Scenic Drive from Yufuin to Kurokawa Onsen with stops at Tengu Falls, Kokonoe Yume Otsurihashi and Tadewara Wetlands

4 November 2024

From one onsen town, we drove to another. Kurokawa Onsen is only 48 km from Yufuin and the driving time without stopping was slightly over an hour. We planned to make some slight detours in order to see Kyusuikei Gorge with Tengu Waterfall, Kokonoe Yume Otsurihashi suspension bridge and the Tadewara Wetlands along the way.

We left Yufuin at about 11 AM via National Highway 210 with Kokonoe’s Tengu Waterfall as our first stop. National Highway 210 was easy to drive. We came via this highway when we drove to Yufuin the day before. From Highway 210, we turned into the smaller and narrower Route 40. The country road followed a river and was quite scenic, with views of the river, paddy fields, farmhouses and also forest.

As it winds its way up the mountain, we had to be more careful as this single carriageway has many sharp bends with blind corners. The width of the road is also not regular and at some parts barely wide enough for two cars to pass each other. I had to make a sudden stop at one point when the road suddenly narrows with an oncoming car heading down the slope towards me. If I did not stop, I would have sideswiped that car.

After the narrow escape and negotiating a few hairpin turns up the mountain, I was glad we arrived at a large car park near our first destination which is Tengu Falls at Kyusuikei Gorge. The car park is located next to a store that sells food and local produce and is within walking distance to the waterfall.

I was surprised by the number of cars in this large car park. Must have been due to the autumn season as Kyusuikei Gorge is one of the places in Kyushu that boasts of nice autumn foliage.

Car park at Kyusuikei Gorge. This place would be nice with autumn colours but the leaves were still mostly green.

Apparently, there is no free parking at this car park overlooking the gorge. An attendant handed us a ticket which we need to get validated when we buy food or things in the local product store.

Katsura Chaya

Naturally cooled drinks on sale. Take what you want and drop the money into the bamboo box on the left.

Katsura Chaya is a local produce store with a restaurant selling udon, soba noodles, rice bowls and drinks. We did not really like the food in the menu and there was a queue at the store to order the food. We went to check out a food stall in front of the store instead. There was a man grilling dango (Japanese dumplings) and yamame (local river fish) on skewers over a charcoal fire. I had read that the grilled fish here is good.

Yamame grilling over a charcoal fire.

We bought a grilled yamame for 800 yen and requested the vendor to validate our parking ticket. He charges 200 yen extra and stamped his mark on the 200 yen box on our parking ticket.  

We then took a seat on a table in the restaurant with views of the gorge below. While my wife started on the fish, I went to use the washroom. When I returned, she was gone.

Grilled yamame on skewer.

Apparently, the tables in the restaurant were meant for customers who ordered from the menu in the restaurant. We had been asked to move to a table behind the fish stall.

OK, our bad. We had assumed that the stall is affiliated to the chaya.

The grilled fish looked charred and overcooked. We used the chopsticks to remove the charred skin. Surprisingly, the flesh inside has a delicate texture with a delicious and sweet taste. 

Tengu Waterfall

We went to take a look at Tengu Waterfall which was about 20 meters away. There is a little shrine overlooking the river and a pair of giant red slippers.

Shrine and red slippers in front of Tengu Falls.

Tengu Falls was not that impressive but the surrounding mountain air was fresh and cooling.

As we leave the car park, I handled the parking ticket to the attendant thinking that I had already validated the ticket and paid for the parking. He asked for 200 yen more. I was not sure how the parking system works. So I just pay up and get on with it.

Kokonoe Yume Otsurihashi

We arrived at the Kokonoe Yume Otsurihashi car park a short while later. Parking is free but entrance fee to the suspension bridge is 500 Yen per person.

On the side of the large car park there are restaurants and small shops offering local food, ice creams and local produce as well as a tourist information service and toilets. The ticket booth is at the tourist information center, not at the bridge.

We had to show our tickets to the attendants at the entrance to the gate before allowed entry. You are not allowed to cross the bridge with an umbrella due to possible strong wind. We put on our hiking jackets as it was quite chilly with the wind. 

The Kokonoe Yume Otsurihashi is Japan’s largest pedestrian suspension bridge.

Viewing the suspension bridge from the side, we could see the long span across the Kyusuikei valley.

The graceful bridge could sway a little as it was suspended by cables all the way at a height of 173 m above the river valley floor.

As I have a little fear of heights, it was thrilling for me to step on the bridge and view the deep ravine below. I was hoping no earthquake happens while we were on the bridge.

