The Lake Nojiri and Shinanomachi Area

Lake Nojiri formed roughly 70,000 years ago when part of Mt. Kurohime collapsed and dammed a river. The Amatomi Trail follows its shoreline, passing a dig site where 40,000-year-old Naumann elephant fossils have been found continuously since the 1960s. The route also passes through the International Village, a cluster of summer properties founded by foreign missionaries in the 1920s that remains active today. The trail connects Mt. Kurohime and Mt. Myoko, ending at Mt. Madarao where the longer Shin-etsu Trail begins. A historic canal from 1670 runs alongside part of the path.