Mie River near Yokkaichi

At the center of the picture a willow is whipped by the wind, its branches streaming widely. At its foot, a man hurriedly chases his blown-off hat. The hat has rolled to the waterside at the lower left, and the print catches the moment of whether he will catch it. The man has one foot raised, leaning forward with his hand outstretched. His flustered expression is somehow funny and draws a laugh from the viewer.

On the right, a traveler stoops as he proceeds across a narrow plank bridge, his raincoat flapping in the wind. The reeds on the bank also lie in the same direction as the willow branches, so that the plants and people in the picture are all aligned in a single direction of wind. The traveler's raincoat billows out, and he keeps his head low as if holding down his hat. A small boat is moored at the water's edge in the foreground.

The Mie River is thought to be today's Mitaki River, and from the masts standing beyond the settlement at the back left, one can tell it is a place near the river mouth. The Tokyo Fuji Art Museum calls this a rare print among Hiroshige's works that focuses on the movement of the wind. Yokkaichi was the 43rd post station from Edo, a shogunate-controlled territory where a magistrate's office was placed.