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Akan-Mashū NP, Hokkaido
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Kaminokoike (“Child of the Gods”) was named for the belief that its water comes from Lake Mashu, called Kamuito (“Lake of the Gods”) in Ainu. Water-chemistry studies suggest a twist: the spring is fed by rain soaking into the caldera rim.
About 12,000 tonnes of spring water gush into this little pool every day. Its steady 8°C flow keeps it from freezing, so open water remains even through a Hokkaido winter.
The water is exceptionally clear, letting sunlight reach pale volcanic ash on the bottom. The reflected light helps create the vivid blue; with stronger sunlight, the color can shift toward emerald green.
Fallen trunks rest underwater like fossils because the cold water slows decay. Red-spotted oshorokoma—Dolly Varden trout—slip between them, adding living flashes of color to the still, blue pool.
Kaminokoike is only about 220 metres around, yet its crystal-clear water reveals a bottom 5 metres down. That clarity can fool the eye into reading a small forest pool as surprisingly shallow.
In March 2023, 27 people joined a volunteer-led winter nature walk to Kaminokoike. With the road closed, they snowshoed through the forest, learning to tell todomatsu and ezomatsu firs apart before reaching the unfrozen pond.
No. When the park was established, Kaminokoike lay outside its boundary. On August 8, 2017, the park was expanded to include the pond and surrounding catchment, to protect the scenery and support appropriate visitor use.
