, Niigata
Several marathon runners who were participating in the ongoing event were sighted
Kashiwazaki, Niigata
On May 17, 2026, one bear was sighted around 10:00 AM on the course along Prefectural Route 73 Kujiranami-Miyakawa Line in Okouchi Nitta, Kashiwazaki City, and the organizers suspended the 26th Kashiwazaki Shiokaze Marathon at 12:15 PM. No injuries were reported.
Kashiwazaki, Niigata
On May 17, multiple runners reported seeing a bear at a water station set up in a mountainous part of the Kashiwazaki Sea Breeze Marathon, and the race organizers halted the event at noon for safety. The city and the hunters' association searched the area but found no bear or traces; the footprints at the scene were judged likely to be from a wild boar.
Kashiwazaki, Niigata
This morning at around 10:00, a report was received that one bear was sighted along Prefectural Route 73 (Kujiranami-Miyagawa Line) in the Okochi Shinden area. ※As an aside, because of this the marathon (Shiokaze Marathon) was canceled. https://www.city.kashiwazaki.lg.jp/cgi-bin/smart_alert.php/1/detail/1193943 (The input screen overlaps with the keyboard, so I can’t paste the link there.)
Kashiwazaki 大字大河内新田, Niigata
A bear was spotted on the course of the Kashiwazaki Seaside Marathon, and the race was halted on May 17, 2026. Runners located before the sighting point were boarded onto buses and evacuated.
Kashiwazaki, Niigata
At around 06:40 on May 16, a report was received of one bear about 100 cm long sighted near the Route 18 Fujisawa Snow Removal Station in Fujisawa, Nakago Ward, Joetsu City. The Nakago Ward office received the report and warned local residents to be cautious.
Joetsu, Niigata
While driving on National Route 18, one bear was sighted. It moved across the west-facing slope.
Joetsu, Niigata
Nagaoka City installed drum-can style capture traps at dozens of locations in the city from May through June, placing honey inside as bait. Previously traps were set near reported sightings, but this year they will also be placed in mountain areas without sighting reports to prevent bears from entering inhabited areas.
Nagaoka, Niigata
A black bear (Tsukinowaguma) approached a camera in the mountain area of Joetsu City, Niigata Prefecture, with a beehive reported nearby. An adult bear was also confirmed on the Iwate University campus (Morioka City decided not to carry out emergency shooting and the university canceled all classes), and another individual appeared in a residential area in New Jersey, USA.
Joetsu, Niigata
One bear-like animal was sighted near the summit area of the Kanayama Park lift in the Oaza Onuki area.
Joetsu, Niigata
Around 06:02 on May 3, 2026, a single bear about 1 meter long was sighted near the Teramachi interchange on National Route 18 in Yanaiida-machi, Myoko City, and a passerby reported it. Police and the city warned nearby residents and carried out alerting activities.
Myoko, Niigata
Around 06:00 on the 3rd, a bear was reported sighted in the parking lot of Arai Shopping Center in Kurihara 4, Myoko City. According to the Myoko Police, the bear was about 1 meter long, then appeared to move toward the urban area and was also reported near municipal housing in Nakagawa before 07:00, prompting the police to urge caution.
Myoko, Niigata
A passerby in the vicinity spotted one bear heading south.
Myoko, Niigata
In Myoko City (Shi) on April 27 at around 10:30 a.m., a passerby spotted a bear about 1 meter long walking through rice fields from the Yashiro River toward the settlement and reported it to the police. The sighting was about 100 meters from houses, and the police and Myoko City are patrolling the area and issuing warnings.
Myoko, Niigata
At about 10:30 a.m. on April 27, 2026, a single bear approximately 1 meter long was sighted near the Yashiro Community Sports Center area in Myoko City (Shi). The bear was seen walking through rice fields and crossing a road toward residential houses; police and the city warned residents and carried out patrols, but the bear later disappeared from view.
Myoko, Niigata
A bear was sighted in Nakago-ku Miyanohara, Joetsu City, Niigata on 2026-05-23 afternoon.
Joetsu, Niigata
One bear was sighted near the Miyanohara railroad crossing on the Echigo Tokimeki Railway. It moved toward the mountains.
