Sakuramatsu Park

Sakuramatsu Park in the Ashiro district of Hachimantai holds a small shrine dating to at least 1744 and a three-tiered waterfall that drops 15 meters through a forested gorge, listed among Japan's top 100 scenic cascades. The shrine is dedicated to Seoritsuhime, the Shinto goddess of river rapids, and is said to be the northernmost shrine in Japan where she is worshipped. Two moss-covered maple trees near the entrance have fused together at the trunk and midway up their length over the centuries, making them considered auspicious for couples. The waterfall was once used for ascetic Shugendo training, and the annual shrine festival on May 3 coincides with snowmelt that turns it into a powerful torrent.