(February 16, 2019)Headwaters Search Tour
This tour will take you up the Tama River to the headwaters. You will experience the changes in the river, topography, gravel, and scenery in the lower, middle, and upper reaches. In Okutama, the rainbow trout grilled with salt made from your catch is superb!
From the mouth of the river, to the middle reaches, to the headwaters of Okutama
A first-class river in the Tokyo metropolitan area that changes its expression in each basin
This is a one-day whirlwind tour that takes you upstream from Kawasaki to Minamitama to Okutama Lake to experience the changes in the river, terrain, gravel, and scenery from the lower to the middle and upper reaches of the Tama River. In Okutama, you can try your hand at fishing for rainbow trout, which will be grilled with salt and served hot on the spot. At the Okutama Water and Green Friendship Hall, let’s take a bird’s-eye view of the Tama River that we followed on this trip. We reached Okutama Lake, but it is not the source of the Tama River. It would be fun to go farther and find it.
Planners and Participants
Tsuguto Tatehana (Environmental Education) / Takayuki Harada (Environmental Education) / Arisa Yoshida (Environmental Education) / Kyoko Suzuki (Researcher)
Impressions
Right next to the ocean the lower reaches of the Tama River were wide, and there were many people on the riverbed, but in the middle reaches, the river was clearly narrower and shallower. Many of the stones on the riverbank had been eroded and were perfect for skipping, and I enjoyed skipping stones for the first time since elementary school. There were also a lot of river insects on the backs of the stones. Compared to downstream, not only the appearance of the river, but also the ecosystem had changed dramatically. (T.T)
By going from downstream to midstream and upstream on the Tama River in one day, we were able to compare not only the depth and width of the river, but also the appearance and smell, as well as the conditions of the river, like garbage. We also experienced fishing upstream, and the fish we caught were delicious grilled with salt. In this tour to find the source of the Tama River, we finally reached the dam (Okutama Lake), but the map of the Tama River in the museum showed that there was still a long way to go. Although we were not able to find the true source of the Tama River on this tour, we were able to feel the permanence of nature. I would like to go further in the future to pursue the source of the river. (T.H)