Joetsu, Niigata
Around 6:30 PM on May 22, a bear was sighted in Honhara, Sanada-machi, Ueda City.
Ueda Sanadamachi-Motohara, Nagano
Ueda, Nagano
In Chikuma City, Nagano Prefecture, bear sightings had been occurring near urban areas and schools; on the morning of the 20th one bear was found in the Yashiro area and was culled. The city reported sightings in Yashiro and Awasa districts since the afternoon of the 19th.
Chikuma Yashiro, Nagano
On the morning of May 20, 2026, a male bear about 1.5 meters long that appeared in a riverbed in Chikuma City, Nagano Prefecture was captured with a tranquilizer gun and culled. On the same day, the body of an 85-year-old man was found with severe head and body injuries in a ravine in Nishiwaga Town, Iwate Prefecture; a bear was seen nearby and police consider a bear attack likely.
Chikuma Kuiseke, Nagano
On May 20 at around 07:30, Chikuma City captured one Asiatic black bear (male adult, 1.3–1.5 m long, 78.5 kg) on a sandbar of the Sano River between Inariyama and Hachiman; local hunters culled the bear at the city's request. It is believed to be the same individual that was sighted multiple times in the city center on the 19th; no injuries were reported.
Chikuma Inariyama, Nagano
In Chikuma City, Nagano Prefecture, on the morning of May 20, 2026, a single bear about 1 meter long was found; at around 07:30 prefectural bear-response personnel captured it with a tranquilizer gun and it was subsequently culled by a hunters' association. A passerby reported seeing a bear just after 05:30 along National Route 18 near Sakurado, and the animal found along the Sano River in the Yahata area is believed to be the same individual repeatedly sighted since the previous day.
Chikuma Ussawa, Nagano
On the morning of May 20, 2026, a single bear about 1 meter long was found in the Sano River flowing between Yawata and Inariyama in Chikuma City; a member of the hunters' association used a tranquilizer gun to capture and euthanize it around 7:30 AM. Sightings had been reported repeatedly in the city since May 19.
Chikuma Yawata, Nagano
Around 07:30 on the 20th, a male bear found on the riverbank of Sanogawa in the Inariyama area of Chikuma City was subdued with a tranquilizer gun, captured and subsequently euthanized. The bear weighed 78.5 kg, and the city believes it is the same individual that had been sighted repeatedly in urban areas since the 19th.
Chikuma Yashiro, Nagano
On the morning of May 20, an adult male bear was tranquilized, captured, and euthanized on a sandbar in the Sano River in Chikuma City, Nagano Prefecture. The bear weighed 78.5 kg and measured about 1.3–1.5 m; its stomach was reported empty, and the city believes it is the same individual linked to multiple sightings in the urban area since May 19.
Chikuma Inariyama, Nagano
On May 20, 2026, at around 05:35, a bear about 1 meter long was sighted in Sakurado, Chikuma City; the Chikuma police subsequently captured the single bear.
Chikuma Ussawa, Nagano
Just after 5:30 AM on the 20th, a passerby spotted a bear near Habu Junior High School in Sakurado, Chikuma City. Shortly after 7:30 AM, prefectural bear-response personnel found, captured, and euthanized one bear on the riverbank in Inariyama, Chikuma City; there were no injuries.
Chikuma Imojiya, Nagano
On the afternoon of May 19 in Chikuma City (Awasa area), a bear estimated at about 1 meter long was repeatedly sighted in the urban area; a security camera captured it crossing a road and running away at around 13:20. The city and police searched the area but did not find the animal, and nearby elementary schools implemented precautions such as parent pick-ups and cancelling after-school activities.
Chikuma Awasa, Nagano
On the afternoon of May 19, 2026, a single bear about 1 meter long was sighted in urban areas of Chikuma City, Nagano Prefecture, around Yashiro's Susuki Suijinsha (Susukigi Shrine), along Route 18, and in a supermarket parking lot. Police and the city patrolled and warned residents; nearby elementary and middle schools asked parents to pick up children and suspended after-school club activities and conducted group dismissals. No human injuries were reported.
