A fully frozen waterfall about 30 meters high in Hachimantai, Iwate Prefecture, is attracting hikers who are hardy enough to make the frigid trek.
According to the Iwate prefectural government's forest management office, the Nanataki waterfall began to freeze on both sides in early December, and froze rapidly toward the center during the cold wave that started at the end of the year. The entire waterfall became iced over around Jan. 15.
Because the waterfall froze over so quickly, the ice has few impurities and appears pale blue as it reflects sunlight.
The Nanataki waterfall is located about three kilometers from the Nanataki trailhead on Mt. Iwate.
One group of hikers, who had walked for about an hour, cheered when they saw the icefall, which is as high as a 10-story building.
"The weather is nice and I could enjoy viewing a powerful icefall," Katsuyoshi Mikami, 52, a local government employee from Miyako in the prefecture, said with a smile,
The forest management office said the icefall would be enjoyable to view until the end of this month.
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