Tourist Information--Parks
Seishi Park
Seishi Park is an oasis for city dwellers and is one of the most famous cherry blossom sites in the prefecture.
The 1000 someiyoshino cherry trees cover the sky above the park and create a phenomenal view in combination with the Kannongata, the Takeshimagata, and the overlooking Mt. Chokai. It was selected in 1978 as one of the 30 New Tourism Spots of Akita.
The cherry blossoms are not the only flowers that delight visitors. The park is also full of Japanese camellias, marubagumi, and Japanese azaleas to please the eye. The opening of the Shirase Antarctic Expedition Memorial Museum in 1990 near Takeshimagata encouraged the development of the area to create a great path for jogging or strolling.
Misaki Park
Misaki Park is located along National Route 7 (Kokudo 7-go) on the border of Akita and Yamagata prefectures. It is named Misaki (three capes) after Kannon Cape, Daishi Cape and Fudo Cape, all of which project into the Sea of Japan.
The cliff is formed by the molten rocks erupted from Mt. Chokai. The Misakiyama Kyukai do (designated by the prefecture), known as one of the most difficult paths along the shoreline of the Sea of Japan since olden times, still exists today as a historical walkway.
The cherry blossoms in this park are known to bloom earliest in Akita Prefecture. The park also has a camping site and an athletic field from which the beauty of the shore, with its rocks of unusual shape, can be viewed.
Nakajimadai Recreational Forest (Nakajimadai Recreation no Mori)
With the regional symbol of the Reiho Chokaizan situated within, this national park is designated as a natural recreation forest.
The massive beech (buna) trees, which are hundreds of years old, are an expression of the mystique of life and are decorated by unusual contours.
From the mukashibuna, a surviving fossil from the ice age, to the plentiful purity of the springs to the natural treasure of the “Shishigabana Marshland” and the rare Chokai marimo moss, this park is an organic museum displaying the diversity of nature’s wonders.
National Natural Monuments
Mt. Chokai Shishigabana Highland plant community, Niyama Lavaflow Cliff (Niiyama Youganryu Tanmatsugake) and the Cluster of Springs
Designated Area 26 hectares (260,000 sq. meters)
Average Altitude 550 meters from sea level
Full Course
Time Required to Tour the Whole Circle: About 2 hours and 20 minutes
Total Trip Length to Tour the Circle: 5.08 kilometers
The recreational forest is located inside a nationally owned forest, is surrounded by beech virgin forest, and was designated as a natural forest for preservation.
A trail through the virgin forest of beech has been made to give hikers a great view of the natural scenery. Beech trees are growing in smaller numbers throughout the world. The beech forest here is made of natural dwarf beech trees and is valued scientifically. The nature of the dwarfism is unknown, although theories of heavy snowfall, eruptions and tree-trimming by fire all exist as theories.
