If it’s your first time going to Hokkaido, you gotta visit this place. It’s called Hell Valley located in Noboribetsu. Let’s Go!
First I’m going to ESTA to get some food for the bus ride.
Most department stores have markets located on the basement level called “Depachika” offering a wide variety of ready-to-eat foods like onigirazu, rice balls called onigiri, savoury & fruit sandwiches, and my favourite bentos!
The bus will take us directly to the hot spring hotel in Noboribetsu – which I will cover in another video because it is seriously amazing.
The bento I got is so pretty! We’ve got inside it: gobo rice, edamame rice, a sweet pumpkin with fish cake and meatball, and pickles!
I’ve also got a fruit sandwich! As weird as it sounds, it’s really popular in Japan and it’s incredibly good. Strawberries in Japan are really really sweet and juicy. They’re definitely worth the price.
The bus ride from Sapporo city centre takes around one hour. The view is very enjoyable along the way – all that snow and beautiful blue sky.
Noboribetsu is Japan’s most famous hot spring resort, they have some of the best therapeutic hot spring waters in Japan. Why? Because they have a phenomenal volcanic valley situated just above the town, which is the source of its outstanding thermal waters. That valley is called Jigokudani, or “Hell Valley”.
All around the town there are Oni demon statues. They are legendary inhabitants in Hell Valley who protect the precious hot springs.
There are 11 demon spots in Noboribetsu and each of them is unique, the one in the video is one is the Praying Demon Shrine.
Jigokudani, or “Hell Valley is a 24-acre smoking crater of geothermal activity, created by a volcanic eruption of Mount Kuttara 20,000 years ago leaving countless holes of all sizes that shoot out boiling water with a roar, resembling hell. We’re going to walk down into the valley using the pathway to take a closer look at the boiling lakes. At the end of the path lies Tessen Pond which properties said to be good for the eyes. The water erupts around every 10 minutes and smells intensly of sulfur. A small river flows in the middle of Hell Valley with the water of various hot springs pouring in and mixing together. The different minerals and properties of the hot springs form a grayish color when combined, which is why the water looks like that.
This place is very different to the usual picturesque mt fuji view, but I think it is amazing in it’s own way, like uncovering the mysteries of the Earth. It truly is a great experience.
Let’s do the short hike up to the observatory, it’s the shortest hiking route of out of 3 options, and it takes around 30 minutes. The other ones take 2~4 hours. The other two trails will lead you to a hot spring foot bath and a mystic crystal lake – which we are going to explore our drone.
The views of Jigokudani Hell Valley in Hokkaido is absolutely breath taking. Here is the mystic crystal lake that you can reach after hiking 4 hours. It is called Lake Kuttara. This lake has one of the top-rated quality waters in Japan. If you choose the 2 hour hiking route, you will come to this beauty called Oyunuma, a super high temperature hot spring lake. Oyunuma is a sulfur spring with a temperatures 50 degrees Celsius, yet can gush out water as hot as 130 degrees. Maybe one day I’ll do the 2 hour hike, but just with the shortest 30 minute route has left with me a precious experience and I was able to see and feel the power of the volcanic activity already.
I really love snow, we don’t get that where I live! Does it snow where you are? Let me know what it’s like in the comments down below! I’m heading back down now before it gets dark. I’ve walked down into the valley at night before, they so have lights but it’s really really creepy – in a cool way. There’s literally no one around. The walk back to hotel takes around 10 mins and I’m really cold~!
These are the places that we covered today on foot and with the drone.
Other attractions include the
登別地獄まつり)
Jigoku Festival – meaning Hell Festival held during the last weekend of every August with demon floats demon costume parades, Taiko performance and amazing firework displays. So if you’re around in the summer, pay a visit!
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