Makido Cave

Little knownBarely documented in English. This is the kind of place the site exists for.

Investigado y escrito por Hinato

Makidolimestone caveNiimiYosano Akikoreflecting pool

Prefectura de Okayama · Niimi

34.9893°N, 133.5788°E

Makido is the opposite of the other Niimi cave: horizontal, about 450 metres long and up to 25 metres wide, opening into broad chambers rather than climbing through narrow ones. Its centrepiece is a still pool of clear water reflecting the formations above it, which is why the cave photographs better than caves generally do.

The name came from a poet. In 1929 Yosano Tekkan and Yosano Akiko visited what was then called Maki-no-ana, the cave of the maki trees, and Akiko renamed it Makido, cave full of wonders, writing a poem about it. The name stuck. The cave sits on a karst plateau above the Takahashi river with almost nothing else around it, and the drive up is through farmland that gives no hint of what is underneath.

Información esencial

Horario

8:30 AM – 5:00 PM (last entry 4:30 PM); may vary seasonally or for events

Cerrado: Open year-round — confirm before travelling, as the cave is occasionally closed for events

Entrada

¥1,000 high school students and over | ¥800 junior high school | ¥500 elementary school | Free below elementary school

Mejor temporada

Year-round; summer for the cool interior

Duración de la visita

1 hour

Cómo llegar

Información de acceso

Toyonaga Akaba 2276-2, Niimi City. By car from Niimi Station; hours may vary seasonally or for events. Admission ¥1,000 for high school students and over, ¥800 junior high school, ¥500 elementary school, free below that. The route is about 450 m and largely level, with a wet floor.

Guía privilegiada

**Level, unlike Ikura.** About 450 metres with no serious climb, which makes it the choice if stairs are a problem. The floor is still wet. **The pool is the thing.** A still sheet of clear water reflecting the chamber roof. Photographs need a steady hand rather than a flash; the lighting is dim and the reflection is what you are there for. **Yosano Akiko named it.** She visited in 1929 and renamed the cave from maki trees to wonders, in a pun that works in Japanese. Her poem is displayed at the entrance. **It is used for concerts and weddings.** The main chamber's acoustics and scale get borrowed for events, which occasionally changes the hours. Worth checking before a drive. **Nothing else is up here.** A karst plateau of farms and forest. Combine with Ikura Cave, which is nearby, or with the Takahashi river gorge.

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