To use this site, please disable the ad blocking feature and reload the page.
This website uses cookies to collect information about your visit for purposes such as showing you personalized ads and content, and analyzing our website traffic. By clicking “Accept all,” you will allow the use of these cookies.
Users accessing this site from EEA countries and UK are unable to view this site without your consent. We apologize for any inconvenience caused.
The Yomiuri Shimbun The cityscape of Obama, Fukui Prefecture, is seen from the Angel Line. At twilight, the entire area has a faint rosy hue.
By Haruka Hamasaki / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer
11:30 JST, August 10, 2024
OBAMA, Fukui — The Sea of Japan, which Fukui Prefecture faces, is often thought of as a rough sea. However, in Obama Bay — in the southern part of the prefecture — the sea is almost wavelessly calm.
I feel a sense of comfort and familiarity around Obama Bay perhaps because its calmness reminds me of the tranquil waters of the Seto Inland Sea by my hometown in Hiroshima Prefecture.
The Angel Line is a scenic drive with a panoramic view of Obama Bay and Wakasa Bay beyond. The road leads to Mt. Kusuyagadake (619 meters high) on the Uchitomi Peninsula.
The prefecture also has another tourist road, the Rainbow Line, which leads to a park with a panoramic view of Mikatagoko (a group of five lakes). Both started out as toll roads but now free to use.
One day in June, I went for a drive along the Angel Line.
Is that a raccoon?
The Angel Line’s steep slopes and many curves run through the woods. As I continued my trip, I gradually got a strong feeling that I was climbing a mountain.
From time to time, a gap opened in the woods, revealing a view of the peninsula, the ocean and villages. The buildings of the city in the distance became smaller and smaller as I drove on.
“Wow!” I shouted.
A small animal that looked like a raccoon suddenly darted across the road.
After I passed the No. 2 parking lot on the way to the summit, I spotted a monkey sitting on the right side of the road staring at me.
As I drove further, the hills became even steeper. The car’s engine buzzed as if it were exerting itself, while in the opposite lane cars came down the hill one by one. Kyoto, Shiga, Toyota … Most of them bore license plates from places outside Fukui Prefecture, which made me once again realize that the road is a tremendous driving course.
About 15 minutes after passing the No. 2 parking lot, I reached the No. 1 parking lot — the end of the line.
The Yomiuri Shimbun Wakasa Bay is tinged with the evening glow.
The view from the observatory atop Mt. Kusuyagadake, a mountain enclosed by the sea, the peninsula and the mountains, was a picturesque panorama of blues and greens.
Spread out before my eyes was the cityscape of Obama, Obama Bay and Wakasa Bay. As I shifted focus from place to place, the Tsunegami Peninsula came into view, accompanied by the outline of Cape Echizen in the distance.
I took a deep breath as a pleasant breeze blew over me and then looked back at the scenery. I saw the setting sun dyeing Wakasa Bay red. In fact, the entire city was tinged faintly with a reddish hue at twilight, creating a picturesque scene.
Later, I drove down the steep road, descending slowly. As I did, I felt someone’s gaze on me. Looking around, I found two deer looking at me with glittering eyes. I smiled softly at them as if to say good evening and then continued the drive back home.
The sea and the sky were becoming a shade of ultramarine blue. And Obama Bay remained calm as always.
Deity’s huge sacred rock
A huge rock decorated with a sacred straw rope stands out when you drive along the Angel Line. It’s called “Okami Ishi” (Great deity rock).
The Yomiuri Shimbun Okami Ishi is decorated with a sacred straw rope.
The rock is an object of worship for Kusuya Shrine at the foot of Mt. Kusuyagadake. Legend has it that the shrine’s deity once sat on the rock.
Mt. Kusuyagadake is said to be a sacred mountain and probably got its name from the shrine.
Why not pray to the sacred rock to keep your drive safe?
Angel Line and Rainbow Line
The Angel Line is approximately 10 kilometers long, closed overnight — from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. — and during the winter season — from December to March. The road was originally opened in 1972 as a toll road but, since 2002, has been a free-to-use public road. “Angel Line” is the nickname chosen by the public. It is officially called the “Tomari-Obama Station Route.” The “Rainbow Line” is the nickname for the “Mikatagoko Rainbow Line Route.”
