Gravel riverbed, Satsunai River, Nakasatsunai Village
Article

01638 ／ なかさつないむら

Hokkaido 河西郡

Nakasatsunai Village

Ice Age trees sprout on a gravel bed.

Gravel riverbed, Satsunai River

Photo by Highten31 (CC BY-SA 3.0)

01 ／ Landscape ordinance

The ordinance has the mayor ask ownersto manage lots and houses judged to seriously mar the view.

Landscape ordinance in Nakasatsunai Village
Photo by yamaguchi ugen (CC BY 3.0)

The preamble describes a village set against the Hidaka Mountains and the Satsunai River, with farmland divided into a grid by windbreaks and roads. Article 6 calls for protecting the river's landscape and its riverside forest; Article 9 provides for asking owners to manage vacant lots and abandoned houses.

  • Enacted March 2001
  • Article 9: vacant lots and houses
  • Preamble: farmland grid of windbreaks and roads

02 ／ Iwami kagura

Some settlers from Shimane Prefectureset out to stage their homeland's kagura.

The village says that in 1917 a group of settlers arrived from Shimane Prefecture, and some of them wanted to stage the kagura of their homeland. They founded an Iwami kagura club in 1923. It was designated a village intangible cultural property in 1962, and in recent years the preservation society has taught kagura to schoolchildren.

  • 1917: 25 households arrive from Shimane
  • 1923: Iwami kagura club founded
  • 1962: Village intangible cultural property

03 ／ Pyotan Falls

Pyotan Falls gathers the clear waterof the Satsunai River and drops 10 metres.

Pyotan Falls in Nakasatsunai Village
Photo by アラツク (CC BY-SA 4.0)

The village presents Pyotan Falls, in the park beside the Satsunai River, as a scenic spot where the river's clear water gathers and falls 10 metres. The village's symbol mark, nicknamed Pitan, combines Pii, a chick's cheep, with the tan of the falls' name.

  • Drop of 10 metres
  • Pitan: the tan comes from the falls' name

Nakasatsunai Village from the sky

Now and 1974–78. Tap a photo to zoom in.

Wide (about 6 km across)

Close (about 1.5 km across)

Now (shot August 2022)Shot 1974–78

Source: Geospatial Information Authority of Japan (GSI) GSI Tiles（全国最新写真（シームレス）／国土画像情報（第一期：1974〜1978年撮影））

Open in GSI Maps (now)Open in GSI Maps (1974–78)

Living here

No station; 60 minutes by bus from Obihiro.

  • about 4,000 people
  • Rural district town

There is no railway station in the village. The Tokachi Bus Hiroo Line runs from the Obihiro Station bus terminal to the Nakasatsunai stop with no change; the fastest daily service takes 60 minutes, per the timetable revised on June 2, 2025.

People living here
3,884people
19952020

−2.1% since 2015

4,319 → 3,884

Area
292.58km²

127.46km² of it habitable

2024

Households
1,684households

2.3 people per household

2020

Rent (average for rentals)
—
Healthcare
0 hospitals ／ 3 clinics

7.7 per 10,000 people

2023

Area292.58km²Habitable land127.46km² ／ 44%
Area and habitable land at the same scalee-Stat B1101 / B1103
Children waiting for childcare
—2 nurseries and similar
Home purchase subsidy
—
Average annual temperature
—

These 3 items are waiting on a nationwide data source. We do not fill them with estimates.

ACCESS

Where you can go from here.

Nakasatsunai Village in Japan42.698°N 143.134°E
TokyoOsakaNakasatsunai Village
  • to ObihiroLocal bus60min

Travel times follow 十勝バス公式『路線バス時刻表【60】広尾線』土曜・日曜・祝日ダイヤ（https://www.tokachibus.jp/pdf/rosen/jikoku_t60-20250602we-1.pdf、『令和７年６月２日改定』・文字で読めた）と平日ダイヤ（https://www.tokachibus.jp/pdf/rosen/jikoku_t60-20250602wd-1.pdf・画像のPDFで目で読んだ）。2026-10-29 に読んだ。 (checked 2026-10-29). They vary by time of day.

Shape

Borders 5 municipalities.

Territory of Nakasatsunai Village
Boundaries: National Land Numerical Information (Administrative Area Data), MLIT. Processed by Machigatari.Lakes: National Land Numerical Information (Lake Data), MLIT. Processed by Machigatari. Prepared with the approval of the Director-General of the Geospatial Information Authority of Japan, using its Digital Map 25000 (Spatial Data Framework) and Digital Map 25000 (Place Names and Public Facilities). (承認番号 平27情使、第585号)

Nakasatsunai Village isthis kind of town.

  1. 01Nakasatsunai is a village where a gravel riverbed spreads along the upper Satsunai River and Chosenia, an Ice Age relict, grows in groves. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism writes that its saplings grow only on dry gravel, outcompeting other plants
  2. 02The landscape ordinance's preamble sets out a grid of farmland against the Hidaka Mountains and the river. The Satsunai River was named among the rivers with the best water quality by the ministry in both 2024 and 2025
  3. 03Iwami kagura, brought by settlers from Shimane, is a village intangible cultural property, and Pyotan Falls lies in the river park. There is no station; buses from Obihiro Station reach the village

See the town as it is now.

Source: Wikidata (P2002, P2003, P2013, P2397)

If something caught your eye, ask the town itself.

Nakasatsunai Village official site ↗Wikipedia ↗

From this town's themes

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Next town Hokkaido Sarabetsu Village →A grove born of village revitalization.