Abu Coast: A Landscape Created by Magma
Cape Modoro is well known in Hagi for its characteristic polka-dot rock patterns. It was created around 100 million years ago by the largest volcanic eruption to ever occur within the Hagi Geopark area. The round “dots” were created as two different types of magma slowly mixed and solidified into a single gigantic mass. Visitors today can see the rock formations up close by sea cruise or kayak.
Oku-Abu Village: A Great Gift from a Tiny Volcano
Fruits, vegetables, and rice have been cultivated in this mountainous region for over a thousand years. The fertile pastureland is said to be perfect for any kind of crop. The many tiny volcanoes that dot the landscape are responsible for the fertile soil that has fed the people of Hagi for centuries. The Ryū-ga-tōtta-michi, or the “Dragon’s Causeway,” is a long swath of columnar jointing that runs along the river valley through Oku-Abu. It is the most visible of the volcanic events that have shaped this region, which was formerly the “rice bowl” of the Chōshū domain during the Edo period (1603–1867).
Tokusa Basin: Fertile Land and a Lake that Disappeared
Tokusa Basin appears after about an hour’s drive from the coast into the high mountains. Tokusa was once the bottom of a lake created by the volcanoes that surrounded it. The eruptions eventually transformed the lake, creating the Abu River. Without the lake in Tokusa, the river delta would never have formed, and the town of Hagi would never have been built there. The fertile land of the basin is a result of the nutrients that accumulated on the lakebed. It has allowed the farmers in Tokusa to feed the people of Yamaguchi for centuries.
