Yuhi Falls, city scenic site, Minamiashigara City
Article

14217 ／ みなみあしがらし

Kanagawa Prefecture

Minamiashigara City

The falls line up with an active fault.

Yuhi Falls, city scenic site

Photo by Σ64 (CC BY 3.0)

01 ／ Cedar forest

Cedars protected sincea Zen master arrived in 1394.

Cedar forest in Minamiashigara City
Photo by Σ64 (CC BY-SA 3.0)

The cedar forest around the grounds and approach of Saijo-ji Temple became a Kanagawa Prefecture Natural Monument in 1953. The city board of education’s sign says that in 1394 a Zen master entered the mountain, promoted planting and imposed a ban on felling. The cedars are 350 to 500 years old; the largest has a girth of 7 m and a height of 45 m.

  • Prefectural Natural Monument (1953)
  • Zen master arrived in 1394 (sign)
  • Tallest cedar 45 m

02 ／ Spring water

Kanagawa’s Heisei-era Famous Waterspick is this pond’s spring.

The 100 Exquisite and Well-Conserved Waters of the Heisei Period were chosen from 162 nominations nationwide. In Kanagawa Prefecture, the pick is Seizaemon Jigokuike Pond. A sign at the pond says the source is Mount Myojin and 13,000 tons of groundwater a day well up. A story says that when Seizaemon fell in with his horse, water gushed out, and surged all the more when people called his name.

  • Heisei-era Famous Waters
  • 100 of 162 nominations
  • 13,000 tons a day

03 ／ Checkpoint site

A branch checkpoint of Hakonewas set up at Yagurasawa.

In the Edo period, alongside the Hakone Sekisho checkpoint on the Tokaido, a branch checkpoint was set up at Yagurasawa. A record from 1686 lists 2 samurai, 3 guards, 2 foot soldiers and 1 attendant. The city designates the checkpoint site and the rear checkpoint site as historic sites; the city’s cultural property site says stone walls and gatepost foundation stones remain.

  • 1686 staffing record
  • City-designated historic site (1973)
  • Stone walls and foundation stones

Minamiashigara City 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 September–November 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

About 70% forest, over 30 springs.

  • about 40,000 people

The city’s introduction page says forest covers about 70% of the city and that there are more than 30 springs. The railway is the Izuhakone Railway Daiyuzan Line; the city’s access guide gives 21 minutes from Odawara Station to Daiyuzan Station.

People living here
40,841people
19952020

−5.7% since 2015

43,596 → 40,841

Area
77.12km²

24.98km² of it habitable

2024

Households
16,285households

2.5 people per household

2020

Rent (average for rentals)
49,462yen

National average 60,630 yen

2023

Healthcare
2 hospitals ／ 24 clinics

6.4 per 10,000 people

2023

Area77.12km²Habitable land24.98km² ／ 32%
Area and habitable land at the same scalee-Stat B1101 / B1103
Children waiting for childcare
—5 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.

Shape

Borders 5 municipalities across 1 prefectures.

Minamiashigara City in Japan35.321°N 139.100°E
OsakaMinamiashigara City
Territory of Minamiashigara City
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)

North to south

8.9km

Kanagawa Prefecture
Odawara City, Yamakita Town, Hakone Town, Kaisei Town
Shizuoka Prefecture
Oyama Town

Travel times per leg are not published by the municipality, so they are not shown.

Minamiashigara City isthis kind of town.

  1. 01Yuhi Falls, a city-designated scenic site, drops 23 m and is 5 m wide; its direction matches the fault plane of the roughly 3 km Yuhi Falls Fault
  2. 02The Daiyuzan cedar forest, a Prefectural Natural Monument, has been protected since a 1394 ban on felling, the city’s sign says
  3. 03Home of Seizaemon Jigokuike Pond, Kanagawa’s Heisei-era Famous Waters pick, and the Yagurasawa checkpoint site, a branch of the Hakone checkpoint

See the town as it is now.

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

If something caught your eye, ask the town itself.

Minamiashigara City official site ↗Wikipedia ↗

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