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Tojinbo with crags
created by the raging waves
Eihei-ji Temple, a sanctuary in which novices and itinerant monks
devote themselves to asceticism
Fukui is located in the northwest of Central Japan and faces the
Sea of Japan on the north. On its east side lies the land made up of a
mountainous country linked to the Tateyama mountain range and the
Fukui Plains. Its western part, by contrast, is formed with a stretch
of hills and a relatively narrow flatland. The city of Fukui, the
center of local administration and economy, thrived as the castle town
of Shibata Katsuie, a war lord in the 16th century, then as the seat
of the government of a daimyo in the Tokugawa family from the 17th
century to the 19th century. The city is dotted with historic remains
that reflect its prosperity from those days, including the Yoko-kan
garden and the Saiko-ji Temple with Shibata Katsuie Museum annexed to
it.
On the coast of the Japan Sea in northern Fukui is Tojinbo known for
its mass of rocks eroded into crags by raging waves. The columnar
joint configuration of pyroxene andesite (an assembly of pentagonal or
hexagonal rocks) is so rare that it is the only one of its kind in
Japan and similar rock formations are found only at two places in the
rest of the world. Southeast of the city of Fukui stands Eihei-ji
Temple environed with Japanese cedars more than 600 years old. As the
headquarters of Sodoshu (a Buddhist sect), the temple is inhabited by
nearly 200 novices and itinerant monks devoting themselves to
asceticism. Fukui is also known for many traditional handicrafts, like
the Echizen-yaki, one of the six oldest kinds of potteries in Japan
and Echizen-washi (Japanese paper) with a history of 1500 years.
Getting there
2 hours 20 minutes from Tokyo station to Maibara Station by JR
Tokaido Shinkansen Line. About 1 hour 5 minutes from Maibara Station
to Fukui Station by JR Hokuriku Main Line. About 1 hour 55 minutes to
Fukui Station from Osaka Station by JR Hokuriku Main Line.
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Echizen Kaigan coast
100km long coast with oddly shaped rocks and precipices
Wild Echizen daffodils in all their glory in the depth of winter
The Echizen Kaigan coast stretches from Suizu in the Tsuruga Bay
at the center of Fukui to Tojinbo. It is a coast famous for its
100km long beautiful shoreline along the Sea of Japan, and is
located within the Echizen-Kaga Quasi-National Park. The coast has a
row of sea cliffs and oddly shaped rocks formed by the rough waves
of the Sea of Japan. Around the Echizen-misaki Point in particular,
there is Torikuso-iwa rock that rises straight out of the sea with a
height over 50m, as well as Kochomon, that has a dark brown erosion
cave 15m high and 30m wide, the largest cave in the Echizen-Kaigan
coast. There is also Echizen-misaki Lighthouse built at the top of a
132m tall cliff where you can see Tojinbo and the Tsuruga-hanto
Peninsula on clear days.
The area around the Echizen-Kaigan coast has a mild climate thanks
to the warm Tsushima Current. Snow seldom settles here although it
is located in the Hokuriku Region along the Sea of Japan where the
winter is generally extremely severe. Wild daffodils bloom in full
glory around the Echizen-misaki Point from December to March.
Getting there
Take JR Tokaido Shinkansen Line for 2 hours and 20 minutes from
Tokyo Station to Maibara Station, then take JR Hokuriku Main Line
from Maibara Station to Fukui Station. If you are coming from Osaka,
take JR Hokuriku Main Line for 1 hour and 55 minutes from Osaka
Station to Fukui Station. Take Keifuku Bus for 1 hour from Fukui
Station to Sou.
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Eihei-ji Temple
Eihei-ji Temple, located 16km in the southeast of Fukui-shi City at
the center of Fukui, is the headquarters of the Sodoshu Sect of
Buddhism with 15,000 branch temples nationwide. It was originally
built by Reverend Dogen in the 13th century. At the end of the 16th
century, however, the disciples of Ikkoshu, another Buddhist sect
attacked Eihei-ji and burned the entire premises. It was rebuilt in
the 18th century and has remained the same ever since.
In the vast precincts with an area of 330,000m, there are seven
monastery buildings. Sanmon, a temple gate building, Butsuden, a
sanctum where the monks pray for peace and harmony of the people,
Hodo where priests recite Buddhist scriptures and preach and host
various religious rites, Sodo, the monks quarters where monks
practice discipline, a kitchen called Koin and Tosu that houses
bathrooms and lavatories. These monasteries are surrounded by over
70 Dou halls connected with corridors. Some 300 ascetic disciples
and itinerant priests devote themselves in strict ascetic practice
even today. There is a disciplinary hall for the general public to
practice Zen meditation and they are allowed to stay at this hall
and experience part of the ascetic disciplines of the monks.
