The entrance is located quite a way down the slope from the northern outer rim of Mt. Aso to the west. This gorge has an abundant amount of water and is deep, so the sun does not penetrate to the bottom of the gorge. That’s why the color of the pool is a deep blue and mysterious. The only time the light penetrates to the bottom of the gorge, illuminating the curtain of water vapor rising from the pool, is early in the morning in early summer, when the gorge is apparently occupied by many photographers.
It’s a two-hour circular course that goes up and down and doesn’t have many ups and downs, but for some reason it takes longer than that. Perhaps it’s because you’re bathed in negative ions and there are a series of spectacular waterfalls and pools.
For your refference, I recommend sevral as below.
- Narugo Gorge(Miyagi Prefecture)
- Hugging Gorge(Akita Prefecture)
- Nakatsugawa Valley(Fukushima Prefecture)
- Geibikei Canyon(Iwate Prefecture)
- Oirase Valley(Aomori Prefecture)
Detour (Aso Skyline Observatory)
There are several observation decks on the outer rim of Mt. Aso. The most representative of these is Daikanbo, which juts out slightly into the caldera basin from within the outer rim, and from there you can see the Aso mountain range directly ahead from due north. However, it takes a little time to get to the top of the observation deck, including the walking time, and the Aso Skyline Observatory solves this problem. The observation deck is right on the side of the road. It is on the way to Kikuchi Gorge.
Detour (Lunch time)
Going back a little to Minamioguni Town, in a really small basin surrounded by mountains, there is an apple mint herb garden and a natural food restaurant called “Kaze no Mori (Forest with wind).” I love the plate with colorful vegetables, so I always stop by here. You can enjoy a leisurely lunch while looking at the farm. The assortment of various herbs is a great deal.
