Numayama-toge Pass
Numayama-toge is one of the highest mountain passes on the Aizu-Numata Kaido, at an altitude of 1,785 meters. Merchants traveled over the pass to reach Oe Marsh and Lake Ozenuma, where they traded goods with people from the neighboring region of Numata (in present-day Gunma Prefecture). The pass also gave access to grounds for hunting, fishing, and logging.
The rest area at Numayama-toge Pass afforded a view of Oe Marsh. According to records from the Edo period (1603–1867), a wildfire is said to have swept through the forests of the surrounding mountains, and the pass became known colloquially as Yakeyama-toge, literally “burned mountain pass.” The fire-ravaged hillsides made it possible to see a panorama of Oe Marsh, Lake Ozenuma, and Mt. Hiuchigatake (2,356 m). In the centuries since the fire, a virgin forest of Maries’ fir trees has developed, and the trees obstruct the former view of the lake and mountain. The forest is a designated conservation area.