Onouchihyakkei Icicle Park
Onouchihyakkei Icicle Park in Ogano in the Chichibu region of Saitama Prefecture stages an annual illumination of its spectacular icicles.
Onouchihyakkei Icicle Park, Ogano Town, Chichibu Region, Saitama Prefecture
尾の内百景の氷柱, 小鹿野町, 埼玉県
- Onouchihyakkei Icicles
- Visiting the Onouchihyakkei Icicles
- Illumination Nights
- Food and Drink
- Access
- Japan City Guides
by Johannes Schonherr
Onouchihyakkei Icicles seen from the bottom of the valley
In January and February, the Chichibu region in western Saitama Prefecture offers visitors three bizarrely formed icicle landscapes.
All of them are well worth visiting. The Misotsuchi no Tsurara is a natural frozen waterfall, the Ashigakubo Icicles and Onouchihyakkei Icicle Park are artificially created. Water is sprayed over the trees in frigid, shadowy valleys, resulting in wildly shaped ice crusts on their branches. All three icicle fields are colorfully illuminated on weekend evenings.
Suspension bridge in front of the Onouchihyakkei Icicles
Mountains during snowfall seen from the entrance to the Onouchihyakkei
Onouchihyakkei Icicles
Of the three icicle parks, the Onouchihyakkei Hyochu is by far the most remote. By bus from Seibu Chichibu Station in Chichibu, it takes a little more than an hour to the entrance of the Onouchi Valley, from there it is another 1.2 km walk. The valley is located deep in the Okuchichibu (Inner Chichibu) Mountains, close to the border with Gunma Prefecture.
When asking for the icicle park at a bus information counter, be sure to pronounce it right: Ono-uchi-hyak-kei Hyo-chu.
While Onouchi is the name of the valley, hyakkei translates as "a hundred views". Hyochu means icicle park.
In all seasons of the year, the area, part of the Nishi Chichibu Nature Park, is frequented by hikers and mountaineers, finding adventure in one of the wildest natural landscapes the Kanto Region has to offer.
Onouchi Waterfall surrounded by icicles, Chichibu, Saitama
Icicles at the Onouchihyakkei, Chichibu, Saitama
Visiting the Onouchihyakkei Icicles
Arriving at the Onouchi Keikoku bus stop, turn into the road to the left. After about a 100 meters, you will see the Ryuto Shrine just to your right - the shrine guarding the entrance to the valley. Pay a visit to the enshrined gods, protected by statues of wolves, then continue to hike up the road. Lined by hundreds of flags spelling out "Onouchihyakkei Hyochu", it leads right to the entrance of the icicle park.
Admission is 200 yen for an adult. Right behind the ticket booth, you have two choices - either head straight to the center of the icicle park with its iconic suspension bridge or take the "Taki no Shita" (Below the Waterfall) path on the right. The latter will lead you to the bottom of the valley.
The Onouchihyakkei Hyochu is centered on a small waterfall. The waterfall itself rarely freezes up, so the surrounding area is sprayed with water to create the bizarre ice landscape.
If you take the path to the bottom of the valley, you get a great view of the waterfall and the surrounding icicles with the suspension bridge high up above.
Walking straight on from behind the ticket booth gets you right to the suspension bridge. From the bridge, swaying quite a bit from the movement of the people crossing it, you get a direct view onto the waterfall, partly frozen, partly covered by artificial ice but usually still visible as a flowing waterfall.
The path doesn't continue behind the bridge. It might do so in summer but in the icicle season, a wall of ice blocks the potential trail.
The path ends here. Ice at the Onouchihyakkei, Chichibu, Saitama
The way to the Onouchihyakkei during illumination night
Illumination Nights
On Saturdays from late January until late February, the Onouchihyakkei Hyochu is brightly lit up from sunset until 8 pm in constantly changing colors. Those are the most popular times for a visit to the icicle park.
On the Illumination Nights, a free shuttle bus service will be provided from Ryuto Shrine to the entrance of the icicle park.
If you plan on walking down to the bottom of the valley, do so early on. The path is unlit and may be slippery, especially in the case of recent snowfall.
The path from the entrance to the suspension bridge, on the other hand, is lit by candle-light. Multiple skillfully crafted bamboo artworks, lit from the inside by tea lights, lend a mysterious touch to the way to the icicles.
At the entrance, visitors can ask for a free lantern made of bamboo with a tea light inside and artistically drilled holes. It won't provide much light for the walk but seeing many people carrying those lanterns adds a festive touch to the scenery.
Once the illumination starts, the suspension bridge is closed and becomes part of the illuminated scenery.
This greatly reduces the choice of viewpoints. Amateur photographers with their cameras fixed on tripods occupy the best spots long in advance. With a little patience and ingenuity, however, it is possible to get to those best viewing spots to watch the changing colors and take some good photos.
Lit up bamboo artwork lines the way, Chichibu, Saitama
Illumination night at the Onouchihyakkei, Chichibu, Saitama
Food and Drink
Cups of free, hot amazake, a sweet non-alcoholic sake, are offered at a booth in the entrance area. It helps greatly in keeping warm.
On Illumination Nights, local farmers sell their products. Though mostly varieties of raw or pickled vegetables, some of their offers might make for a delicious snack - especially if they have fresh Chichibu strawberries on sale.
Real food, however, is not served. If you think you might get hungry during your visit, bring your own supplies.
Illumination night at the Onouchihyakkei, Chichibu, Saitama Prefecture
Access
Seibu Line Red Arrow Limited Express to Seibu Chichibu Station from Ikebukuro Station in Tokyo. The trip takes 74 minutes and a seat reservation is required.
Alternatively, take a Seibu Ikebukuro Line train from Ikebukuro to Hanno, change there to the Seibu Chichibu Line. That is slower but cheaper, no seat reservations required.
Take a bus from bus stop 1 in front of Seibu Chichibu Station bound for Ogano Shako. Get off the bus at Ogano Yakuba, from there, take a bus bound for Sakamoto, get off at the Onouchi Keikoku Iriguchi stop. Bus stop announcements in English are provided.
Suica / Pasmo cards are accepted. The bus rides cost a total of 960 yen one way.
Bus schedule in Japanese for winter 2018 / 2019. Later on, search the www.kanko-ogano.jp site for an updated edition.
The last bus back to Ogano / Seibu Chichibu Station leaves at 6.27 pm (in winter 2019).
Opening times: From early January until late February / early March daily from 8 am to 4 pm. Illumination nights are held on Saturdays. Illumination starts at sunset and lasts until 8 pm.
Admission: Adults (middle school age and older) 200 yen, younger children free.
Tel: 0494 75 1381
Address: Chichibu-gun, Ogano Town, Kawarasawa 996-1
Websites in Japanese: www.nishichichibu.or.jp and www.kanko-ogano.jp
Hot amazake is served for free
Onouchihyakkei Icicle Park flyer
