A Journey Through the Legend of Kappa in Tono City: A Complete Guide to Kappa Pool and Its Surrounding Attractions

• Table of Contents
• Traditional Garden
• Kappa Teahouse
• Jokenji Temple
• Kappa Falls
• Is there only one Kappabuchi pool?

There is a legend that kappa appear in Tono.

There is also a bounty on the kappa, and if you capture one and go to Tono Television together...you'll win a whopping 10 million yen!!!

However, in order to capture a kappa, you must obtain a "kappa capture permit (220 yen)."

You can get a Kappa Capture Permit at the Folklore Garden near Kappa Falls.

Traditional Garden

Denshoen is a facility that recreates the lifestyle of farmers in the Tono region, where visitors can experience traditional events, old stories, and the making and production of folk crafts.

Within the park, you will find the Former Kikuchi Family Residence, a nationally designated Important Cultural Property, a memorial hall for Sasaki Kizen, the narrator of the Tales of Tono, and the Oshira Hall (Oshira Hall) with its 1,000 Oshirasama figures.

There is also a restaurant called Oshiratei where you can enjoy local cuisine.

*Currently, Kappa Capture Permits can be obtained from the Tono City Tourism Association or through hometown tax donations.

Hometown Choice

Rakuten Hometown Tax

Denshoen

028-0555 6-5-1 Tsuchibuchi, Tsuchibuchi, Tono City, Iwate Prefecture

In addition to being able to tour the old folk house ``Nanbu Magariya,'' you can also experience and learn about Tono's past life and the Tales of Tono. There is also a restaurant next door where you can eat local food. (Open from spring 2024)

So I bought a Kappa Capture Permit at the gift shop in the Denshoen Garden.

On the back of this permit are the "Seven Rules for Capture," which state precautions to take when capturing a kappa, such as "catch it without damaging the head dish or spilling the water in the dish."

Read the instructions carefully and then go capture it.

Kunio Yanagita, who was also a folklorist, wrote in his book "The Tales of Tono"

"It is not uncommon to see what are said to be kappa footprints in the sand on the riverbank, especially the day after it rains."

It is spelled as follows.

The most well-known of these is Kappa Pond, which flows behind Jokenji Temple. Jokenji Temple's Kappa Pond is about a five-minute walk from Denshoen Garden.

Kappa Teahouse

If you walk through the hop fields from Denshoen towards Jokenji Temple, you will come across Kappa no Chaya, a rest stop.

The most popular item at Kappa no Chaya is the Zashiki Warashi Soft Cream, which is made with plenty of Zashiki Warashi's favorite food, red beans.

This soft serve ice cream has a mild flavor and is decorated with a cute red cone that resembles a kimono.

Once you get here, Kappabuchi is just around the corner.

Jokenji Temple

Jokenji Temple is an ancient and prestigious temple of the Soto sect that was founded in 1490.

Within the shrine grounds, there is a guardian dog known as the "Kappa Komainu" because it has a circular depression on its head that looks like a kappa's plate when water collects in it.

Legend has it that long ago, when a fire broke out at the temple, a kappa helped put out the fire, and that's why it came to be worshiped.

Kappa Pool flows behind the temple. From the side of the main hall, head to the pool behind the temple.

Kappa Falls

Originally, many kappa lived in the pool of this stream, and there are many stories of them frightening people and causing mischief. The gently flowing Kappa Pool is covered with thick bushes, giving the impression that a kappa could appear at any moment.

On the shore of Kappa Pool, there are two kappa statues and a shrine dedicated to the goddess of milk, and it is said that if pregnant women pray for breast milk, their wishes will come true.

When making a wish, it is customary to make a breast shape out of red cloth and place it in this shrine.

There is a fishing rod at the edge of the pond.

This appears to be intended to capture kappa, but it is not certain whether it will actually catch them.

Kappa Pool

Tsuchibuchi, Tsuchibuchi-cho, Tono-shi, Iwate 028-0555

In fact, this alone is not enough to describe the kappa of Tono.

Is there only one Kappabuchi pool?

Rivers where kappa have been spotted are called "Kappa Pools," and the most famous pool is the Kappa Pool behind Jokenji Temple, but this is not the only place where kappa have been spotted. Here we will introduce some of the places where kappa folklore remains that you can still visit today.

Tarobuchi

As recorded in the Tales of Tono, "Many kappa live in rivers, especially Sarugaishi River," there are many kappa legends in this river basin. It is said that a kappa named Taro used to live in the pool at Kokoji Temple, peeking in on the women of the village who came to do laundry or other waterworks, causing trouble by causing trouble. Taro Pool is now a pond, but there used to be another pool below it where it was said that a female kappa lived who would court Taro. The pool where the female kappa lived was called Onna-ga-fuchi and was said to be home to two kappas.

Kappa Pond (Obako Pond)

The area known as Yamaguchi village has had stories of kappa since ancient times. In the 58th chapter of "The Tales of Tono," a kappa that lived there tries to drag the horse of a family called "Shinya" into the river, but is unable to resist the horse's strength and ends up being pulled all the way to the stables.

The villagers gathered together and discussed whether to kill or forgive the kappa, and in the end they made a firm promise not to cause any more mischief and let the kappa go. Legend has it that the kappa left the village and moved to Aizawa Falls, upstream of this river.

So, will you be able to see a kappa in Tono?