Kagami no Umi — the mirror coast of Fukutsu

photo by そらみみ · CC BY-SA 4.0

photo by そらみみ · CC BY-SA 4.0

With the right tide the wet sand mirrors the sky: you need low tide and still air.

It is not something that happens for anyone who just passes by: the Fukutsu tourist board lists the conditions one by one, and there are three that must come together – a spring or medium tide, the time of low tide, and no wind, because a single ripple is enough to break the mirror. If you get them right at sunset, you walk on an orange sky. If you turn up at random, you find a long beach like any other.

A collective name given by the local tourist board to the Fukutsu shoreline, on the coast facing the Genkai Sea north of Fukuoka, and in particular to the Fukuma stretch. The same coast is a nesting area for the loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta), monitored by the municipality's turtle office.

ℹ️ Public beach, always accessible. The mirror effect depends on the tides: check the tide table before you set out, because the right time changes every day and no sign on site tells you.

🚉 Fukuma · 25 min walk

Sources: dmofukutsu.com · city.fukutsu.lg.jp

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