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Chichibu-Tama-Kai NP, Tokyo
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In winter, volunteers check the falls around 8 a.m. and publish how much has frozen, so everyone can guess the day it freezes most. The record reached 100% in both 2006 and 2018.
Hossawa is a four-tier cascade with a total drop of about 60 m, but the public viewing point reveals only its lowest step: 23.3 m. The other tiers continue above, out of sight.
At the falls’ entrance, family-run Chitoseya turns okara—the pulp left from tofu-making—into its popular unohana doughnuts. The owner’s son invented them; his grandfather began the shop at the same spot selling lunchboxes and drinks.
Hossawa Falls is the only waterfall in Tokyo selected for Japan’s “100 Best Waterfalls” list. It has been known as a scenic spot since the Edo period, long before the modern honor.
One local explanation traces “Hossawa” to a Buddhist priest’s hossu, a whisk-like ritual implement: the falling water supposedly resembled its hanging fibers. The falls was once called Hossu-no-taki, or “Whisk Falls.”
Local tradition says a great serpent lived in the deep pool, and the falls was once a place for prayers for rain. These stories speak to its older role as a place of spiritual significance, not just a scenic landmark.
There is normally no electricity around the falls, so it is difficult to see them at night. During the summer festival, the village lights the cascade, alongside Hinohara taiko, local performing arts, stalls and fireworks.
The clear water here is not just scenery: Hinohara Village says it serves as household water for nearby residents. This celebrated waterfall is part of community life as well as the landscape.
