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Daisen-Oki NP, Shimane
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At 257 m, Matengai is among Japan’s tallest sea cliffs. Yet above its sheer face is a gentle green pasture where cattle and horses graze—a surprisingly soft crown for such a dramatic wall.
The grazing animals help keep the cliff-top view open. Kuniga’s pasture continues Makihata, a communal system that rotated crops and grazing; Nishinoshima records the practice in a 1607 land survey.
Tsūtenkyō looks like a stone bridge, but it began as a sea cave. The cave’s inner section collapsed in a landslide, leaving its entrance standing as the natural arch visitors see today.
The dark and ash-colored stripes in Matengai are a volcanic diary: layer after layer of basalt records repeated eruptions around 6 million years ago. Winter winds and waves later carved the cliff.
Akekure-no-iwaya is formed by 2 narrow sea caves that cross inside: one follows a fault, the other a volcanic dike. Their contrasting bright and dark sections gave the cave its name.
From shore, the roughly 40 m Kannon Rock can look like a candle lit by the setting sun; from offshore, its outline resembles Buddhist Kannon. The candle effect appears in spring and autumn.
In spring, look among the coastal grasses for Oki dandelion, a native species found only on the Oki Islands. Its green bracts point upward, unlike the reflexed bracts of introduced dandelions.
In early September, white-flowered clematis can spread across Kuniga’s pasture. The plant contains toxins, so grazing cattle and horses leave it uneaten, allowing striking drifts to bloom.
Tucked into a rocky hollow beside Kunigahama, Kuniga Shrine was built in 1983 by local volunteers to pray for tourism’s success and safety. A community safety ceremony is still held each April.
Kuniga Coast was designated a National Place of Scenic Beauty on May 30, 1938. The original description already singled out its towering cliffs, natural stone bridge, and remarkable caves.
