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Joshin’etsukogen NP, Gunma / Niigata
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From the Numata and Tsukiyono side, Tanigawa’s paired summits look like a cat’s ears—hence the nickname “Two Ears.” Toma-no-mimi is the nearer ear; Oki-no-mimi is farther away.
Before it became Toma-no-mimi, this summit was known as Yakushidake, after the healing Buddha Yakushi. Local belief held that water from a grotto here could cure eye ailments when bathed in the eyes.
Toma-no-mimi (1,963 m) is 14 m lower than Oki-no-mimi, but the local ecotourism council notes a triangulation point on Toma. Japan’s official mountain list names Oki as Tanigawa’s summit.
Toma sits on the ridge that separates Japan’s Pacific and Sea of Japan watersheds. Rain falling on opposite sides of the crest can start flowing toward entirely different seas.
Near Toma’s summit, bamboo-grass, snowbed and wind-scoured grasslands create different little habitats. They support flowers including Hakusan anemone, Tateyama gentian and Jōshū thistle.
Tanigawa’s lower slopes include Pliocene granite, while the higher mountain—including the Toma summit zone—is mainly serpentinite and basalt. These tougher upper rocks resist erosion better, helping form steep cliffs.
