15:44 JST, May 16, 2024
Visitors admire the natural phenomenon known as the ‘Hachimantai Dragon Eye’ at Kagaminuma Pond, located near the summit of the 1,613-meter-high Hachimantai Mountain, which straddles the border of Iwate and Akita prefectures. When the snow at the edge of the 50-meter-wide pond begins to melt, it forms a ring around the remaining mass in the center, like an iris around a pupil. On clear days the water takes on the blue color of the sky, as if a huge dragon’s eye has opened.
A 47-year-old office worker from Tokyo who visited on Tuesday said: “I was born in the year of the dragon, so I wanted to come this year. I was very happy to see the mysterious dragon blue on a day without clouds and without wind.”