North Hiroshima · MiyoshiNo.959★★Open in map →
Takataniyama Observatory
— Miyoshi's dawn sea of river fog
On clear autumn and winter mornings, river fog pools in the Miyoshi basin until only the ridgelines show. A hilltop deck above the town looks straight down on it, and a live camera lets you check the fog before you set out.
- FromMiyoshi IC (Chugoku Expressway)
- ~20 minBy car, ~20 min from Miyoshi IC
- Get off atMiyoshi Station (JR Geibi Line)
- From there
- Takataniyama Observatory
The sweet spot
This is a well-known local sight, not a hidden one. What thins the crowd is the window. The fog needs a clear, still, sharply cooling night, it shows around sunrise, and the only way up the hill is by car. Plenty of people know the view; fewer are standing on the deck at first light.
Where it is
25 more notes in Hiroshima · open the map →What to look for
- The observation decka railed platform near the top of the hill, facing the basin head-on
- The sea of foga flat white layer over the basin with dark ridges standing above it like islands
- The river junctionthe point on the basin floor where the rivers merge and flow on as one
- Central Miyoshithe town lying under the fog, and after dark a spread of lights from the same deck
- The observatory's live cameraa fixed feed of this exact view, worth reading before a pre-dawn drive
How to actually get there
- Check the observatory's live camera the evening before and again on waking. It shows the same view as the deck, so you can call the trip off from bed.
- Hiroshima Station to Miyoshi Station (JR Geibi Line local, about 1 hour 50 minutes; the rapid is faster). Being in place before dawn means staying overnight in Miyoshi or driving.
- Miyoshi Station or Miyoshi IC to Takataniyama by car, about 20 minutes from the interchange. Signs appear where the road starts to climb.
- Park near the top and walk the last stretch to the deck. Be standing there before sunrise, not at it.
- JR Geibi Line to Miyoshi, then a car
- Hiroshima Station to Miyoshi Station takes about 1 hour 50 minutes on a local JR Geibi Line train; the rapid service is quicker. From Miyoshi Station there is no bus up the mountain, so continue by taxi or rental car. Drivers using the expressway leave at Miyoshi IC on the Chugoku Expressway and reach the top in about 20 minutes.
- Back down through Miyoshi to Hiroshima
- Come back down the same road into central Miyoshi, then take the JR Geibi Line to Hiroshima Station. This is a rural line and departures are spread thinly through the day, so look up the train you want before you go up the hill rather than after you come down. A highway bus also runs between Miyoshi Station and the Hiroshima Bus Center.
About the place
Takataniyama rises about 490 metres above the basin in northern Hiroshima, and a viewing deck near its top faces the town. Below it, the Saijo and Basen rivers meet the Gonokawa on the basin floor. Cold air drains off the surrounding hills and settles over that water, and the fog that forms there can fill the whole basin. From the deck the layer reads as a flat white surface with dark ridges standing out of it, which is why it is called a sea rather than a mist. The road runs almost to the top, so the viewpoint is reached by car rather than on foot.
How to enjoy it
The fog forms on early mornings between September and March, and the conditions are specific: a clear sky, almost no wind, and a sharp gap between the day's warmth and the morning chill. Check the camera the night before and again when you wake, then drive up in time for first light and stay while the sun works across the layer. Bring more warmth than the forecast suggests, because the deck is exposed and you will be standing still.
Background & history
Miyoshi grew up where its rivers converge, and the fog that gathers over that junction has long been counted among the town's seasonal sights rather than treated as bad weather. The low hills ringing the basin became the places people climbed to look down on it, and Takataniyama is the one the road now reaches. The city and the local tourism body maintain the deck there and stream the view from a fixed camera, so the vantage that once meant a climb in the dark is checked from a phone.
Before you go
- Cash
- The deck is a city viewpoint with no ticket gate, and the parking area beside it is open to anyone who drives up. Nothing is sold on the hill, so carry water and something warm to drink with you. Miyoshi Station takes IC cards and cash; if you are booking a taxi, ask how it accepts payment when you call.
- Before you go
- On exactly the mornings when the fog is best, visibility on the drive up can be poor, because the same air that fills the basin sits on the road. Go slowly, use your lights, and allow more time than the map suggests. The deck itself is unlit, and it is a good deal colder up there than the forecast for the town implies.
- Another way
- Without a train, a highway bus runs from the Hiroshima Bus Center to Miyoshi Station, where taxis wait. Coming from the San'in side, Miyoshi is also reached by bus from Matsue. Either way the last stretch to the viewpoint has to be driven.
- After you get off
- Miyoshi Station is the rail gateway, but there is no walking route to the viewpoint: the hill stands across the basin from the town. Change to a taxi or a rental car at the station, cross central Miyoshi, and climb the hill road, where signs appear once the road begins to rise. The deck is a short step from where you park.