Oirase Gorge

The Oirase is the only stream that drains Lake Towada, and it leaves the crater in a long, shallow gorge that has been walked as a scenic route since the early twentieth century. A level path follows the water for about fourteen kilometres from Nenokuchi down to Yakeyama, close enough that you hear it the whole way. The interest is in detail rather than scale: moss on every boulder, beech and katsura leaning over the channel, braided side streams, and perhaps a dozen named waterfalls, of which Choshi Otaki is the widest and Kumoi no Taki the tallest. Buses stop at several points, so any section can be walked on its own.

What you actually see

• Choshi Otaki - the widest fall, dropping across the stream near the lake end.
• Kumoi no Taki - a tall side fall arriving through the trees above the path.
• The moss and boulders - the reason people walk slowly here rather than for distance.
• Nenokuchi - the lake shore where the stream begins, with boats out onto Towada.

When to go

The trail is snow-free roughly from late April to early November. Fresh green in late May and June is the quietest good time, while the third week of October is the colour peak and by far the busiest. Early morning gives the best light in a gorge that stays shaded, and empties the car parks of coaches.

Honest expectations

A road runs alongside the stream for most of the route, so traffic noise and parked cars are part of the experience, and in October the queues of vehicles turn the gorge into a slow-moving car park. The path is flat but often muddy and slippery on wet stones. Buses are packed at peak times, and some of the falls are modest by any measure.

Nearby

Lake Towada itself, and the Hakkoda mountains with their hot spring villages to the north.