title: Hokuriku Tales vol.3

Summary

A book of five stories about Fukui, Ishikawa and Toyama with useful data vol.3

The Sotoura (or outer sea) of Noto Peninsula offers aseries of breathtakinglandscapes Situated on the western side of the Noto Peninsual, Noto Kongo isa beautiful scene in the Noto Hanto Quasi-National Park, consisting of strangeand odd-looking rocks that form a cliff coast with a length of about 30 kilometers.The place acquired nationwide fame when the movie“Zero Focus”based on thenovel of same title by Seicho Matsumoto was filmed there. In stark contrast tothe wild rock walls of Ganmon, Hatagoiwa and Yase-no-Dangai, the elegantMasuhogaura Beach is decorated with white sand and green pine trees.Going further southward, you will reach the Chirihama Beach Driveway. Thesand beach is compact enough to allow ordinary non-4WD passenger cars as wellas buses and bicycles. The sand is fine and contains the right amount ofseawater. This is the only sand beach in Japan where vehicles are permitted.Hatagoiwa is a pair ofrocks, sometimes called“Futami of Noto”anallusion to the famousMeoto Iwa of Futami,Mie. Sunset at dusk isjust gorgeous.One of the world’s three sandbeaches where cars are allowed.Ganmon, the symbolof Noto Kongo, is anatural tunnel formedby abrasion. The tunnelis 6 meters wide, 15meters high and 60meters long.Chapter IV Natural wonders of Hokuriku Geo-tours: Feel the robust dynamism of the Hokuriku landscape“Secret”geo spots that even Ishikawa citizens know little aboutLocated in the Sea and Alluvial Fan Zone of theHakusan Tedorigawa Geopark, the Hakusan MikawaSubsoil Water Group is a spot known for qualitywater that is included in the 100 Exquisite and Well-Preserved Waters of the Heisei Era by the Ministryof the Environment. Water that originates from Mt.Hakusan goes underground on its way to the sea andcomes to the surface as water springs in Mikawa.Five such fountains undergo regular official qualitytests to be made available for free publicconsumption (on rare occasions, water may not bedrinkable according to test results).Some 30 kilometers away from Mikawa along theJapan Sea coast is Katano beach which belongs toKaga City. There you will find Choja-Yashiki-Ato(literally, ruins of a millionaire’s mansion), anChoja-Yashiki-Ato has many oddly-shaped rocks in agglomerationHokuriku Tales vol.3 35