Autumn in Senboku City: Which do you prefer? The man-made autumn foliage of Kakunodate or the natural autumn foliage of Dakigaeri Valley. In conclusion, it's best to see both.

In spring, Semboku City is home to the Kakunodate Cherry Blossom Festival (early April through Golden Week), which is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Akita Prefecture, and from summer through to early autumn, there Lake Tazawa Dragon God the Sasara Dance throughout Semboku City (around Obon in August), and the Kakunodate Festival Mountain Events (September 7th-9th). Autumn is also a great season to visit Semboku City and Kakunodate.

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The autumn leaves along Samurai Residence Street rival the cherry blossoms

Many tourists visit the Samurai Residence Street and the banks of the Hinokinai River as famous cherry blossom viewing spots. The weeping cherry trees along Samurai Residence Street are said to have originated in the Edo period when the wife of Satake Yoshiaki (1643-1699), the second head of the Satake Kita family of Kakunodate, brought three cherry tree saplings from Kyoto as part of her dowry. The weeping cherry trees planted around 1656 have since withered and been added, but there are now 162 trees (as of 2025, they are designated as a national natural monument), and their competing blooms are a magnificent sight.

However, autumn is no less beautiful. Unfortunately, there are no trees designated as cultural properties, but the contrast between the black wooden fences of the former Aoyagi and Ishiguro residences and the maple, ginkgo, zelkova, and weeping cherry trees that turn autumn colors, captivates visitors.

It is lit up every year from October 1st to November 30th, allowing you to enjoy a fantastical view that is different from the daytime.

Information on autumn leaves in Kakunodate Samurai Residence Street

• Facility name: Samurai-yashikidori
• Cultural Property Designation: Designated as a district for the important traditional buildings conservation of the Kakunodate Town Kakunodate
• Location: Omotemachi Shimocho, Omotemachi Kamicho, Higashikatsurakucho, Uramachi, Uramachi
• For inquiries, please contact: Semboku City Kakunodate Tourist Information Center "Kakunodate Ekimaekura"　
• Phone number: 0187-54-2700
• URL: Samurai Residence Street
• access:
  • Public Transportation: Approximately 20 minutes on foot from Akita Shinkansen, JR Tazawako Line, Akita Uchiriku Longitudinal Railway Kakunodate Station
  • By car: Approximately 40 minutes from Kyowa IC on the Akita Expressway via National Highways 341 and 46

Google Map

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Dakigaeri Valley: A famous autumn foliage spot in the Tohoku region that rivals Samurai Residence Street

Among the many beautiful valleys with autumn foliage, Dakigaeri Valley is a popular autumn foliage spot in Senboku City, known for its beauty as the " Yabakei of Tohoku. "

Designated as part of Lake Tazawa Dakigaeri Prefectural Natural Park, Dakigaeri Valley was carved Tamagawa River, which originates in Hachimantai, creating a deep valley stretching for about 10km. Waterfalls of all sizes can be found throughout the valley, and a primeval forest of red and yellow maples and beeches competes to cover them. The stunning contrast is striking. A well-maintained footpath with few ups and downs stretches for about 1.5km from the entrance to the valley at its lowest point, taking about 30 minutes round trip. One of the attractions of Dakigaeri Valley is that anyone can enjoy the beautiful valley. From mid-October to mid-November, the Dakigaeri Valley Autumn Leaves Festival is held, and various events are held.

*Yabakei (Oita Prefecture) is a valley that is said to be the most magnificent in Japan, with its strange rock formations, valleys, and autumn foliage.

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The highlights are the view from Kami no Iwabashi Bridge and Kaimeki no Taki Falls, both located along the walking trail.

Kaminoiwabashi Bridge was built in 1926 (Taisho 15) for the Obonai Forest Track, a forestry railway that transported Akita cedar cut from deep in the mountains to what is now Jindai Station on the JR Tazawako Line, and is the oldest suspension bridge in Akita Prefecture. A forestry track is a forestry facility that runs handcarts loaded with large amounts of timber on steel rails, with a person operating the brakes as they descend downhill to their destination. To go uphill, the empty carts would be pulled up by hand, horse, or dog, but it seems that in the case of the Obonai Forest Track, it was oxen.

Even so, it's amazing to see a trolley loaded with a huge amount of cedar trees cross a suspension bridge. It really conveys the harshness of forestry work, where life and death are constantly at stake. The current Kaminoiwabashi Bridge was renovated in 1975 (Showa 50), and is now used as a footpath that is open only to pedestrians.

The Ihouchi Forest Railway was abolished in 1963 (Showa 38), but the abandoned railway line was later developed into a walking trail in the Dakigaeri Valley.

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The waterfall is so beautiful that you can look at it again and again, hence the name "Kaimeki no Taki" (Retrospective Waterfall).

Mikaeri Falls is located about 1.5 km from the entrance to the valley, near the end of a well-maintained walking trail, and when the water level is low you can get close to the basin. The waterfall has a drop of about 30 m, and is so beautiful that you'll find yourself looking back again and again, hence the name Mikaeri

Dakigaeshi Shrine at the entrance to the mountain stream , you'll soon arrive at the red-painted Kami no Iwabashi Bridge. As you head upstream along the footpath alongside the stream, you'll come across strangely shaped rocks of various sizes scattered throughout the river, including Mikoishi (Shrine ), ( Rat Mat Stone no Iwaya Seiganbashi Bridge . The steep cliffs are dyed red and yellow, and in the center is a crystal clear stream. Autumn unfolds before your eyes. From there, you'll pass through three hand-dug tunnels built during the forest railway era to reach Kaikei no Taki Falls.

