Mihama Town Lake Center] Tour of the Mikatagoko Lakes and Canals on a battery-propelled sightseeing boat in eco-friendly Fukui, Japan

  • Fukui
  • Experience Gifu
Battery-powered sightseeing boat (photo courtesy of Fukui Prefectural Tourism Federation)

What is a battery-propelled sightseeing boat?

The battery-propelled sightseeing boat is an eco-friendly vehicle that sails through the Mikatagoko Lakes using electricity generated by the solar panels at the Mihama Lake Center.

Here is how the battery-propelled sightseeing boat works:
① Generate electricity from the "solar panels" at the Mihama Lake Center
② Store the electricity obtained from the solar panels in "storage batteries"
③ Charge the electricity stored in the storage batteries to the battery-propelled sightseeing boat using a "quick charger"
④ Sail the battery-propelled sightseeing boat

A guide will give you a detailed explanation of the battery-propelled sightseeing boat when you board the boat. The guide will give you a detailed explanation of the battery-propelled sightseeing boat when you board the boat. The boat has no engine noise, so you can enjoy the quiet atmosphere of the lakes.
Mihama Town Lake Center exterior

What are Mikatagoko?

Mikatagoko is the collective name for the five lakes of Mikatako, Suigetsuko, Sugako, Kugushiko, and Hirugako, which straddle Mihama and Wakasa towns in Fukui Prefecture. They are called "five-color lakes.

Course Details

Guide to the day's course (installed in the Lake Center)
Operation during boarding
The basic course of the battery-propelled sightseeing boat is to start from Lake Kugako, pass by the Urami River, and go to Lake Suigetsu. The trip takes about 50 minutes. During the boat ride, a guide will tell you stories about Mikatagoko and the local area. You can also check the operation status on the large screen inside the boat.

Information on operation times:
1st service 9:30~
2nd service 10:45~
3rd service 13:00~
4th service 14:15~
5th service 15:30~

Information on fees:
Adults (junior high school students and older) 1,980 yen
Children (elementary school students) 990 yen
Preschool children free

*Courses may change or be cancelled due to weather or tidal conditions.

About Kugushiko Lake

Lake Kuko
Many species of fish have been identified due to the mixing of seawater. Fishing for whitebait and eels is also conducted here. The area is a bird sanctuary, and waterfowl, including ducks, can be observed up close from the quiet, battery-propelled sightseeing boats. In winter, many migratory birds gather here. There is also a rowing course, which is used as a venue for competition practice and competitions.

About Uramigawa River

Urami River
Urami River Masu-gata (square ditch dug next to a copper plate)
The artificial waterway connecting Lake Suigetsu and Lake Kuko is only 7.2 m wide. Because it is impossible to pass each other, visitors must check to see if there are any boats in the Urami River before entering. The scenery is like passing through a river in a natural jungle. Sometimes kingfishers with beautiful emerald green color are flying around.

On the way back from Suigetsu Lake, you can see the Masugata of the Urami River. There is a story about this square ditch (Masugata).

It is said that Masugata was dug in 1664 by Kyubei Kataoka, who built the Uramigawa River to protect people from flooding. Kyubei Oyakata wanted to leave his achievements by engraving an inscription on it. At that time, Kyubei's mother said to him, "If your work is of no use to the future generations, the inscription will remain as a shame forever. If your work was useful to future generations, your name will never die, even if you do not leave a record of it. His mother admonished him to stop digging for the inscription, and as a result, only the outline remains to this day. (*There are various theories about the origin of Masugata.)

Since you can only see it for a moment while sailing, please make sure not to miss the guide's explanation.

About Lake Suigetsuko

Lake Suigetsu
Lake Suigetsu is the largest of the Mikata Goko lakes, and is the only place in the world where annual stripes covering 70,000 years have been found in one continuous area. Annual stripes are "lake sediments with characteristic stripe patterns drawn by layers deposited in lakes and marshes over a long period of time," and one layer is formed every year. It is a valuable source of information on past climatic and environmental changes and a measure of dating.

Wakasa is a plum-growing region with vast plum orchards around the Mikata Goko (Five Lakes of Mikata).

Shine View Goko Cafe - Spend the day at the cafe

The Mihama Town Lake Center has a café operated by the Mihama Town Silver Human Resources Center. It serves coffee, tea, and sweets. At lunch time, you can also enjoy kakiage udon and seafood curry. Visitors can relax at a table overlooking the lake.
Inside Mihama Town Lake Center
Mihama Town Lake Center [Official Website

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