Lake Tazawa

The town of Semboku, located in the east centre of Akita prefecture and opposite Iwate prefecture, was created on 20 September 2005 by the merger of three communes, Tazawako,Kakunodateand Nishiki. One of the main activities is the discovery of Lake Tazawa.

Lake Tazawa

Located south of Towada-Hachimantai National Park, Lake Tazawa is a picturesque caldeira lake with a natural and rustic atmosphere. The lake is often visited in conjunction with nearby sites such as Nyuto Onsen or Mount Akita-Komagatake, which also offer rustic scenes typical of the Tohoku region. The lake results from a volcanic eruption and is 423.4 metres deep, the lowest point of the lake is below sea level. Because of its incredible depth, the lake does not freeze in winter.

The Legend of Tatsuko

Several centuries ago, Lake Tazawa was known as Tazawa-kata, or Tazawa lagoon. Legend has it that in the nearby town of Innai lived a young woman of unparalleled beauty named Tatsuko. One day, when she was going to get water from Ainaigata, at the northern end of the lagoon, Tatsuko saw her reflection in Kagami-ishi, a mysterious rock (ishi) that shone like a mirror (kagami). Seeing her own beauty and understanding that she was ephemeral, she desperately wanted to preserve her for eternity and prayed for countless nights Okura Kannon, the goddess of mercy and compassion.

Tatsuko thus escaped from her home to find the source, which is now called Katagashira no reisen (the miraculous source of Katagashira). Tatsuko then began to drink, but the more she drank, the more she thirsted, she then tried to dry the spring. Horrorously, she realized that she had turned into a dragon, which pushed her to throw herself into the lake. Thus she became Tatsuko Hime no kami, dragon guardian of the lake. Concerned about her absence, the mother went in search of her daughter, and was upset by what she found. In her sorrow, she threw her torch into the lake, which then became the first kunimasu (or black kokanee), a species of salmon native to Lake Tazawa (now extinct).

The Tatsuko-hime-no-kami dragon, however, is not alone. Legend has it that her lover, Hachirotaro de lagoon Hachirogata on the peninsula of Oga, visits her every autumn, and remains all winter. Its absent dragon resident, the Hachirogata lagoon freezes, but Lake Tazawa, with two dragons swimming in its depths, remains free of ice all winter.

Gozanoishi Shrine

The name of the sanctuary of Gozanoishi comes from the fact that Lord Satake Yoshitaka of the domain of Akita sat here to rest during his visit to Lake Tazawa in 1650. The area around the sanctuary of Gozanoishi has many well-known places related to the legend of Tatsuko-hime, and it is also a sanctuary to reach beauty. The legend says: “Once upon a time there was a beautiful girl named Tatsuko who lived in Kannarizawa a long time ago at the age of the gods. She wanted to stay young and beautiful forever, and prayed over a hundred times Okura Kannon at Mount Innaidake to achieve eternal beauty. At the request of the goddess, she drank from a spring in the northern part of the mountain, turned into a dragon who became the lord of Lake Tazawa. The sanctuary also brings luck, protection from misfortune, as well as success and victory.

Shirahama

Shirahama Beach extends along the east shore of Lake Tazawa, located in the Haruyama district of Semboku City. literally meaning “white beach”, it is a band of white sand that runs along the lake. The colour of the sand comes from the high concentration of quartz particles.

Kansagu Shrine

Located on the edge of Lake Tazawako, Kansagu is a modern-style sanctuary built with white wood. It is said that it is a sanctuary for Ukiki, from which you can observe floating woods of large trees, rising to meters above the surface and disappear diagonally in the water.

Kunimasu Miraikan Museum

The Tazawako Kunimasu Miraikan Museum opened in 2017 with the aim of presenting the history and culture of Lake Tazawa and conveying a message for the future. Kunimasu Trout is a species endemic to Lake Tazawa that disappeared in 1940. In 2010, 70 years later, live specimens were identified in Sai Lake, Yamanashi Prefecture, more than 670 kilometres southwest of Tazawa Lake. This explains why Kunimasu is nicknamed the “miracle fish”. Today we can see them swimming in the ponds of the museum.

Go around the lake

There are several buses per hour from Tazawako station to Tazawa-kohan bus stop on the east shore of the lake (12 minutes, 370 yen one way), including buses towards Nyuto Onsen and Tamagawa Onsen To travel around the lake, there are six buses a day that run along the northern half of the lake to the statue of Tatsuko. Alternatively, the tourist boat can be used to travel between the Tazawa-kohan bus stop (Shirahama jetty) and the Tatsuko statue (Katajiri jetty) from late April to early November. By car, it is possible to walk around the lake in about half an hour (without stopping).

To Tazawako

Tazawako Train Station is 3 hours from Tokyo via Shinkansen Komachi on the Tohoku / Akita Shinkansen line

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