Chikuma Awasa, Nagano
A bear appeared on an elementary school commuting route in Chikuma City, Nagano Prefecture; surveillance cameras captured it crossing the road and running. Sightings were reported repeatedly in the urban area with houses and shops, and police are monitoring the area.
Chikuma Kuiseke, Nagano
A bear appeared during a junior high school soccer match in Ueda City, Nagano Prefecture, causing about 100 people to evacuate. A 78-year-old man fought back at the scene, reportedly hitting the bear's nose with his fist, after which the bear fled.
Ueda Ninomaru, Nagano
Size: Adult
Nagano Matsushiromachi-Higashijo, Nagano
On May 17, 2026, shortly after 14:30, a bear appeared from the woods during a middle school soccer match at a school ground in Ueda City, Nagano Prefecture. About 100 players and guardians evacuated and the match was cancelled (the sighting was filmed by a TV Shinshu reporter).
Ueda Ninomaru, Nagano
Size: Adult
Suzaka, Nagano
Size: juvenile
Takayama, Nagano
Size: juvenile
Karuizawa 大字長倉, Nagano
Size: adult
Karuizawa 軽井沢, Nagano
Size: Adult
Takayama, Nagano
Around 7:30 a.m. on the 16th, a resident walking in the Itopia Komoro Kogen villa area in Okubo, Komoro City, Nagano Prefecture, reported seeing one adult bear about 1 meter long and called the police. Officers arrived but the bear had already left; no further sightings or damage have been confirmed and the police are warning local residents.
Komoro Okubo, Nagano
Size: adult (fully grown)
Takayama Takai, Nagano
Size: Adult
Karuizawa 大字追分, Nagano
Size: Adult
Iizuna Kurai, Nagano
Size: adult
Shinano Kumasaka, Nagano
Size: Adult
Iiyama Hachisu, Nagano
At around 07:00 on May 4, 2026, one bear was sighted near a blueberry farm in Kanemata, Myoko City. The bear's length was unknown; the sighting occurred close to houses and police warned nearby residents to be cautious.
Myoko, Niigata
At around 00:40 on April 29, a single bear approximately 1.5 meters long was spotted on the road in Higashiterao, Matsushiro, Nagano City; a passing car honked its horn and the bear ran away, according to a report. Police searched the area but did not find the animal and have urged local residents to be cautious.
Nagano Matsushiromachi-Higashiterao, Nagano
In the early hours of April 29, 2026, a single bear about 1.5 meters long was sighted on a road in Higashiterao, Matsushiro-cho, Nagano City; before 00:30 a passing driver honked and reported the bear left. Police searched the area but did not find the animal and no damage was reported; residents nearby were warned to be cautious.
Nagano Matsushiromachi-Higashiterao, Nagano
Size: adult (fully grown)
Iiyama Hachisu, Nagano
Size: adult
Nagano Matsushiromachi-Johoku, Nagano
Karuizawa Town in Kitasaku District has temporarily shifted its policy from releasing captured bears after 'learning' to euthanizing them for a limited period. The change responds to repeated human injuries and appearances of bears in residential areas across the prefecture and concerns that bears' wide-ranging movements could cause harm to neighboring municipalities.
Karuizawa 中軽井沢, Nagano
Peak activity at 7:00 with 7 incidents
Ursus thibetanus japonicus
Safety picks and trail essentials, top-rated on Amazon and Rakuten.
For mountain rescue, call 110 (police). They will coordinate with local rescue teams.
Draw any route in Japan and get the same bear-safety report, built around the trip you're actually taking.
No comments yet.
In the past 30 days, 55 bear sightings were reported within 5 km of the route. The past 7 days account for 20 of them.
The latest sighting was reported 2 days ago near Joetsu, Niigata.
Recent sightings on this route peak around 7:00. Bears are generally most active at dawn and dusk.
This 261 km route runs from Sanjo to Karuizawa, passing through Niigata and Nagano. In the past 30 days, 55 bear sightings were reported within 5 km of the route. The past 7 days account for 20 of them. The latest sighting was reported 2 days ago near Joetsu, Niigata. This is an active bear corridor. Drive through with full caution, but rerouting is the safer choice.
