Ikoi-no-hiroba

Treasure trove of wild plants
There is a spring and a small pond, a natural habit for wild plants such as caltha palustris (also known as known as marsh-marigold and kingcup), chrysoplenium grayanum, mimulus sessilifolius, myosotis sylvatica and cardamine leucantha. This is a great spot for plant lovers!

Bird watchers’ paradise
The area is a haven for wild birds, with an abundance of riverside birds, including the popular long-tailed tit, Japanese bush warbler, Asian stubtail, Eastern crowned warbler, narcissus flycatcher, Asian brown flycatcher, Eurasian treecreeper, great spotted woodpecker, Japanese pygmy woodpecker, Oriental turtle dove, Eurasian jay, as well as the crested kingfisher, common kingfisher, brown dipper, gray wagtail and sandpiper.

Mizunara oak trees stand guard
Here you will also find 360-year-old mizunara trees. Also known as “quercus crispula”, these gracious giants are able to withstand Jozankei’s harsh climate and produce lots of acorns in the autumn. The name “mizunara” comes from the large quantity of water (“mizu”), in the form of sap, contained in the tree trunk. This tree is a feature of the Jozankei region. Maitake mushrooms, the king of mushrooms, grow at its base and even it dies, honey fungus (armillaria mellea) springs up and feeds off the wood. Many years ago, the wood from these trees was exported to the UK and other parts of the world as “Hokkaido Oak” and used in the manufacture of whisky casks.