Getting there
Take JR Tokaido Shinkansen Line for 2 hours and 20 minutes from
Tokyo Station to Maibara Station, then take JR Hokuriku Main Line
for 1 hour and 5 minutes from Maibara Station to Fukui Station. If
you are coming from Osaka, take JR Hokuriku Main Line for 1 hour and
55 minutes from Osaka Station to Fukui Station. From Fukui Station,
take Keifuku Dentetsu Echizen Main Line, Eihei-ji Line for 1 hour to
Eihei-ji Station.
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Tojinbo
Rugged precipices eroded by rough waves
A rock pillar that is one of only three in the world
Tojinbo is a rugged, precipitous cliff eroded by rough waves on
the coast of the Sea of Japan in northern Fukui bordering Ishikawa.
It is located within the Echizen-Kaga Quasi-National Park. The sheer
cliff stretches for over 1km, and is designated as the precious
natural monument. A rock pillar made of columnar jointing (joint of
columnar rocks in a pentagon or hexagon shape) of pyroxene andesite
in Tojjibo is not only the only one of its kind in Japan, but there
are only two others like it in the entire world.
One especially dynamic site is the lagoon called Tojinbo Oike with a
50m tall cliff and a water depth of 17m. You can see it not only
from the top of the rocks, but also from a pleasure boat on the sea
and from the 54.7m tall Tojinbo Tower as well. There is also the
scenic Oshima Island and strange shaped andesite rocks around
Tojinbo. In winter, you can observe the phenomenon called "Nami-no-hana"
or flowers of waves. They occur when the broken waves are caught in
the reefs and turned into bubbles that the violent winds then fan up
in to the air.
Getting there
Take JR Tokaido Shinkansen Line for 2 hours and 20 minutes from
Tokyo Station to Maibara Station, then take JR Hokuriku Main Line
for 1 hour and 5 minutes from Maibara Station to Fukui Station. If
you are coming from Osaka, take the JR Hokuriku Main Line for 1 hour
and 55 minutes from Osaka Station to Fukui Station. Then take
Keifuku Dentetsu Mikuniawara Line for 35 minutes from Fukui Station
to Mikuni Station, and take Keifuku Bus for 15 minutes from Mikuni
Station to Tojibo.
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Wakasa Bay
Has high clarity of seawater with a deeply indented coastline
It was a strategic point of trade with the continent
Wakasa Bay is located in the northwestern part of Fukui, facing
the Japan Sea and lies between Echizen-misaki Point of east and
Kyo-ga-misaki Point of west. It has a beautiful coastline with a
high clarity of seawater with a great view beneath it. The area from
Kehi-no-Matsubara in Fukui to Tango-hanto Peninsula is designated a
quasi-national park.
Mikata-go-ko that is made up with five lakes is located on the east
shore of Wakasa Bay and has a variety of fish and is very popular
among the fishing lovers. The Five lakes are connected by a waterway
and a sightseeing boat is available. You can also enjoy the great
scenery of Wakasa Bay and Sekumi Port from the Mt. Baijodake
observation point
Mihama-cho is located at the west side of Wakasa Bay which has a
beach called Suisho-ga-hama blessed with white sands and green pine
trees. This beach is known for "Nakisuna" (the singing sands)
because of the sound you will make when you step on the sand of the
beach. Obama, facing onto Obama Bay, was the accumulation point of
commodities and an important trading spot not only domestically but
also with Korea and China from old days. There remains many stores
and houses of Sancho-machi in the city that show the influences of
the continental culture and also historical spots such as Mantoku-ji
Temple with Karesansui Garden where the hills and waters are
expressed just by topography, reminding one of what it used be like
in the city.
Getting there
By JR Shinkansen Line for 2 hours and 20 minutes from Tokyo
Station to Maibara Station. By Limited Express on JR Hokuriku Main
Line for 30 minutes from Maibara Station to Tsuruga Station. From
Osaka Station, by Limited Express on JR Hokuriku Main Line for 1
hour and 40 minutes to Tsuraga Station. By JR Obama Line for 20
minutes from Tsuruga Station to Mihama Station, 40 minutes to Obama
Station.
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Chubu 
Information
provided by Japan National Tourist Organization.
