Wakasa · ObamaNo.1313★★Open in map →
Sotomo
— Granite sea caves and cliffs on the Uchitomi Peninsula
About six kilometres of granite sea cliffs on the Uchitomi Peninsula near Obama, carved by Sea of Japan waves into caves, arches and named rocks. An hour-long sightseeing boat from Wakasa Fisherman's Wharf follows the coast out to the Daimon and Komon arches.
- FromObama Station
- 15–20 min walk + 1 hr boatWalk + sightseeing boat
- Get off atWakasa Fisherman's Wharf (Sotomo sightseeing boat)
- From there
- Sotomo
The sweet spot
Sotomo is one of the signature sights of the Wakasa Bay Quasi-National Park, and the boats carry many passengers through the season, so it is not a hidden place. What sets the pace is the approach. The coast is seen from a timed boat, and the sea decides how close the boat goes and whether anyone steps ashore.
Where it is
28 more notes in Fukui · open the map →What to look for
- Tosen-jimaa small island whose name recalls a foreign ship once moored beside it
- Amikake-iwaa rock face crazed with cracks like a cast net, as its name says
- Meoto-kame-iwaa pair of rocks read as two turtles, one riding on the other's back
- Shiraito-no-takia thin waterfall, named for a white thread, falling down the cliff
- Daimon and Komontwo arches where the core of the rock has fallen away, wide enough for a boat
How to actually get there
- Obama Station → Wakasa Fisherman's Wharf (walk, about 15–20 min).
- Buy a ticket at the wharf office and board the Sotomo boat in front of the building.
- Cruise along the north shore of the Uchitomi Peninsula to Daimon and Komon (about 1 hr round trip).
- Back at the wharf → walk to Obama Station for the train.
- Walk from JR Obama Station to the wharf
- Obama Station on the JR Obama Line is the gateway. Wakasa Fisherman's Wharf, where the Sotomo boats leave, is on the harbour to the north, about 15 to 20 minutes on foot. Tickets are sold at the office window inside, and individual passengers do not need to book.
- Back to the wharf on the same boat
- The cruise is a round trip and returns to the wharf where it started. From there, walk back to Obama Station. Check the train times before you board the boat, so the walk back meets a train.
About the place
Sotomo is a line of sea cliffs on the north shore of the Uchitomi Peninsula, which lies on the east side of Obama Bay. It runs for about six kilometres and faces the open Sea of Japan. The rock is granite. The waves have cut it along its joints into cliffs, pillars, caves and arches. Many of the formations carry names, from the net-cracked face of Amikake-iwa to the paired arches of Daimon and Komon. The coast is part of the Wakasa Bay Quasi-National Park, and it is seen from the sightseeing boats that leave Obama's fishing harbour.
How to enjoy it
Boats leave Wakasa Fisherman's Wharf from 9:30, with later sailings through the day, and each cruise takes about an hour. When wind and waves allow, the boat may tie up behind Daimon and Komon for a few minutes ashore, but that is a matter of luck. Rough seas change the course or cancel the sailing, so check the day's status with the operator before walking down from the station.
Background & history
The old name meant 'outer face', because this shore looks away from Obama Bay toward the open sea. The present characters appear in Edo-period writings. By the middle of the Edo period it was known as a scenic coast, and a picture map from that era already names its rocks much as they are named today. It was designated a national Place of Scenic Beauty, as Wakasa Sotomo, in 1934, and was later taken into the Wakasa Bay Quasi-National Park. The rock is the granite of Mount Kusuyagadake, split along its joints and worn back by storm waves.
Before you go
- Cash
- At the time of checking, the cruise cost 2,500 yen for adults and 1,200 yen for primary-school children, plus a fuel surcharge. Tickets are bought at the wharf office before boarding.
- Before you go
- The boats take a winter break and resume in spring. Rough seas change the course or cancel sailings, and when a typhoon approaches the operator announces cancellations in advance on its website. Landing at Daimon and Komon happens only in calm conditions.
- Another way
- By car, the wharf is a short drive from Obama interchange on the Maizuru-Wakasa Expressway, and its car park is free. From Tsuruga, the JR Obama Line runs west to Obama Station.
- After you get off
- The boats leave from in front of the wharf building. Buy the ticket at the office window inside first, then board at the pier outside.