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Chichibu-Tama-Kai NP, Yamanashi
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In 1922, Crown Prince Hirohito (later Emperor Shōwa) viewed Senga Falls from the bridge and reportedly ranked the gorge above Kyushu’s famous Yabakei. His visit helped popularize the name Mitake Shosenkyo.
“Senga” comes from Chang’e (嫦娥), the woman in Chinese mythology who flew to the moon. So this 30-meter cascade carries a lunar legend in its name.
Headman Osada En’emon and villagers cut the Mitake New Road along the Arakawa from 1834 to 1843, bringing the falls and gorge to wider attention. En’emon later served tea and sold straw sandals at a travelers’ rest hut.
At a January 1906 poetry gathering at Senga Falls, tanka poet Itō Sachio wrote 13 poems under the title “Mitake Senga Falls.” The cascade has its own small chapter in Japan’s literary history.
Senga Falls drops about 30 meters where crustal movement created a fault; the Arakawa has carved its way down the granite. It was selected for Japan’s 100 Waterfalls list in 1990.
The falls flow year-round, with their heaviest flow in summer. On sunny days, spray can form a rainbow above the river; in winter, icicles frame the cascade.
