Nabegataki Falls

Nabegataki is a waterfall at Kurobuchi in Oguni. It is about ten metres high and twenty metres wide, so that the water comes down as a broad sheet rather than a column, and there is a hollow behind it that visitors can walk into.

The space behind the fall is about 45 metres across and 13 metres deep. From inside it the water is seen from the back, lit from the far side where the sun comes through the trees.

The falls were left by the eruption that formed the Aso caldera about 90,000 years ago, and they have been taking their present shape ever since. The rock at the lip is hard and the layers behind it are soft, so the soft rock wears back and the hard ledge stands out over it. That is still going on, and the shape of the fall keeps changing.

The site lies within the Aso Geopark, which was recognised as a UNESCO Global Geopark in 2014.

Entry has been by booking since November 2021, arranged to keep traffic out of the villages nearby. Tickets are bought online, and can be booked on the day of the visit, though places sometimes run out. On the busiest days of the year, which are listed in advance, no one is admitted without a booking.