Located deep within Yamanashi Prefecture’s mountainous interior lays the picturesque Nishizawa Valley. Sitting at the foot of Mount Kobushi-ga-take, this natural wilderness consists of a network of deep canyons, gorges, and waterfalls formed by the mighty Fueki River. Unsurprisingly, with its natural beauty, the Nishizawa Valley has become one of Yamanashi’s top attractions for both hikers and casual day trippers alike.
In total, this valley comprises of around 8 large waterfalls, each with amazingly unique features. The jewel in the crown is, without doubt, the largest set of falls known as Nanatsugama-Goden, ranked among one of the top 100 within Japan.
These falls can easily be reached via a mountain trail that spans over 9 kilometers and takes about 4 hours to complete. The trail-head for this path can easily be found as it is located directly opposite the bus stop. As you traverse along this narrow trail you will ascend along a series of craggy cliff tops which runs parallel to the mighty Fueki River. After about 50 minutes, you will witness the sights and hear the sound of gushing water as you pass by each fall.
Getting there
Departing several times a day from Yamanashi Station on the JR Chuo Line, the Nishizawa bound bus makes the one hour journey to the trail-head with one-way fares costing about 900 yen. The first bus leaves at 9:12am, whilst the last return bus departs at 4:25pm (seasonal).
From central Tokyo you can catch the Super Asuza Express train from Shinjuku to Yamanashi Station (~90 minutes/~4000 yen)
The falls themselves are connected by a walking course which traverses along a narrow mountain path, forming an easy to navigate 9 kilometer loop that both starts and ends at the trail-head located next to the bus stop.
Steve Morton @steve.morton138
Yokohama based content creator, editor, and researcher. Steven likes, eating, reading and traveling on a streamlined budget guaranteed to make any self-respecting local gulp. When not too busy with work assignments, Steven attempts to not get lost while following Japanese tourist maps.Follow me o...
