Fukuroda Falls

The waterfall spans the Taki River, a tributary of the Kuji River, and boasts a height of 120 meters and a width of 73 meters.

It is also called “Yodo no Taki” (Four Degrees Fall) because the water falls in four stages down a large rock face.

From a distance, Fukuroda Falls appears as a gentle white line, but as one approaches, it reveals a roughness that seems to strike the ground. The charm of the waterfall will captivate you and make you forget the passage of time.

The combination of serenity and roughness of Fukuroda Falls makes it one of the three most famous waterfalls in Japan. Fukuroda Falls is attractive because of its seasonal changes.

It is said that when the Heian-period poet Saigyo Hoshi visited the area, he was so impressed by its beauty that he praised the waterfall, saying, “You must visit this waterfall once in each of the four seasons to experience its true beauty.

In spring, both sides of the waterfall are surrounded by greenery, in summer the sound and splash of water bring coolness, and in autumn the beautiful autumn leaves add color to the waterfall. In winter, the waterfall freezes over due to the harshness of the cold, creating a fantastic ice fall.

Especially in winter, an event called “Daiko Raijin - Daigo Light” is held and visitors can enjoy the frozen appearance of the falls. In this mysterious space of light and ice, the majestic flow of the waterfall emerges like an ink painting.

Sometimes the line of water flowing through the waterfall basin looks smooth and white thread-like, and sometimes it looks violently stormy.

In autumn, the “Oku Kuji Daiko Festival,” a foliage festival, is held, where visitors can enjoy exhibitions and sales of local products, various events, and booths with a rich local flavor.

In winter, the “Okuji Fukuroda Winter Waterfall Travel” event is held, where visitors can enjoy fantastic scenery such as the lighting up of the falls and the illumination of the suspension bridge.

Fukuroda Falls is a beautiful waterfall that shows different expressions throughout the four seasons, and must have impressed many writers and artists.

Fukuroda Falls is located in Fukuroda, Ohko-cho, Kuji-gun, Ibaraki Prefecture. Located upstream of the Taki River, a tributary of the Kuji River, the waterfall is divided into four stages and is a total of 120 meters long and 73 meters wide.

In winter, the falls freeze over, creating a beautiful “ice fall” phenomenon. In the past, the entire waterfall was frozen every year, but in recent years, the last time was in 2012, and now the water is flowing beside the icefall.

Fukuroda Falls is designated as a place of scenic beauty in Japan and is sometimes considered one of the three most famous waterfalls in Japan, along with Kegon Falls and Nachi Falls. It has also been selected as one of the 100 best waterfalls in Japan.

In 1990, Fukuroda Falls won first place in a popularity contest of the 100 best waterfalls in Japan.

This waterfall is designated as Okkuji Prefectural Natural Park, but unlike Kegon Falls, which is designated as Nikko National Park, and Nachi Falls, which is designated as Yoshino-Kumano National Park, Fukuroda Falls is not designated as a national park or quasi-national park.

In the Edo period (1603-1867), it was located within the territory of the Mito domain, and it is said that Mitsukuni Tokugawa (a.k.a. Mito Komon) once visited the falls.

Origin

The area along the Kuji River, including the town of Oshiko, is located between the Yamizo Mountains and the Abukuma Mountains (Kuji Mountains), a relatively low area. Geologically, the area is formed by strata that were deposited around the Miocene period, approximately 15 million years ago.

The depositional environment of the strata indicates that the area was once a sea, as freshwater such as rivers and swamps were found in the lower part of the strata and fossils of shellfish living in the ocean were found in the upper part. In other words, the sea entered this area from the Pacific Ocean about 15 million years ago.

The strata are mainly composed of sandstone, conglomerate, and mudstone, with some strata composed of volcanic ash and other volcanic ejecta. The most representative of these strata is the Nantai Volcanic Horn Conglomerate Formation, which makes up Mt.

Nantaisan Volcanic Horn Conglomerate Formation, which is a very hard and erosion-resistant stratum.

The steep ridges stretching nearly 30 kilometers from north to south, centering on Oku Kuji Nantai-san, were formed by this formation, as were Mt.

Fukuroda Falls were formed when water from the Taki River, a tributary of the Kuji River, fell from a cliff formed by eruptions from a former underwater volcano.

The topography is similar to that of Kegon Falls in Nikko, where the river was choked by lava from Mount Nantai, but in the case of Fukuroda Falls, this lava is about 20,000 years old, which is geologically much more recent than Fukuroda Falls.

Also, the topography of Fukuroda Falls is not caused by cessation, but is a “cliff” formed by volcanic ejecta about 15 million years ago.

Alias

There is a theory that the waterfall’s alias, “Four Degrees of Falls,” was named after the way the Takigawa River falls down the rock face in four stages, and that it was named after Saigyo, who once visited the area and praised the waterfall, saying, “You must visit this waterfall once in each of the four seasons to experience its true flavor.

Waterfall viewing platform

To view the falls from the front, visitors must pass through a tunnel called the “Fukuroda Falls Tunnel” to reach the first and second viewing platforms.

The viewing platform is open all year round, but is open from 8:00 to 18:00 from May to October and from 8:30 to 17:00 from November to April.

It is also open at night during the illumination period. At the entrance to the Fukuroda Falls Tunnel stands a monument with a poem by Goichi Imase.

The conventional No. 1 viewing platform can be reached in about 5 minutes on foot through the Fukuroda Falls Tunnel. From here, it is located in front of the third level from the top of the waterfall (the top level is not visible). The newly completed second viewing platform is also available.

The second viewing platform was opened in 2008. It is accessed by two elevators installed in the middle of the Fukuroda Falls tunnel (there are no stairs, only elevators).

The second viewing platform consists of three decks: the first deck is about 44 meters above the waterfall, the second deck is about 48 meters above, and the third deck is about 51 meters above the waterfall, allowing visitors to see the entire view of the falls, including the uppermost level.

Even if you do not use the viewing decks for which there is a fee, you can still see part of the falls from the side of the falls and from the hiking trail that climbs up the side of the falls and leads to Mt. From the hiking trail, the rim of the waterfall can be viewed from upstream.