[Aomori Prefecture] The deep blue pond "Aoike" hidden in the mysterious Shirakami Forest

The Shirakami Mountains, which straddle Aomori and Akita prefectures, are one of Japan's most representative natural world heritage sites, along with Yakushima. The "Twelve Lakes" are nestled in the forests of Shirakami. There are literally twelve large and small lakes and ponds scattered throughout the forest, and one of them, the "Aoike" Pond, is a spot that can be said to be the symbol of the Shirakami Mountains. By the way, this is the Aoike Pond in Shirakami, which is different from the "Shirogane Blue Pond" in Biei, Hokkaido. The Aoike Pond in Biei is an artificial lake, but this one is natural. The Aoike Pond, which was born from the underground waters of Shirakami, is transparent all the way to the bottom of the 9m pond, and fallen trees lie there without rotting. If Hokkaido's Blue Pond is milky blue, this one is azure blue. The blue of the pond is most brilliant around 10-11am. It is said that the best time to see it is when the new leaves are in bloom. The Blue Pond is actually very small, and you can see it from the observation wooden deck. If you climb the stairs on the side, you can look down from a little higher. Access from the parking lot is good, and it takes about 10 minutes on a relatively flat road. Personally, I also highly recommend the spring pond beyond, so I hope you'll stretch your legs and take a walk through the forest. #tripdomestictravel #aomoriprefecture #spectacularview #springwater #worldheritagesite