The Azusa rises at the heart of the Japanese Alps at Kamikōchi, a valley of such beauty that it is protected and walked by thousands, and through it the river runs gin-clear over pale stones beneath the Hotaka peaks. It holds iwana and stocked rainbows in cold alpine water, and it is as much a pilgrimage to a landscape as a fishing trip — tenkara country in the truest sense.
Under the surface
A clear alpine river at the roof of Honshū, running off the Hotaka and Yari peaks through the protected valley of Kamikōchi over pale volcanic stone. Iwana hold in the cold pockets; the water is as much sacred landscape as fishery, and the native fixed-line tenkara belongs here.
Wading: Cold alpine water, protected park rules, altitude
- River
- Volcanic
- Confined
- Pool riffle
- Pocket water