Introducing scenic spots
Kappabuchi Pool

The Legend of Kappa
Before Choshi no Kuchi’s hydroelectric dam was constructed in 1909, the Toyohira River had such an incredibly large flow rate that lumber was carried down from upstream, and many large freshwater fish flowed down into the abyss. Once upon a time, a young man was fishing when something pulled him down to the bottom of the river, where he disappeared. One night, a year later, the young man appeared in his father’s dream and told him that he was “living happily with his kappa wife and child.” The young man, one of the most beautiful men in Jozankei, must have attracted the kappa living there. So they started calling this place Kappabuchi Pool. Since then, no one has gone missing.

Precious wildflowers
The rocky area around Kappabuchi Pool has long been a valuable haven for plants and a coveted place for plant researchers and enthusiasts.
A variety of wildflowers such as Ezonoiwahatazao (Arabis serrata var. glauca), Moiwanazuna (Draba sachalinensis), Yamahanaso (Saxifraga sachalinensis), Ezonokirinso (Sedum kamtschaticm), Ezogomana (Aster glehnii F. Schmidt), Marubakinreika (Patrinia gibbosa), Moiwashajin (Adenophora pereskiifolia), Daimonjiso (Saxifraga fortunei), and shrubs, such as Taniutsugi (Weigela hortensis), Ezoshimotsuke (Spiraea media), Ezoajisai (Hydrangea serrata var. yesoensis), and Noriutsugi (Hydrangea paniculata) bloom here, adding color to the rocky terrain.
Among them, Ezonokirinso (Sedum kamtschaticm) is an important wildflower as it is the food plant of Jozankei’s eponymous butterfly, the Jozan chequered blue. The most popular flower in Kappabuchi Pool is the Daimonjiso (Saxifraga fortunei), but the wildflower that should not be forgotten is the legendary Marubakinreika (Patrinia gibbosa), also known as the Jozan ominaeshi, or maiden flower.