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Joshin’etsukogen NP, Gunma
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The spring listed as 空噴 (嬬取の湯)—Karabuki’s own source—also feeds Manza Kogen Hotel’s Stone Garden baths. Clear and nearly sulfur-free, it leaves its source at about 90°C with a startling pH of 1.5.
A March 1973 sample from Manza’s Karabuki fumarole was 98.97% water vapor by volume; of the tiny non-water remainder, 90.9% was hydrogen sulfide—a reminder that the visible plume is mostly steam.
Rain and groundwater seep into the old crater, then emerge as white steam mixed with hydrogen sulfide. Around the vent, that gas keeps plants from growing, leaving the rock strikingly bare.
A 1957 survey records Manza’s strongest fumarole as カラフキ (“Karafuki”); native sulfur was collected from vent rims, while deposits east of the hot-spring town were worked from about 1764.
A 2018 ranger report says Manza’s vents were checked 4 times yearly for gas, ground heat and vegetation. Village, park, tourism, fire and police staff joined the survey, wearing gas masks in hazardous zones.
