Amaharashi Coast

photo by Ltd.super Express bound for E235 · CC BY-SA 4.0

photo by そらみみ · CC BY-SA 4.0

From here you can see the sea and peaks over 3,000 metres together: rare anywhere in the world.

The court poet Ōtomo no Yakamochi sang of this coast in the eighth century, in a poem collected in the Man'yōshū under the name ‘Ariso no umi’. Legend has it that in 1187 Minamoto no Yoshitsune, fleeing north, sheltered from a sudden downpour under a rock on the beach: from that act comes the name Amaharashi, ‘where it clears after the rain’. The train of the JR Himi Line runs over a short bridge right along the shore, with the snow-covered Tateyama range in the background: the most photographed postcard view in the prefecture, especially at dawn on the first of January.

Stretch of rocky coast in Takaoka municipality, inside Noto Peninsula Quasi-National Park (能登半島国定公園), with the ‘female’ rock (女岩) offshore.

ℹ️ Public coast, always accessible. The best viewpoint is at JR Amaharashi Station, on the Himi Line; on the first of January, when the sun rises behind the snowy peaks, it draws crowds and queues of cars. Source: Ota-Amaharashi tourist association.

🚉 Amaharashi · in front of the station

Sources: oota-amaharashi.jp · dragonroute.net

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