Josei-daki Falls

Impressive 126m waterfall in the Miyoshi area that is beautiful at any time of the year.

Josei-daki [常清滝] Falls is located in Sakugi, now part of the city of Miyoshi. The falls are reached from a parking lot by a well maintained forest trail which climbs alongside the bubbling Sakugi stream.

With a height of 126m – split into three sections called, from top to bottom, aranami (‘rough wave’), shiraito (‘white thread’) and ‘tamamizu’ (‘beautiful water’) from top to bottom – these falls have the greatest drop of any waterfall in the prefecture.

Not far from the Go-no-kawa River which flows between Miyoshi and the port of Gotsu on the Japan Sea coast in Shimane, the entrance to the falls is just over 20km from central Miyoshi along Route 375 – take Route 62 just before at Sakugi Post Office and the Kawa-no-eki Josei rest stop where you can get lunch.

While the Sanko-sen train line is still running (it is due to close at the end of March 2018), it’s possible to walk from Sakugi-guchi Station as it’s only a couple of kilometers. Just turn left after crossing the red bridge that crosses the river in front of the station and look for the sign to the falls.

Josei-daki falls are a popular place to drive out to enjoy the autumn colors, but they look great throughout the year. My most recent visit was in mid-winter amongst snow flurries and, though chilly, I was glad I made the trip – time a winter visit right and they can look stunning though.

In summer, it’s a great place to cool off, soaking in the shallow basin at the base of the falls.

You also can climb up to a viewing point from where you can see the entire waterfall.