The well-maintained walking trail in Dakigaeri Valley continues past Kaimei Falls, all the way to the Iimura Youth Martyrdom Memorial Monument, a memorial to the tragic accident that occurred in 1935 (Showa 10) in which an older brother lost his life while jumping into the valley to save his younger sister who had slipped off a cliff . The unmaintained walking trail continues beyond this point, but as of 2025, it is closed due to damage caused by heavy rain. You can use Natsuse Onsen , but the walking trail along the valley beyond this point is also closed. For inquiries regarding the expected reopening date, please contact the Senboku City Tazawako Tourist Information Center, Forake (phone number: 0187-43-2111)

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The best thing in Japan discovered in the forest

The forest around Dakigaeri Valley was once a mixed forest of Akita cedar, beech, maple, and other deciduous broadleaf trees, but now most of the Akita cedar has been cut down, leaving the area a natural forest of deciduous broadleaf trees. Among them natural chestnut and beech trees . Unfortunately, there are no hiking trails, so it's not easy to see them, but it is hoped that a walking trail will be built in the future.

[Japan's best chestnut]

Japan 's largest chestnut tree stands on the steep cliffs of Dakigaeri Valley, and stands out among the many giant natural trees in the forest. The trunk is about 8.1 meters in circumference at the base, and splits into two about 2 meters above ground. Giant chestnut trees are rare, and the tree is estimated to be 200 to 300 years old and is about 22 meters tall.

[Japan's best beech]

" number one beech in Japan " is ​​Lake Tazawa Dakigaeri Prefectural Natural Park , and has a trunk circumference of 8.6m, with a fork growing from 4-5m above ground. Its imposing appearance with large knobs makes it a natural beech worthy of being called the number one in Japan. The tree is said to be 200-300 years old and stands about 24m tall.

*There has been an increase in the number of bears, deer, and other animals spotted. When entering valleys and forests, please be careful and bring bear protection items such as bells and bear repellent spray. Please refrain from picking mushrooms without due consideration.

Dakigaeri Valley Information

• Location: Dakigaeri Valley
• Location: Sotsuda, Lake Tazawa, Senboku City, Akita Prefecture, and other locations
• For inquiries, please contact: Semboku City Kakunodate Tourist Information Center "Kakunodate Ekimaekura"　
• Phone number: 0187-54-2700
• URL: Dakigaeri Valley
• access:
  • Public transportation: Approximately 20 minutes by car from Tazawako Station on the Akita Shinkansen or JR Tazawako Line, or approximately 15 minutes by car or reservation-based on-demand taxi "Yobunoru Kakunodate" from Kakunodate Station.　
  • "Yobunoru Kakunodate" reservation URL: Tabi-CONNECT
  • By car: Approximately 50 minutes from Kyowa IC on the Akita Expressway via National Route 46

Google Map

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Shiraiwa, a castle town older than Kakunodate. Unganji Temple, with its beautiful old Akita cedar trees and autumn leaves.

Unganji Temple , located about 3km west of Shiraiwa ware . At the end of the approach lined with old Akita cedar trees is the mountain gate (designated a tangible cultural property of Akita Prefecture), built over 300 years ago. The autumn foliage within the temple grounds is beautiful, and the Shiraiwa ware 1000 Buddha statues period were stolen during the Edo period due to rumors that "owning them would make one rich," but today all 1000 statues have been donated twice by the Shiraiwa ware potter, and are on display.

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Shiraiwa ware, the first pottery in Akita Prefecture that has been in business since the Edo period

Shiraiwa ware produced in the early 1770s during the Edo period, when the Kubota Domain invited Hiraga Gennai (1728-1780), an Edo-based inventor the Ani Mine the most advanced smelting plant at the time, the Kagoyama Smelting Plant Matsumoto Unshichi , a potter from Obori Soma ware in Fukushima Prefecture, who accompanied him to make ceramic containers for the smelting, began firing pottery in Shiraiwa. Shiraiwa ware is said to be the first kiln in Akita Prefecture.

Shiraiwa ware suffered devastating damage in the Riku-U earthquake of 1896 (Meiji 29) and was no longer viable, but thanks to the efforts of local people it managed to make a comeback and is still popular today as a type of pottery that represents Akita Prefecture.

Information about Unganji Temple and Shiraiwa Pottery

• Facility name: Unganji Temple and Shiraiwa Yaki
• Location: Shiraiwa, Kakunodate-cho, Senboku City, Akita Prefecture
• For inquiries, please contact: Semboku City Kakunodate Tourist Information Center "Kakunodate Ekimaekura"　
• Phone number: 0187-54-2700
• URL: Unganji Temple, Shiraiwa Ware
• access:
  • Public transportation: Akita Shinkansen, JR Tazawako Line, Akita Nairiku Jukan Railway, approximately 10 minutes by car from Kakunodate Station
  • By car: Approximately 45 minutes from Kyowa IC on the Akita Expressway via National Route 46

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