View of the Kyusuikei gorge from the middle of the bridge.

The views of the valley and the surrounding mountain were stunning. It would be even better during the peak autumn leaves season.              

The bridge is also a good place to view three waterfalls, collectively known as the Shindo Falls and renowned as one of Japan’s top 100 falls. They comprise the ‘child’ falls, Ko-daki, the ‘female’ falls, Me-daki and the ‘male’ falls, O-daki.

Snapping photos of the scenery.

The Ko-daki, the ‘female’ falls. I believe the small waterfall next to the main fall is the ‘child’ falls, Ko-daki.

The male falls is the most dramatic falling over 88 m. A bit of the autumn colours were visible.

With this sign, we were assured that we would be safe if Godzilla appears in the valley below.

It did not take long to cross the 390 m long bridge. At the other side, there are attendants checking for tickets as well, since there is an entry and exit gate. Visitors could leave from there to take a road up a hill where there is a shrine with a white python and also views of the bridge from a distance.

View from the opposite side of the bridge.

We did not continue up the hill and crossed the bridge again to get back to our car. From there it was a 10 minutes drive to Tadewara Wetlands.

Tadewara Wetlands

Situated on the northwest side of the Kuju Mountain Range at an elevation of approximately 1,000m above sea level, Tadewara Wetlands offers hikers and nature lovers a chance to take a walk through fields of flowering reeds in autumn, breathe fresh air while looking up to mountains nearby.

We parked at the free car park opposite the Chojabaru Visitors Center, crossed a signalised road junction to get to the entrance.  

Statue of a dog at the entrance.

We entered through a path next to the statue of a dog. We could not figure out the significance of the dog statue. It looked very much like the Hachiko statue in Tokyo but probably had a different back story.

In autumn, the wetland area is covered with tall brown reeds, very similar to those we saw at Jeju’s Sangumburi Crater. The silver reeds made the area very pretty.

Tall reeds with silvery flowers in autumn.

Tadewara Wetlands is a marshland with the size of about 45 football fields. There are three marked routes from the easiest (marked in orange, about 20 minutes, accessible to persons with reduced mobility), to the longest (marked in blue, 2.5km long and winding in the nearby forest).

Good detailed hiking information on the three trails is provided.

Raised wooden boardwalk through the wetlands.

Each route is on cedar-tree boardwalk specially built to allow close-up views of the flowers and plants growing in the wetlands without fear of trampling over them.

We chose to take the shortest route as we meant to do sightseeing, not long hikes on this day. This place is also the starting point for longer hikes to the nearby Mount Mimata.

Mount Mimata, part of the Kuju Mountain Range in the background.

Kuju mountains in the far distant.

The longer route will take hikers into the distant forest.

There are platforms with seats along the boardwalk for those who want to take a breather or linger amongst the field of reeds. We sat down on one of the seats to have a break and eat our Snickers bar. This place was really peaceful and relaxing. I wished we had more time to enjoy the fresh air, sunshine, scenic views and nature all around.

It was about 3.30 PM when we continued our drive to Kurokawa Onsen via Highway 11, also known as the Yamanami Highway. It is a scenic route that traverses through the Kuju mountain range. Originally, I had planned a short stop at the Makinoto Observatory to take a short hike to an observatory. I aborted this plan as we wanted to get to our ryokan in Kurokawa Onsen by 4 PM.

Kurokawa Onsen is one of Japan's most attractive hot spring towns with a pleasant, traditional atmosphere.

Kurokawa Onsen is an idyllic hot spring town, with charming traditional ryokans, and renowned as one of the most popular hot spring spots in Japan. The landscape is dominated by wooden buildings with natural colors and materials, earthen walls, stone stairs and a river flowing through.

Map showing the ryokans in Kurokawa Onsen.

After staying at the excellent Yufuin Bettei Itsuki ryokan in Yufuin, we would be pampering ourselves again at the Yamabiko Ryokan in Kurokawa Onsen.

Back entrance of Yamabiko Ryokan where we would be staying.

More about our stay at the Yamabiko Ryokan in Kurokawa Onsen in the next post.

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Morning at Lake Kinrin and Yunotsubo Kaido Street

4 November 2024

One of the highly recommended things to do at Yufuin is to take a walk around Lake Kinrin, a place of natural scenic beauty. This lake is also teeming with fish, including koi. As a Koi lover, I know Kinrin means golden scales. I have owned a ginrin koi with metallic looking golden scales in my pond before. Apparently, the lake got its name from a Confucian scholar who was impressed by a fish’s scales that shone in the sunset when he visited the lake one day.

