June in Japan is the time when the seasons shift from spring to summer, and the fresh buds and leaves are a vivid, beautiful green.

I wanted to fully enjoy this fresh greenery, so I decided to visit Oirase in Aomori Prefecture, which had long been on my mind.

Basics

• I traveled solo for 3 days and 2 nights.
• I went by Shinkansen and bus from Tokyo.

How to get to Oirase from Tokyo

Broadly, there are two ways to get to Oirase from Tokyo: (1) fly to Aomori Airport or Misawa Airport and take a bus, etc. to Oirase; or (2) take the Shinkansen to Shin-Aomori, Hachinohe, or Shichinohe-Towada Station and then take a bus, etc. to Oirase.

This time I took the Shinkansen to Hachinohe Station and then a bus from there.

From Hachinohe Station, the JR Bus “Oirase-go” runs. From Aomori Station, the “Mizuumi-go” runs, so it's also a great idea to combine it with sightseeing in Aomori!

Details and timetables for buses to Oirase are here↓

It takes about three hours by Shinkansen from Tokyo to Hachinohe.

Up to around Sendai, it feels like an easy day trip from Tokyo, but I went beyond Sendai, passed Morioka, and finally reached Hachinohe.

Sightseeing around Hachinohe Station

I had a few hours until my bus at Hachinohe Station, so I decided to do some sightseeing over lunch and a stroll.

If I’d had more time, I would have gone farther to Kabushima Shrine and the Mutsu Minato area with lots of great seafood spots, but since I didn’t, I’ll save that for another time.

Recommended lunch near Hachinohe Station: Inome

Since I’d come all the way to Aomori, I wanted to go down to the port and eat seafood if I had time. So I looked for seafood places and found a spot that serves kaisendon (seafood rice bowls) for lunch, and decided to go there.

To get to Inome, take a bus from Hachinohe Station to an area called Jusan-nichimachi, then it’s about a 3-minute walk from there.

You can choose from three kinds of kaisendon: Regular (with dessert), Premium (with dessert and coffee), and Deluxe (with chawanmushi, dessert, and coffee). I was curious about the chawanmushi, so I chose the Deluxe.

Look at this kaisendon. Doesn’t it look delicious?

What’s more, after you’ve eaten partway, they add more slices of fish and turn it into ochazuke. How awesome is that?

And the chawanmushi I was curious about turned out to be Gorgonzola chawanmushi!

This Western-style chawanmushi was delicious too—I was impressed.

As for how they came up with Gorgonzola chawanmushi, be sure to ask the owner.

I even had dessert at the end—an utterly satisfying lunch course. ✨

I hear they operate as a sushi restaurant at night, so I’d love to visit in the evening too.

From Hachinohe Station to Oirase

I headed back to Hachinohe Station and finally boarded the bus to Oirase.

It’s about two and a half hours from Hachinohe to Lake Towada, so even if you leave Tokyo in the morning, you’ll arrive in Oirase around evening.

Personally, I recommend making the first day a relaxed travel day.

I stayed at a place called Towadaso on the shores of Lake Towada, so I rode past Oirase and got off at the final stop, the Lake Towada bus stop.

Once we entered Oirase along the way, the beech forests and fresh greenery spread out, and the onboard audio guide introduced Oirase’s highlights as we went, so I couldn’t stop feeling excited.

I hiked through the scenery I saw along the way the next day, so I’ll share those photos!

Oirase and Lake Towada Accommodation: Towadaso

This time I stayed at an inn called Towadaso on the shores of Lake Towada.

They gave me a Japanese-style room, which was so spacious it felt almost wasted on just me.

There was also a magnificent cabinet. It felt too nice to use (lol).

For meals, Lake Towada is famous for trout, so I enjoyed trout sashimi, local pork and beef steaks, sushi, and more—it was all delicious. Traveling solo, it was a bit lonely not being able to share the tastiness, but I savored it on my own. Grateful.

And Towadaso has amazing displays inside: there’s a waterfall indoors, lots of the region’s famous kokeshi dolls lined up, and Nebuta ornaments—the inn alone lets you feel Aomori’s charm.

Oirase Gorge Hiking

The next day, I finally set out to hike Oirase Gorge.

Oirase Gorge is the river flowing out of Lake Towada, stretching 14 km from Yakeyama to Nenokuchi.

This may be true for other gorges as well, but the scenery looks much better when walking upstream from downstream, so I took a bus back to Yakeyama, where the Oirase Stream Museum is, and started my hike there.

It’s said to take about five hours, but I walk pretty fast, so I finished it in four!

The path is well maintained and the slope is gentle, so I think it’s a great hiking course even for beginners!

Of course, if 14 km sounds impossible, there are bus stops at various points along the stream, so you can start partway or stop midway. (Buses aren’t very frequent, so be sure to check the times.)

A guide to walking Oirase Gorge is summarized here!

Oirase Stream Museum

First, I stopped by the starting point, the Oirase Stream Museum.

Hiking in Oirase is great, but cycling would feel wonderful too!

Here you can learn in detail about the plants and animals found in Oirase Gorge.

