Hugging Gorge that means you cannot pass without really hugging people you pass by, true or not ?

I tried translating the name of this gorge into English without permission, so it became like this title.   So, please do not search seriously with this name.  Anyway in the old days, you couldn’t pass each other without hugging each other.
River Tamagawa flowing through this gorge is cobalt blue.   It flows from Tamagawa Hot Spring* around Mt.Hachimantai, but since the strongly acidic water contains aluminum as a basic ion, the light with a short wavelength is scattered by its particles and the surface of water appears blue.   For the same reason, the water in Lake Tazawa looks blue due to injection of water of River Tamagawa long ago.
If you go sightseeing near here, you will definitely go to the famous Kakunodate with old samurai residence, but as a countryside lover, you should definitely visit the gorge that makes you feel the traces of a volcano.

*)A hot spring that warms your body with geothermal heat while wearing clothes in a sulfur-rich crater is worth a try.  Simply lay a straw rug on the ground and lie on your back.  You can also enjoy a bathing style where you just put your head out of a box filled with steam.

Gallery (click photos)