Beside the fishes, Lake Kinrin is more well known as a lake with morning mist. Since Yufuin has many hot springs, the water in the lake is constantly warm. During autumn and winter months, mist rises from warm water of the lake and produces a magical mood early in the morning, if the conditions are right.

One of the reasons why I chose to stay overnight at Yufuin is so that I could take photos of the misty lake in the early morning.

Mist over Lake Kinrin in the early morning.

Sunrise was 6.30 AM and we got up early to take a short walk from our ryokan to the lake.

The morning air around Yufuin was already misty even before we arrived at the lake . The walk through the misty and quiet residential area of the small onsen town of Yufuin was a good experience in itself.

 “So early in the morning, crazy guy, nobody except us”, my wife was teasing me.

We went to the Tenso Shrine that sits on a quiet perch along the southeastern shore of Lake Kinrin first. A stone torii gate rises from the surface of Lake Kinrin. I wanted to take photos of the torii gate reflected in the still water surface of the lake. The best time to do this is early in the morning before the warm of the sun causes the air to move.

Lo and behold. I was not the only crazy guy.

There were already other groups of visitors at Lake Kinrin at 6.30 AM, with same purpose of enjoying the views of the mist over the lake.       

A local couple was seen paying respect at the shrine. So not all visitors are foreigners.

Torii gate shrouded in morning mist and reflecting in the water of Lake Kinrin.

A sacred cedar tree at the shrine.

There were a bit of autumn foliage on the trees in the small park where the shrine was located. The weather was warmer than expected this year and the peak period for autumn foliage had been delayed by a few weeks. Else Lake Kinrin with the red and orange autumn foliage would be even more stunning.

Not the best autumn foliage but still pretty.

There is a boardwalk on the western shore of the lake where people had already gathered. A few had even set up their cameras with tripods to wait for the sunrise.

Look at the number of people at the lake before 7 AM.

View of the misty lake at 6.50 AM.

We took our time to enjoy the serenity of the misty lake. The mist over the lake was still present at 7.30 AM. My wife was right after all. We were crazy to come so early. We could have an extra hour of sleep and come to the lake a bit later. Although sunrise was officially 6.30 AM, the sun took time to rise above the mountains.

We lingered at the lake till about 7.50 AM when we saw the round globe of the sun peeking above the mountains. I was all excited to snap photos of the misty sunrise. The sun moved quickly through the sky as I snap photos of it against the trees on the mountain.

The sun that looked like a moon in the misty morning.

Magical morning by the lake.

As the sun rose, the mist became less dense. A slight breeze developed as the warm of the sun hits the ground. However,  a thin layer of mist still hangs over the warm water of the lake.

Mist was clearing and a bit of blue sky appeared.

The water birds appeared like magic and started feeding on the lake. We spotted a white heron and a pair of ducks.

This is the mist from the warm water of the lake.

A white heron on Lake Kinrin.

A pair of tilapia performing a courtship dance or spawning on the surface.

Golden koi but not quite the ginrin.

I would have loved to linger at the lake as it was such a magical experience. But we had to hurry back to our ryokan since we had booked our breakfast at 8.30 AM.

Along the way, I paused briefly to snap a photo of the rice paddies with the mist over it. The mist would soon clear as the day gets warmer.

Rice paddies next to our ryokan,Yufuin Bettei Itsuki.

After breakfast, I had a relaxing soak in my room’s outdoor onsen before checking out.

Watching the sunrays through the slats in the outdoor onsen.

We left our car in the ryokan after checking out and took a walk to the Lake Kinrin again. The views of the lake was so different but yet so beautiful. I am glad we experienced the misty lake as well as the colourful lake with some autumn foliage on the trees.

Lake Kinrin in the morning without the mist.

We spent some time to explore Yunotsubo Kaibo Street and do some souvenir hunting. The 800-meter-long Yunotsubo Kaido Street runs through the center of Yufuin leading from Lake Kinrin to JR Yufuin Station.

The street was packed full of people by late morning. There are enough interesting  and unique shops, themed cafes and galleries to merit an hour of exploring. Fans of Snoopy, Hello Kitty, Miffy, Doraemon and other cute cute characters would not be disappointed. There are also many snack and dessert shops. 

Many interesting decor such as this car could be seen along the street.

One of the many stores with cute stuff. This one is the dog-themed store.

Checking out a food and snack store. Mount Yufu can be seen from the street, adding to the picturesque setting.

Enjoying sweet potato and macha ice-cream before leaving Yufuin at 11 AM.

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