Shizuoka

Kakita River Park, Mishima

A peaceful park at the source of a river

Peter Sidell Oct 14, 2015 - 1 min read

<p>Here you can see the gravel moving around at the bottom as the water is forced from the ground</p>

<p>There are a handful of information boards like this around the park</p>

<p>Lions guarding the shrine in the woods</p>

<p>Water is just coming out of the ground here</p>

<p>Follow the boardwalk down by the river</p>

<p>A view across the river from the boardwalk</p>

<p>One of the streams running through the park</p>

<p>The rocks are coated with lichens</p>

<p>Sometimes the boardwalk meets a tree, and the tree wins</p>

<p>That lookout overlooks this, the largest of the spring sources</p>

In the southerly reaches of central Mishima, just over the road from Sun to Moon shopping centre, Kakita River Park is a nice spot to relax and take in some natural scenery. It marks the source of the Kakita river, and there are a number of springs dotted around the park, where you can watch the gravel thrash as the water is forced up from the ground. There's also a small shrine in the woods, a wooden boardwalk so you can get closer to the nature, and a lawn with a few picnic tables where you can eat a packed lunch or bento.

Peter Sidell @peter.sidell

I came to Japan from Manchester, England in 2003, and have travelled a lot since then, around Japan and in Asia. When I'm not working, I write satire and perform stand-up comedy in and around Tokyo. Check YouTube for a taste.