Kosode coast [小袖海岸]

Kosode coast is located about 8 km east-southeast of Kuji city.
It is in the north part of Sanriku coast.

Along the coast, there are various places of rocks, cliffs and sea caves.

There is a Kosode village with small fishing port.
In this village, there are about 20 ama (海女).

Ama is the woman fishing diver, and she dives for shells or sea urchins near the coast as a work.
Men went out fishing to the ocean, and the wives worked as ama for supplementary income.

In Japan, there are ten villages that ama are working.
The best known ama in Japan is the ama for pearl in Shima Peninsula in Mie Prefecture.

Ama in Kosode village is called as "The northern limit of Ama".
The catchphrase was from the title of radio drama in 1959 which introduced the ama in this village.

In fact, ama in Kosode are the northernmost ones with fishing rights.

In 2013, a comedy drama "Ama-chan" was broadcast nationwide for half a year.
This drama set in this village became big hits and increased the popularity of ama in Kosode.
("-chan" is a Japanese suffix word for loveliness.)

A high school girl becomes ama, then she becomes an idol of ama.
That is the story of the drama.
And, the story includes the element of recovery from the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011.

Therefore, you will find various mascot characters of "Ama-chan" around Kuji city.

Recently, according to the protection of fishery resources around the area, the season for the fishing by ama is limited.
So there are few chance of real fishing.

Tsurigane-dou rock (つりがね洞)

Tsurigane-dou is a big rock by the coast.
It is located about 6 km east-southeast of Kuji city, and is about 2 km northwest of Kosode village.

The rock has a hole.
A small rock like a temple bell ("Tsurigane" in Japanese) had ever hung down in the hole.
The name of the rock is from that, but the small rock had been lost by the tsunami in 1896.

And, the hole became a little bigger by the tsunami of the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011.

For three weeks around summer solstice in June, we can see the sunrise through the hole.

Kosode Ama Center (小袖海女センター)

It is a small museum introducing ama in Kosode village.
It is located at the east end of the fishing port.
There are a museum floor about ama and a restaurant and a souvenir shop in a building.

On Sunday and Saturday from July to September, real ama demonstrate the fishing by diving into the inlet (about 8 meters deep) in front of the museum.
(The charge is 500 yen. At 11:00 and 13:00)

The ama catch a lot of sea urchins in a short time.
You can see the speedy work by ama in front of you.

The landed sea urchins are sold soon there.
The ama cut the sea urchins skillfully then pick up the yellow edible part.
And some other urchins are broiled over charcoal.

In this time, some high school girls learning ama skill also join and support the ama.

Of course, these are the goods that the ama earn for the life.
Please buy and taste the fresh sea urchins which were living in the sea until several miuutes before.

How to get here

To Kuji station :
From Miyako, about 1 hour and 30-40 minutes by Sanriku Railaway.
From Hachinohe (a station of Tohoku Shinkansen), about 1 hour and 45 minutes by JR Hachinohe Line.

From Kuji station, about 30 minutes to Kosode-Kaigan stop by route bus.
It is operated only a few times a day.
But, during the period that the demonstration is held, special buses are operated.

Around Tsurigane-do, the bus doesn't stop.
To visit there, you must walk from Kosode village, or use a car.

Sanriku Railway

Other Tourist Attractions in Sanriku Coast

Northern Part

Southern Part

Return to Sanriku Coast Return to Iwate Prefecture Return to Tohoku Region