【Eitaka Nature Park】
This park owes its existence to a chance encounter. While out on a walk one day, farmer Eitaka Takeo (1912–2010) discovered that an artist had come to his land to paint. As they talked, Eitaka learned that the artist often came to capture views of the changing seasons, and the artist commented that it was Eitaka’s responsibility as the owner to conserve the land’s stunning scenery. Continuing on his way, Eitaka felt so moved by the artist’s words that he found himself noticing the beauty of the nature that surrounded him as if for the first time. Realizing the invaluable worth of his property, he resolved to open it to the public for posterity, and Eitaka Nature Park was established in 1975. In 2018, Eitaka’s two sons donated the two-hectare park to the municipal government in order to safeguard it from development.
On clear days, Mt. Myōkō (2,454 m) is clearly reflected in nearby Imori Pond. The pond was created from marshland in 1927 and covers 12,295 square meters. It is home to the forest green tree frog (Rhacophorus arboreus), a species that is endemic to Japan, and a variety of flora, such as mizuchidori (Platanthera hologlottis), a member of the butterfly orchid family that flowers from late June to early July.
Yosano Akiko (1878–1942), a well-known twentieth-century poet, writer, and feminist was inspired by the beauty of the park, and she penned poems that are inscribed on a stone memorial near the northeast corner of the boardwalk.