A precious forest blessed with a variety of things
The huge beech forest that exists in the town of Tadami is a precious blessing of nature that serves a variety of roles such as providing the natural resources of a mountain forest like mushrooms and edible wild plants, adjustments to floods, and maintaining the balance of the ecosystem. The surrounding forest’s 470ha has been designated as a forest preserve known as “Kyodo no Mori”, and it is because of the efforts of the local residents to carefully protect it that the natural environment has been able to be preserved today. There are 2 trekking courses “Megumi no Mori” and “Iyashi no Mori” which go into the forest. “Iyashi no Mori” is a light trekking course through the beech forest while “Megumi no Mori” is a fun course involving a walk through a marsh that even beginners can enjoy. They are courses which are exhilarating as you walk through the marsh in boots so that you can take a walk getting up close to the nature of a beech forest.
A walk through “Iyashi no Mori”
In the “Megumi no Mori”, you will come across 4 waterfalls centering upon the monolithic Ozawa Falls during the 4km course. During the walk, this is a large waterfall that flows into the Nunosawa River right by the entrance, and through its 4 levels, you can also come across Shimotaki Falls, Nakataki Falls and Uedomenotaki Falls. Surrounded by the beeches, you can get a calming sense in body and mind as you walk around the falls. There are also other highlights. There is the Giant Twin Beeches which are two beech trees cuddling each other as if they were twins, and the Keihan Forest which is unique in the world where you can see things such as valuable mushrooms everywhere. It requires a fee, but having a guide describing the forest will provide an even better understanding as you are trekking. Also, at the Forest Branch School Fuzawa, you can stay overnight and participate in various types of interactive learning. Learning about nature with the whole family while in the lush beech forest is another way to enjoy “Megumi no Mori”.