Waterfalls and Maruyama Dam

Yesterday was our day off and since it was a sunny day we decided to hop in the car and go to the small town of Yaotsu, which is just across the Kiso river from Kani. I have a student who lives there and so I was looking at the town’s website the other day and became intrigued by pictures of a giant dam and some beautiful waterfalls (Yaotsu is also famous as being the birthplace of the “Japanese Schindler”. He managed to give visas to hundreds of Jews in order for them to escape to Japan and then after the war, to the U.S. The town is very proud of this man and there is a big memorial park and museum about him but we didn’t go there yet.) Once we got across the river it felt like we were in a town that time forgot. Everything was old and run-down and looked stuck in the past, but not in a touristy way like Mino city. The mountains suddenly became much bigger and steeper than just 20 minutes away where we live. We took a couple of wrong turns but eventually got to a lookout point to view the river and the big dam. We ate our lunches we had bought at the convenience store and tried to decipher the informational plaques for visitors. It looks like they are going to be constructing a new dam which will raise the water level almost 20 feet. That means that some of the small narrow roads that we were driving on just minutes before will be flooded. You can see a lot of construction around there of new roads. The river and soaring mountain scenery was great and it was fun to watch all the hawks flying around and fighting mid-air with the crows.
We wanted to find a way to drive down closer to the river but I think the road doesn’t open until May, so we will have to go back. We decided to then try and find the waterfalls. We had to go back into the small center of town where there was a big city map. We figured out where to go and then set out. Unfortunately, we took another wrong turn and started driving up a steep mountain road that just kept going up and up and up! Eventually we pulled off at a lookout point, checked the map and realized that we were now on a mountain road that goes to another town. So we headed back down after taking some breathtaking pictures of the town below.
We found where we made the mistake and finally arrived at the waterfall parking lot. This little walking trail that follows a mountain stream is littered with waterfalls, and I have to say this was the most impressive and beautiful collection of waterfalls I have ever seen. Let me put it this way, when you see Japanese gardens where they have purposely arranged all the rocks and created an artificial waterfall, they are trying to emulate something like this area of Yaotsu. There is a legend that a famous samurai swordsman in the 1500s used to come here to meditate and practice his swordsmanship.
There was sign that said there were snakes in the area but we didn’t see any. It was probably still too cold. This was definitely a place we will go again and it was amazing to think it is only a short drive away. After we came home we decided to finally go downstairs in our building to try out this Japanese restaurant we are always smelling. It was really, really small and we really couldn’t read the menu at all. Luckily there were some sets called omakase where you choose which dollar amount and they make whatever small courses the chef wants to make. We ended up having a 10 course meal that was outstanding and we got to watch the chef as he quickly and deftly prepared raw fish and artfully created dishes using pieces of bamboo and leaves and other natural décor. That meal back in the States would have been astronomically expensive, if you could even find a Japanese restaurant that made dishes like that. I think the chef was concerned about whether or not we could eat raw fish so they asked us and I assured him it was okay. Also, I was excited that this place served real wasabi. It was the first time I had ever eaten it and I actually didn’t mind it! I hate the usual fake stuff you find in most restaurants.
Well, please check out the pictures of Yaotsu and our meal.