Round trip the boat ride takes about 90 minutes and at the half way point you can get off the boat and walk around some before coming back.  The boats run from 8:30 am – 4:30 pm in the spring and summer, until 4:00 pm in November and from December to March run from 9:00 am – 3:00 pm.  Bringing food and drinks is allowed but be warned there are little to no trash cans, so you will be holding your trash.

The boat ride and scenery is very beautiful and relaxing, though as you might imagine, the 100 meter cliffs can make for some difficult lighting situations if you are trying to take photographs.  That being said, you should still l be able to get some good shots.  I went during the fall which was beautiful, but if you can bear the cold, I imagine after a fresh snow this place is really nice as well.

At the point where you can get off and walk around, there is a huge cliff with a small hole in it. You can purchase 5 small rocks for 100 yen and try and throw them into the hole (on the lower left side of the cliff in the photo below).  If you can make it in, it is suppose to be lucky.  If you don’t want to pay the 100 yen, a lot of people just pick up rocks from the ground and try and throw those in the hole, but I am not sure if you still get good luck if you make it in.

For more information see the official Tohoku Tourist Site or the Iwate Tourist Site.

There are a few trails you can walk along and follow Genbikei and the Iwai River that flows through it, but they are not so easily accessible. I did not walk too far so maybe at some point upstream it becomes more accessible but you can will probably be content after spending about 45 minutes or an hour there.

Actually, Genbikei might be most famous for it’s “Flying Dango.” Dango is a sticky riceball that comes in various favors such as seaseme (goma), red bean paste (an), or my personal favorite (the one with light brown sauce on the right), soy sauce (mitarashi). Genbikei has “Flying Dango” because a restaurant on one side of the gorge sends it to the other side of the gorge via rope and basket.

For more information see the Iwate Prefecture Tourist Site or the Tohoku Tourist Site.

Tōhoku retains a reputation as a remote region, offering breathtaking scenery but a harsh climate. Tōhoku, like most of Japan, is hilly or mountainous, with the Ou Mountains forming running north-south. Also public transportation is not as abundant as other regions but more so than Hokkaido. In Japan, Tohoku receives the fewest foreign visitors a year, but that does not mean it is not worth traveling to. Actually this area is really beautiful , especially in the Fall. Also if you like nature or want to escape the city, but can’t or don’t want to make the trip to Hokkaido, Tohoku is a very nice place to visit/photograph. Be prepared though, a lot of the good places are spread out. If you like hot springs, Tohoku has many famous ones and in the winter there are many good places to ski/snowboard. Here are a few places that are worth considering going to as a photographer/traveler:

–Matsuhisma–one of the “3 most scenic views” of Japan.
–Zao Mountain–
–Hachimantai–
For more information about the Tohoku Region, see Japan-Guide.com or the Official Tohoku Travel Guide.