The souvenir section is well stocked, and you can also buy Aomori’s specialty apple pie and eat it on the spot.

I bought an apple pie and ate it on the terrace while gazing at the fresh greenery. 😋🍎

Oirase Stream Museum to Shimeikei

And now the Oirase Gorge hike begins.

First, head down the lush, plant-lined path beside the Oirase Stream Museum.

After a short walk you merge with the Oirase stream!

The contrast of the clear blue river, the fresh green of the leaves, and the sky is irresistible.

Of the four hours I walked, I think this spot might look the most beautiful.

The ducks were napping lazily too. So cute. I mean, ducks can sleep standing on one leg, huh? (lol)

Shimeikei to Sanran-no-nagare

There are places like this as well. The riverside path is truly well maintained and very easy to walk.

Keep on walking and you’ll also find calmer stretches of the stream.

This area is called Sanran-no-nagare.

I couldn’t take good photos, but it’s one of the photo and sketching spots.

It took me about an hour and a half to walk from the Oirase Stream Museum to the next spot, Ishigedo.

Ishigedo to Ashura-no-nagare

Walk a bit farther from Sanran-no-nagare and Ishigedo suddenly appears.

A tree grows on a rather large rock slab, reminding you it’s been here for ages.

There’s a legend that long ago a beautiful bandit named Demon-God O-Matsu made her home here and robbed travelers of their valuables. You could imagine living here, for sure.

Continue on and you’ll reach Ashura-no-nagare. It’s also a spot for beautiful photos; there were photographers there.

It took me about 40 minutes to walk from Ishigedo to the next point, Kumoi Falls.

Kumoi Falls to Shiraito Falls

There are several waterfalls along Oirase Gorge, and Kumoi Falls is on the larger side.

Its tiered form is beautiful.

There’s quite a distance from Kumoi Falls to Shiraito Falls. It took me about 50 minutes.

You view Shiraito Falls from a distance, but it’s tall, ethereal, and very beautiful.

Shiraito Falls to Choshi Ootaki

Finally, I headed for the biggest highlight: Choshi Ootaki.

Along the way you’ll see craggy rock walls and other falls.

It took about 30 minutes from Shiraito Falls to Choshi Ootaki.

Here it is—the biggest highlight of Oirase Gorge, Choshi Ootaki.

By this point I’d been walking for about three and a half hours, so the powerful waterfall was overwhelming—I could have watched it for a long time.

Watching Choshi Ootaki felt purifying, and it made me truly glad I came to Oirase Gorge.

I recommend giving yourself plenty of time to take it in!

Choshi Ootaki to Nenokuchi (Lake Towada)

Leaving Choshi Ootaki, I headed for Nenokuchi, where buses depart.

It took me about 30 minutes from Choshi Ootaki to Nenokuchi.

At last I arrived at Lake Towada!! Greeted by its grandeur, I was filled with a sense of accomplishment and relief.

I was starving, so I ate at a diner on the lakeshore.

Trout is the specialty, so they had trout dishes too, but this time I went for meat.

After lunch I planned to catch a bus back to Towadaso, but there was about an hour until the next one and it looked like a long wait, so I decided to return by rental bicycle.

It’s about 9 km from Nenokuchi to the Lake Towada bus stop, and it took about an hour by bike.

Cycling alongside Lake Towada felt great, but since it was after a four-hour walk, I did halfway regret choosing the bike (lol).

There’s a place near Lake Towada to return rental bikes, so I dropped it off there and made it back to Towadaso safely.

Oirase Gorge: Impressions from actually going

Walking along the beautiful stream continually surrounded by beech trees in Oirase Gorge, every view was stunning and deeply moving. Especially in the fresh-green season, the temperature is just right and the greenery looks its best.

The trail is gentle and well maintained, making it very easy to walk—recommended even if you’ve never hiked before!

The grandeur of Lake Towada also really tugs at the heart.

In winter, I hear Choshi Ootaki and other spots freeze into icicles and icefalls and look beautiful, and there are plans that let you explore in snowshoes, so it’s nice that visiting in another season shows you an entirely different landscape.

If you want to enjoy some leisurely forest bathing, definitely make your way to Oirase.

Bonus: The way back from Oirase Gorge to Shin-Aomori Station

The next day I took a bus from Lake Towada to Shin-Aomori Station.

On this trip I also visited Aomori Station and Hirosaki after Oirase, which I’ll cover in another post.

It’s about three hours from Lake Towada to Shin-Aomori Station, winding through the mountains almost the entire way.

The views of the nature park from the bus on the way back were so beautiful they made me want to return.

On the return bus, the audio guide also talks about Mt. Hakkoda and Aomori, including quite in-depth topics like the Aomori dialect and the story of the army disaster on Mt. Hakkoda in winter—it goes on at length.

I usually fall asleep on bus rides, but the audio guide was so interesting that I wasn’t bored at all during the three-hour journey.

If you take the JR bus, remember this and be sure to listen closely to the narration.

Along the way there are also places like Sukayu Onsen and Hakkoda Ski Resort, so there are still plenty more spots to see—I’ll be back.

That’s it for my solo two-night, three-day Oirase Gorge trip report!