is a range of

gorge A canyon (; archaic British English spelling: ''cañon''), gorge or chasm, is a deep cleft between escarpments or cliffs resulting from weathering and the erosion, erosive activity of a river over geologic time scales. Rivers have a natural tend ...

s located in Kamikawa,

Hokkaidō is the second-largest island of Japan and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by railway via the Seikan Tunnel. The ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. Situated in the

Daisetsuzan National Park , or Taisetsuzan is located in the mountainous center of the northern Geography of Japan, Japanese island of Hokkaido. At , Daisetsuzan is the largest national park in Japan, and is approximately the size of Kanagawa Prefecture. Daisetsuzan, mean ...

, the area is known for its hotels and

onsen In Japan, are hot springs and the bathing facilities and Ryokan (inn), traditional inns around them. There are approximately 25,000 hot spring sources throughout Japan, and approximately 3,000 ''onsen'' establishments use naturally hot water ...

(hot springs) resorts as well as waterfalls and magnificent cliffs scenery. The term "Sōunkyō" means respectively the layer (層), cloud (雲) and gorge (峡) in Japanese, and the origin of the name is a word "Souunbetsu" in the

Ainu language Ainu (, ), or more precisely Hokkaido Ainu (), is a language spoken by a few elderly members of the Ainu people on the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido. It is a member of the Ainu language family, itself considered a language family isola ...

, which means "the river with many waterfalls".

History

The geography of the gorge and surrounding area were formed by the eruption of Daisetsuzan Volcanic Group, which occurred around 30,000 years ago. The welded tuff was piled up after the eruption, and it was gradually eroded by the water of the

Ishikari River The , at long, is the third longest in Japan and the longest in Hokkaidō. The river drains an area of , making it the second largest in Japan, with a total discharge of around per year. It originates from Mount Ishikari in the Daisetsuzan ...

, which currently streams between gorges. Thus, ragged steep cliffs in Sōunkyō were shaped, which range over 24 kilometres.Kamikawa town official homepage
/ref> and have a number of

joints A joint or articulation (or articular surface) is the connection made between bones, ossicles, or other hard structures in the body which link an animal's skeletal system into a functional whole.Saladin, Ken. Anatomy & Physiology. 7th ed. McGraw- ...

around 200 metres in heightThe Reborn of Sōunkyo
/ref> In 1957, stores and hotels located in the areas surrounding Sōunkyō were relocated to Sōunkyō under the order of the Kamikawa government. They became the origin of the Sōunkyō Onsen (hot springs) Resort. This was a part of the plan to arrange Kamikawa town by the government, and the resort has thrived with many hotels and souvenir shops, formerly constructed for mountaineers, although later they have decayed due to the other resorts in Hokkaidō such as Shiretoko. To renovate its run-down resorts, Sōunkyō and Ministry of the Environment collaborated on a reconstruction scheme in 1987. 36 buildings that were in the area were demolished and integrated into 18 hotels, which were designed with

ivory Ivory is a hard, white material from the tusks (traditionally from elephants) and Tooth, teeth of animals, that consists mainly of dentine, one of the physical structures of teeth and tusks. The chemical structure of the teeth and tusks of mamm ...

coloured walls and sharp roofs representing Daisetsuzan. Most of the onsen resorts were completed in July 1998, and many tourists have visited. Currently, the annual number of tourists is 3 million. Recently, the center of the onsen resorts were arranged as the "Canyon Mall," which was modeled after the mountain resorts in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

Overview

The gorge is known not only for its hot springs and hotel resorts but also for its natural scenery. The and were selected as one of the top 100 waterfalls in Japan.mapion 100 waterfalls in Japan
The Daisetsuzan Sōunkyō Kurodake Ropeway is on the slope of the gorge, and tourists can get the ropeway and chairlift to climb the mountain. The Sōunkyō Visitor Center is near the resorts and houses picture panels displaying the scenes of Sōunkyō and guides for visitors. In every January, the Sōunkyō Hyōbaku Festival is held at the riverbed of Ishikari River, and many ice statues and objects are constructed, some of which are colourfully illuminated. Tourists are able to buy souvenirs and hot drinks in some nearby stores, and fireworks are displayed on weekends. Other events held in this festival include a dance of the Ainu, Yosakoi Soran team, and

taiko are a broad range of Traditional Japanese musical instruments, Japanese percussion instruments. In Japanese language, Japanese, the term refers to any kind of drum, but outside Japan, it is used specifically to refer to any of the various J ...

Sources

External links

Sounkyo Tourism Association

Sounkyo.com (Japanese)

Sounkyo Gorge, Viewpoint and Waterfalls

Lonely Planet
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sounkyo Landforms of Hokkaido Tourist attractions in Hokkaido Canyons and gorges of Japan