Nafune Coast is on the northern side of the Noto Peninsula near Wajima, known throughout Japan for its beautiful Wajima Lacquerware. In fact, the Wajima area has preserved the feeling of Satoyama Living which makes it a very attractive area for foreign visitors. In summer Wajima hosts the Okutsuhime Shrine Festival which attracts many visitors to this otherwise thinly populated area.
The Nafune Coast was one of many interesting places on my Noto Peninsula Discovery tour. This area spots a scenic ocean landscape with rocky stretches and small sandy beaches. The strong waves and current make for a dramatic scenery. The area is ideal to be explored on bicycle or by rental car. In recent years the Noto Peninsula and Ishigawa Prefecture have become a mecca for cyclists. There are now even self-guided cycling tours on offer,
A road runs along the ocean from where you will have nice views but stopping here and there to have a closer look is even better. Drive on Prefecture Road 249 from Wajima Onsen to Senmaida, the famous 1,000 terraced rice fields, and then continue to ride along the coast toward Sosogi.
Along this road you will pass by a torii gate by the ocean which is said to be the birthplace of the Gojinjo Drumming.
Next you will see a long stretch of beach, Mitsugo-hama, and a rocky outpost that separates it from another beach, Okawa-hama. Before you reach the next beach, Sosogi-hama, a rock formation attracts your eyes. This is the Madoiwa Rock.
Madoiwa literally means “window and rock”. A hole of two meters in diameter in the middle of the rock looks indeed like a window. Come here in the evening and you can try to catch the sunset through this window.
Pass through a tunnel and you will reach the next coastline attraction, Tarumi Waterfall. Tarumi waterfall is an unusual seaside waterfall in Japan. It is said that its water splashes upward in strong wind.
After you reached Sosogi you can continue your journey on Road 249. You can in fact ride around the whole of the Noto Peninsula in a loop!
Alena Eckelmann @alena.eckelmann
Founder of Kii Monogatari, my story and the story of the Kii Peninsula of Japan. Originally from East Germany, I came to Tokyo, via Berlin and London, in 2005. In summer 2011 I moved by choice to remote Kumano in the south of the Kii Peninsula where I live, work and play now, and explore every da...
