One of Hokkaido's 179 towns
Horokanai幌加内町
Japan's soba capital and its coldest recorded place
Kamikawa region · Lavender, patchwork hills and the roof of Hokkaido.
Horokanai is Japan's soba-growing champion and its coldest recorded place (−41.2°C) — plus Lake Shumarinai, holy water for giant itou trout anglers.
Horokanai is a sparsely settled town in the hills west of Asahikawa where more buckwheat is grown than anywhere else in Japan. In the north of the town Lake Shumarinai, the country's largest artificial lake, spreads through drowned forest and is the shrine of itou fishing, Japan's giant trout. The lowest temperature ever measured in Japan was recorded in the Moshiri district here. Soba in September, ice fishing in February and empty roads the rest of the time; this is a town for people who like the cold.
- Region
- Kamikawa (上川)
- From New Chitose Airport
- ~224 km · 3.4 h summer / 4.1 h winter
- From Sapporo
- ~195 km · 3 h summer / 3.5 h winter
- Best season in Kamikawa
- Choose dates around the flowers, autumn foliage or winter scenery you want to see. Check local conditions and seasonal transport before booking.
Horokanai at a glance
Drive estimates: straight-line × 1.35, at 65 km/h (summer) / 55 km/h (winter). How we calculate
What to see in Horokanai
Lake Shumarinai
朱鞠内湖
Japan's largest artificial lake, ringed by forest with drowned trees rising from the water. Campgrounds and boat rentals on the shore, itou and trout fishing in the open season, smelt fishing on the ice in winter.
New Soba Festival
幌加内町新そば祭り
Each September the town celebrates the buckwheat harvest with a festival where soba makers from around Japan serve fresh noodles from the year's crop.
Buckwheat fields in bloom
白い花のそば畑
In late July and August the town's rolling fields turn white with buckwheat flowers, stretching for kilometers along Route 275. Low evening light shows them best.
Moshiri, the coldest place in Japan
母子里
A hamlet in the northern hills where Japan's record low temperature was measured, marked by a monument. Deep snow country and the road to the lake's eastern shore.
Getting to Horokanai
Asahikawa Airport is about 1.5 hours by car. Route 275 runs the length of the town from Fukagawa north to the lake and on toward the Japan Sea. There is no railway; the nearest stations are Fukagawa and Asahikawa on the Hakodate Main Line. Sapporo is about 2.5 hours by car.
Kamikawa region: Asahikawa Airport and Asahikawa Station are useful entry points. Plan the onward journey separately: reaching a railway station is not the same as reaching a flower farm, the Blue Pond or a mountain ropeway. Check seasonal bus services and the last return departure.
When to visit Horokanai
September for new-crop soba and the festival, and late July for white buckwheat blossoms. June to September for the lake, camping and itou fishing. February for smelt fishing on the ice, in cold that is the point of the trip.
What to eat in Horokanai
Soba is everything: the town grows the most buckwheat in Japan and serves it in shops around the centre and by the lake, with new-crop noodles from September. Smelt from Lake Shumarinai and mountain vegetables from the forest round out the table.
Horokanai in context: the Kamikawa region
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Kamikawa is a large inland region of Hokkaido that includes Asahikawa, Furano, Biei and gateways to Daisetsuzan National Park. It is also the name of Kamikawa town, where Sounkyo Onsen is located. This page helps you choose between the region's sightseeing areas; use the town guide below if Sounkyo is your destination.
Towns near Horokanai
Read next
More towns in Kamikawa
Other regions: Ishikari · Sorachi · Shiribeshi · Iburi · Hidaka · Oshima · Hiyama · Rumoi · Soya · Okhotsk · Tokachi · Kushiro · Nemuro