Oirase Stream, Tohoku Japan

When I was researching my autumn trip to Japan, one of the places that was really popular was Oirase Stream in Tohoku. So I decided to head over to take a look.

Autumn foliage over pretty mountain stream

Oirase Stream is a mountain stream in Aomori prefecture, with water flowing from Lake Towada. There is a hiking trail running almost parallel to the stream, but unfortunately, a vehicular road also runs almost beside the hiking trail!! This is also the access road where the major cities of Hachinohe and Aomori connects to Lake Towada, so it can get busy. However, it is still well worth an outing, especially if you are a photographer who loves "flowing water among foliage" photos!

As it turns out, the foliage in most parts are actually quite thick, such that when you look at the pictures, it's hard to imagine that a road is just 5 metres behind you! Moreover, with the thick foliage, you could get beautiful sunlight streaming through the trees, and in most cases, provide enough cover so that you could slow down your shutter speed to achieve the silky smooth flowing water effect of the streams and waterfalls.

Some parts of the hiking trail unfortunately "spill" over to the road

Hard to tell that these scenes are just beside a busy road!

Besides hikers, there are many artists as well!

My main gripe as a solo backpacker is the access. Unless you have a vehicle, you will be at the mercy of the public bus schedules. There are buses from Aomori and Hachinohe that goes to Yasumiya (the access town of Lake Towada) that passes through the road beside the trail. There are a number of bus-stops along the way, and hence you can opt to only do partial parts of the trail or all (the whole trail is 9km long). Unfortunately, the last bus back to the city was like 4pm which I felt was way too early. Also, the bus fare is ridiculously expensive - a 1-way fare from Hachinohe to the extreme end of the trail (Nenokuchi) is 2000yen (~us$25)!

Nevertheless, the place is very pictureque! (hopefully evident in the photos :p) The best parts of the trail (with flowing water over rocks and foliage) is probably at Ishigedo. For those with enough budget, there is also a hotel at Yakeyama, which is the other end of the hiking trail, so you could have the hiking trail for yourself at later parts in the day (yes, it gets really crowded!). If you drive, you also also base yourself at Lake Towada (Yasumiya).

All in all, well worth a trip!

Beautiful light, beautiful waterfall

Impressive Iguazu Falls

I have not seen any of the world renowned waterfalls, like Niagara Falls or Victoria Falls etc, so I do not have any references or comparisons. But I am truly impressed and mesmerized by the Iguazu Falls.

Spread over the borders of Brazil and Argentina, the Iguazu Falls consists of several hundred waterfalls, cascades and cataracts. Surrounded by lush rainforest, the mists thrown out by the falls also create some sort of microclimate that resulted in multitudes of butterflies of various colours, shapes and patterns. It was an amazing and spectacular sight - both the waterfalls and the many butterflies fluttering around.

The common question is, is the Brazilian side or Argentinian side of the falls better? I think in terms of views, each side offers a different perspective and aspect of the falls. So I think they are on par. However, in terms of a visit to a National Park, I think the Argentinian side has the edge.

On the Brazilian side, the entrance fee to the park is 76 reals (~US$45) - 70 for the park fee, 5 for the park transport fee, and 1 for some kind of fund. The park bus has several stops/stations, but for independent walking, only the final stop has the excellent boardwalk that allows you to leisurely stroll through the park and gawk at the many waterfalls and butterflies along the way. The other stations are for additional paid guided walks and/or boat trips.
On the Argentinian side, the entrance fee to the park is 100 pesos (~US$25). There are also several stations/stops in the park, and a train (free/included) brings you to these stations. However, most of these stations have trails which you could walk on your own. Of course, there are still the paid boat trips and rides that you can choose to take up. There is also a musuem you could visit, and a ferry trip to San Martin island (which was closed for visiting when I was there). So overall, there is alot more things you could do on your own in the park.
The access town on the Brazilian side is Foz do Iguaçu, and it can be reached via a 22-hour bus ride from Rio de Janeiro (I went by a bus company called Pluma). Of course, you could also choose to fly.

The access town on the Argentinian side is Puerto Iguazú, and it can be reached via an 18-hour bus ride from Buenos Aires (I went with Crucero del Norte), and it was one of the most comfortable bus rides I had (complete with whisky and brut on board :)). Of course, you could still choose to fly...

And between Foz do Iguaçu and Puerto Iguazú, there are buses shuttling to and fro and it's one of the cheapest international transfer I've taken - less than 3 reals (~US$1.50)! Many hostels in each town also organize day trips to the falls on the other side, ie hostels in Foz do Iguaçu provide day trips to the Argentine falls while hostels in Puerto Iguazú does day trips to the Brazilian falls, so doing both falls is still entirely possible even though you intend to cover only one country!

Whichever side you go to, you would come away impressed! Aside from the weather, which was sweltering in Jan, I thoroughly enjoyed my visit to the falls! For photography, remember to bring your circular polariser which helps to bring out the 'rainbows' over the falls! Highly recommended!