Monet's Pond

The pond has no official name. It sits beside Nemichi Shrine in a rural part of Seki, was created as an irrigation reservoir, and was planted with water lilies and koi by a local nursery owner in the 1990s. Spring water feeds it, the bottom is clean gravel, and the clarity is such that the fish appear to hang in air above their own shadows while the lily pads sit flat on a mirror surface. Somebody noticed the resemblance to Monet's Giverny paintings, posted it, and by around 2015 the place had a name it never officially received and a stream of visitors a village lane was not built for. It takes fifteen minutes to see. The village has since added parking and a small shop, and asks visitors to respect the shrine and the neighbouring houses, which is a reasonable request given how the crowd arrived.

What you'll find

• An unnamed pond - an irrigation reservoir beside a small rural shrine.
• Fish above their shadows - spring-fed clarity over clean gravel.
• Lilies planted in the 1990s - by a local nursery owner, not by design for visitors.
• Accidental fame - a resemblance noticed online around 2015.

When to go

June to September for lilies in flower; sunny mornings for the clarity. An hour.

Before you go

It is tiny and the visit is fifteen minutes for a long drive. Weekends bring crowds the lane cannot hold. The effect depends on light and flat water - wind or cloud removes it. Public transport is impractical.

Nearby

Seki, a sword-making town, is south; Gujo Hachiman is north.

Key facts