F..F….F! I mean, Frozen Fukuroda Falls!

Fukuroda waterfalls are frozen up!!! The news reported that the falls were 70% frozen in the morning of January 17th, when the lowest temperature hit -7 degrees. They are completely frozen up and ready for you to discover their quiet and peaceful yet powerful and amazing sides in the winter season.

Fukuroda Falls is situated in Daigo-machi, on the north end of Ibaraki. It attracts many visitors all through the year for its magnificent four-section water cascades and the amazing natural landscape around it. There have been a few past articles on E-Ibaraki introducing the falls so I won’t go into details here, but just for those who don’t have time to check out the articles, here are some basic info for you:

Fukuroda Falls is one of the three famous waterfalls of Japan, along with Kegon Fall (華厳の滝) in Tochigi Prefecture and Nachi Fall (那智滝) in Wakayama Prefecture.

Fukuroda Falls is 120 meters high and 73 meters wide

Fukuroda Falls is also called “Four-section Falls”

Traffic: 7 minutes by bus from the Fukuroda Station on the JR Suigun Line

I personally have been to the falls twice, once in summer and once in winter, and I’ve really enjoyed both trips. The second time I went there was when my family came to visit me last December (2008). December is actually between the autumn-leaf and the frozen-up seasons, so it was a shame that my family didn’t get to see both. However, the falls were as breath-taking as they would be in any other seasons, and we still enjoyed the falls very much. My family also enjoyed climbing up the stairs of the two new observation decks that were built sometime last year. It was very cold the day we visited, but the clear winter sky and the spectacular view the decks had to offer were really worth it.

Local people said there have been a few years in the recent time where the falls did not freeze up at all due to global warming. But, it froze up this year!! How could you miss out?!

For past articles, please search the E-Ibaraki Report site with the keyword of “Fukuroda Falls”

Enjoy winter and keep warm everyone!