[ Dec.2017 ] We went to Fukuroda in Ibaraki prefecture in Japan with my family.
Of course our main destination was the famous waterfall there.
I did not know, but according to a man in our hotel, Fukuroda Waterfalls is one of the best three waterfalls in Japan.
And it is the best one people can see closely.
The other two waterfalls are Kegon Falls in Nikko and Nachi Falls in Wakayama prefecture, by the way.
I have been to the Fukuroda Falls before and in my memory the white water were like Japanese noodles and falling in a very wide area.
But this time in the year, they said that the waterfall is often frozen, so I looked forward to seeing it.
To get to the falls, you have to walk through a tunnel of 276 metres.
It was really freezing inside the tunnel.
When we went to Nagano prefecture a few days before, we were prepared thoroughly for the cold, but Ibaraki prefecture is a part of Kanto region where Tokyo belongs to, so we underestimated the weather.
But it was worth an effort to get there.
About 80 % of the waterfall was really frozen.
I have never seen anything like this.
Some water was still running, which was elegant.
It was really an amazing scene.
According to the leaflet, the height of the fall is 120 metres and the width is 73 metres.
Because of the rock structure, the water falls in 4 layers, so it is sometimes called “Yodo no Taki (four times falls)”.
There was a lift which did not exist there when I had visited before, and we could go up to see the higher part of the waterfalls, which was interesting.
I could see that they were making an effort to make this falls popular among younger people, saying “You can see a heart within the frozen falls”, which I thought unreasonable, but generally it was a wonderful place to visit.
Fortunately when we were there, there were not so many people.
They provide leaflets in foreign languages, but all the visitors seemed Japanese.
I thought they should advertise more targeting foreign visitors l
ike Jigokudani in Nagano, but on the other hand I also thought it is nice to keep this for ourselves.
On the way back, we came across a shop selling grilled ayu (fish) and gamecock on skewers.
I tried the “bonjiri” of gamecock for the first time.
Apparently the gamecocks are rare and precious.
It was nice especially eating it with the simple salt.
The hotel we stayed in Fukuroda was called “Fukuroda Onsen Omoide Romankan”.
The interior was somewhat combined Western and Japanese style, though it did not have the weight of history which we felt in Fujiya Hotel in Hakone we stayed a few years ago.
We had our private hot spring bath in our room and I felt bliss when I was in the hot water in the morning light.
