[Iwaizumi Town, Iwate Prefecture] Ryusendo Cave, one of Japan's three major limestone caves, is a natural adventure spot that tickles your adventurous spirit!

Do you know about Ryusendo Cave, a gigantic limestone cave located in Iwaizumi Town, Shimohei District, Iwate Prefecture

It is one of the most representative limestone caves in Japan, and is a huge cave whose full details are still unknown. This time, we have covered mysterious power spots that are exciting even for adults!

What is Ryusendo Cave?

Ryusendo Cave is a limestone cave located in the eastern part of Mt. Ureira in Iwaizumi Town, Shimohei District, Iwate Prefecture, about a two-hour drive from Morioka City. ) is also called.

The total length has been confirmed to be 4,088m, and it is predicted to be over 5,000m, but this is only a predicted figure. between the top and bottom it is said to be the 5th largest cave in Japan

It is counted as one of Japan's three major limestone caves, along with Akiyoshido Cave in Mine City, Yamaguchi Prefecture Ryugado Cave in Kami City, Kochi Prefecture

Inside, you can see various sights created by limestone caves, such as icicle stones, cave corals, stalagmites, rimstones, flowstones, and stone pillars.

The spring water has been selected as one of Japan's 100 best waters.

In addition, Ryusendo Cave is also called Iwaizumi Spring Cave, and as the name suggests, a large amount of water gushes out from it, and eight underground lakes has also been confirmed. (Currently, only three underground lakes are open to the public)

The amount of water is more than 17,000 m3/day , and the slightly alkaline water containing a lot of calcium was selected as one of Japan's 100 Famous Waters has also been commercialized.

I'm so jealous of the people of Iwaizumi Town that they can drink tap water that has been selected as one of the top 100 famous waters!

Is Ryusendo Cave famous for bats?

Ryusendo Cave is also designated as a natural monument. Its registered name is ``Iwaizumi Spring Cave and Bat . Along with the cave, bats are also registered as natural monuments.

In fact, only about 700 meters of the entire length of Ryusendo Cave is currently open to the public; other parts are either undeveloped or under investigation. ``bat holes,'' and five types of bats have been confirmed in these areas: yellow bats, short-eared bats, white-eared bats, rabbit bats, and proboscis bats . It seems that there are.

Among them, species such as the long-eared rabbit bat the yellow-eared bat with a complex snout , light brown belly are said to be scientifically valuable species.

Is the power spot “Ryusendo Cave” a sacred place for lovers?

It has been said since ancient times that those who visit Ryusendo Cave will be able to ``open their third eye and see the truth of things '' allowing them to ``break from their current situation and advance to a new stage.' ' According to legend , it was said to be beneficial for ``luck in competition, luck in work, and luck in health.'' The third eye is amazing...

However, in recent years, in 2014 it was selected as a ``Lover's Sanctuary'' it has become popular as a power spot for fulfilling love is.

When I first learned about it, I thought, "Why?" But there was no detailed reason given, so it must be a reason. I looked into what seemed to be the case.

Does it look heart-shaped? The existence of the moon palace

The Moon Palace located just inside the entrance , is said to be a popular photo spot for couples because it looks slightly diagonal and heart-shaped when viewed from the back on the way home.

Is the cold water Hyakkoi water?

In the local dialect, cold water is ``Hyakkoi Mizu'' , so it is popularly known as ``Hyakkoi Mizu'' (Hyakkoi Mizu) and ``Hatsukoi Mizu'' (First Love Water). that's right.

``First Love'' is still good, but ``Hyakkoi'' has too much love and I think it's not so good...but that's just my personal opinion.

Existence of O-ana and Me-ana

There are many old legends about Ryusendo Cave, and one of them is the story of O-ana and Me-ana

Shimizugawa Myojin at the entrance to Ryusendo Cave in the past, which is different from the current one , and it is said that there were two rock caves called ``O-ana'' and ``Me-ana'' in the rock wall here. There is a story that a young man and woman praying for success in love secretly visited the Myojin Shrine, and then the man threw a pebble into the hole and the woman threw a pebble into the hole to divine love.

Does the third underground lake look heart-shaped?

The third underground lake inside the cave. this looks like a heart shape depending on the LED lighting .

...This may be a little harsh. lol

One more thing to note is that the water of Ryusendo Cave was said to be praised as ``the water of Ryusendo Cave's underground lake is blessed with children.''

There were some rather dubious reasons behind it, but all of these reasons must have led to it being selected as a "lover's sacred place"!

