When crossing the border from Hida into northern Nakatsugawa, the Tsukechi river becomes one of the major lifelines of region, both shaping mountains and determining where ancestores settled. The basin of Tsukechi town is home to many farms, onsen, and camping grounds as everyone is just one step away from nature.
The Tsukechi river is formed from all the runoff of the surrounding towering mountains. Following the river up to its source, some the valleys are so close together, over millenia the rushing water has created deep recessions resulting in several gorges.
One area along the river to the east has dubbed itself as The Tsukechi Gorge. It's free to park and free to walk, but they do ask for a 200円 donation.
The main feature of the hiking are some beautiful slightly engineered waterfalls that contribute to the crystal clear blue water below.
It's a very easy hike and offers some great views of nature. So much so that it attracts a lot of attention from city folk. I was quite surprised at how many people came to this place. People were everywhere on the trails, and there was often congestion. It was a national holiday, though, so I guess everyone had off from work.
I was able to get a quick couple of shots of my friends on a bridge through the woods without others walking by.
Zach, Dirk, and I stayed at The Doai Onsen the night before, so getting to the Tsukechi Gorge was easy. We arrived around 10am, which was apparently right before the rush. We hiked around the gorge for about 40 minutes maybe. By the time we were leaving, there was a line of cars down the one-lane mountain road waiting to park.
I'm not sure why everyone decided to come here on this day, but it might be best to visit on a weekday if you come up here.