Highlights of Ryusendo Cave

In addition to the underground lake, there are many other attractions inside Ryusendo Cave. This time, we will introduce the highlights along the sightseeing course.

When you pass through the air curtain at the entrance, you can hear the roar of the river! Hyakken Corridor that tickles your sense of adventure

When you enter the entrance, the first thing that awaits you is a strong wind air curtain. The details are unknown, but I think the intention is to maintain the environment inside the cave by cutting off air circulation with the outside.

It's all the way from outside the cave, but even inside the cave you can hear the roar of the river, as if you were along a mountain stream with a considerable amount of water. This is because water gushing out from within the cave creates a river within the cave

Walking along the well-maintained scaffolding, sometimes right above the river, sometimes beside the river, will mysteriously tickle your sense of adventure and make you feel excited. It felt as if I had come to an attraction at a certain theme park in Chiba Prefecture.

As you move towards the back, the passage gradually becomes a straight line, and the terrain changes into a high crack towards the ceiling. This the Hyakkenroka (Hyakkenroka) , and there is an anecdote that a long, narrow road was created because a dragon passed through it in the past.

Moon Palace has a wide open space that makes you feel like you are on the moon.

After passing through the Hyakken Corridor, the next thing that appears is a wide open space. It is called the Moon Palace because it reminds you of the moon that appears in movies and novels

Here you will find stalactites of various shapes that were created over many years, and some of the rocks have unique names based on their appearance, such as Cave Venus, Otonashi no Taki, Kameiwa, and Jizo Rock. can do.

Beautiful but a little scary? Three mysterious underground lakes

As you pass through the Moon Palace and follow the route, you will finally see three underground lakes.

first underground lake is 35m deep . Ryusendo Cave has long been known as a cave that gushes out large amounts of water, but perhaps out of awe, no internal investigations were conducted until recent years. Exploration began in the 1920s, and the first underground lake was surveyed in 1959.

The second underground lake appears next . This 38 meters deep and was discovered in 1962 during a diving survey by Kenichiro Ochi.

the Third Underground Lake, which was discovered during a diving survey in 1967 . It is said that the water depth is 98 meters.

The sightseeing course ends here, but it seems that five more underground lakes have been discovered ahead. That's an incredible amount of water. According to the survey, this water is collected from the forest area in the northern part of Ryusendo Cave, and the catchment area is 43 square kilometers , and the furthest water reaches the area is 14 kilometers away . .

From here on it's a physical battle! Climb the stairs to the highest point on the sightseeing course

The sightseeing course ends here. You can choose from two routes on your way back

The first course is to go back the way you came. It's easy because you just go back the way you came.

The other course is to climb the stairs to Mihara Pass, , and this one is quite tough. There is even a note along the way that says, ``If you are physically unable to do so, please return.'' According to the note, there are 165 stairs to climb and 107 to descend, for a total of 272 steps .

the view looking down from the First Underground Lake Observation Deck along the way It's quite scary, but the vaguely visible First Underground Lake is fantastic. It is said to be a frequently photographed location for posters and the like.

Information board at Mihara Pass , the highest part of the tourist course approximately 35 meters above the surface of the underground lake .

summary

When I think of caves, I have the image of fearfully exploring a narrow, dark place, but Ryusendo Cave was spacious and comfortable to tour, and I was really surprised by its scale!

I hope that in the future, more research and maintenance will be done and the tour courses will be expanded!

By the way, across the road is Ryusen Shindo, which was discovered during road widening construction in 1967. This is maintained as a science museum, and exhibits stone tools and pottery excavated inside the cave. You can also enter with your Ryusendo Cave ticket, so it might be a good idea to take a look.

INFORMATION

• Name: Ryusendo Cave
• Address: 1-1 Iwaizumi Kaminari, Iwaizumi-cho, Shimohei-gun, Iwate 027-0501
• Phone number: 0194222566
• Official URL: http://www.iwate-ryusendo.jp/

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@neft_tohoku One of Japan's three largest limestone caves, Ryusendo Cave, located in Iwaizumi Town, Iwate Prefecture, is said to be more than 5,000 meters long, including parts that are not open to the public. It is a tourist spot where you can see fantastic scenery including an underground lake! It is also famous for bats 🦇 #Iwate Prefecture #Iwaizumi Town #Ryusendo Cave #Underground Lake ♬ Original song – Tohoku Rokken Trivia Media | NEFT