Village Shiribeshi Subprefecture
Kamoenai 神恵内村
かもえないむら
Kamoenai is a fishing village of about 700 people. It sits on the west coast of the Shakotan Peninsula, between steep volcanic mountains and the Sea of Japan.12 It grew rich on herring. Today it is known for summer sea urchin, a dragon legend and a wild, rocky shore. Since 2020 it has also been studied as a possible site for disposing of high-level nuclear waste.345
- Population (2020 Census)
- 870
- Area
- 147.79 km²
- District
- Furuu District (古宇郡)
- Official website
- www.vill.kamoenai.hokkaido.jp
Known for
- Sea urchin and seafood. Sea urchin is in season June–August, sold fresh without alum. Scallops are in season June–September, spear squid April–June, and cod with milt (tachi) December–February.14151617
- Herring heritage. In 1912 the Furuu fishery landed 62,000 koku of herring, the most in Hokkaido.13 The roadside station is named after "Ōsukōi", the chant rowers used on the herring boats. Shrine mikoshi bearers still use it.3
- Shakotan coastline. The coast lies in Niseko-Shakotan-Otaru Kaigan Quasi-National Park (ニセコ積丹小樽海岸国定公園).18 Its landmarks are Cape Ryūjin (竜神岬), the holed rock Mado-iwa (窓岩) and the seaside shrine Sai-no-Kawara (西の河原).192021
- Dragon legend. A dragon god is said to have lived in Tōmaru Pond (当丸沼) and risen to heaven from Cape Ryūjin.4
- Seaside onsen. Kamoenai Ryūjin Onsen opened in 2025. The older Sannai Nukumori Onsen looks out on the sunset.2223
- One of Hokkaido's smallest villages. It has the second-smallest population in Hokkaido.9
- Nuclear-waste literature survey. NUMO ran a desk-based study of the village from 2020, and published its report in 2024.5
Sights & activities
Nature & scenery
- Cape Ryūjin. On Route 229; best at sunset.19
- Mado-iwa. A rock with a hole through it, about 20 minutes' drive from the center toward Shakotan.20
- Sai-no-Kawara. A windswept pebble shore on Jūbō Cape with stacked stones and shipwreck debris.48
- Naka-no-taki (中の滝). A roadside waterfall in Akaishi.51
- Kamoenai 2000-nen no Mori Park. On Tōmaru Pass (road 998), around Tōmaru Pond. It has walking trails and is open about June–October.52
Onsen
- Kamoenai Ryūjin Onsen (かもえない竜神温泉). 2484 Ōaza Kamoenai-mura.53
- Sea views toward Cape Ryūjin, a sauna and a cold plunge.
- Sodium chloride spring from the well of the old Onsen Ryūjinsō.
- Hours: 11:00–20:00 (April–October), 12:00–20:00 (November–March). Closed Mondays.
- Entry: adults ¥700, children ¥300.53
- Sannai Nukumori Onsen (珊内ぬくもり温泉). 57-29 Ōaza Sannai-mura.23
Museums & heritage
- Dōshinkan. Open May–October, 10:00–16:00. Closed Tuesdays. Adults ¥400.49
- Local History Museum. Group visits by arrangement (0135-76-5020).50
Outdoor & seasonal activities
- 998 Park Golf Course. 18 holes, open 11:00–17:00.55
- Youth Travel Village campground. Opened in 1972 as Hokkaido's first designated youth travel village.4156 Closed indefinitely while a renewal is planned.56
- Shore fishing. Okada Shoten sells bait. Catches include hokke, spear squid and rockfish.57
Food experiences
- Seafood BBQ sets. Okada Shoten sells them by reservation, ¥2,000 per person, delivered within the village.57
Roadside stations (Michi-no-Eki)
Osukoi! Kamoenai (道の駅オスコイ!かもえない)
- Location: 292-1 Ōmori, Ōaza Akaishi-mura, on National Route 229, facing the Sea of Japan and north of the village center.4158 Shiokaze Line bus stop "Michi-no-Eki Kamoenai".59
- Hours: Shop and information desk 9:00–17:00. Closed 31 December–3 January. Toilets are open 24 hours.341 Stamps can only be collected during opening hours.41 (As of September 2026 — check before visiting.)
- Shops & products:
- Food:
- Facilities:
- Notes:
Getting there & around
- Car.
- Rail. There is no railway in the village. The nearest station is Kozawa on the JR Hakodate Main Line; the Iwanai Line closed in 1985.7
- Bus.
- Chuo Bus ended its Kamoenai Line on 30 September 2024.59
- Since then, the Shiokaze Line (しおかぜライン) has run from Iwanai Terminal via Tomari to Kawashira. Weekdays have five runs.59
- Fare from Iwanai Terminal to the village office: ¥880.59
- Connect at Iwanai with the Kōsoku Iwanai-gō highway bus from Sapporo, which takes about 2.5 hours.59
- Air. New Chitose Airport is about 50 minutes from Sapporo.64
Practical tips
- When to go. June–September, for sea urchin, scallops and the Okiage Festival. In winter, come for cod hot pot and Kannori laver.14411744
- Seasonal closures. Dōshinkan and 2000-nen no Mori Park close in winter. The campground is shut.495256
- Lodging. The village's shopping and lodging page lists a single inn, Minshuku Kinoe-sō (民宿きのえ荘), so book ahead.66 The inn looks out on the sunset.43
- Weather. Winter westerly winds are strong.34
- Wildlife. Brown bears have been seen near the commerce association office in the village. Don't leave garbage out.67
- Phones. Some mobile networks have no coverage in parts of Sannai.7
More about Kamoenai
At a glance
| Field | Details |
|---|---|
| Type | Village (村)6 |
| Subprefecture | Shiribeshi (後志総合振興局) |
| District | Furuu District (古宇郡). Kamoenai shares the district with Tomari.7 |
| Population | 870 in the 2020 Census (400 men, 470 women, 401 households). That was 13.3% fewer than in 2015.8 The preliminary 2025 Census count is 803, down 7.7%. That ranks it 178th of Hokkaido's 179 municipalities; only Otoineppu is smaller.9 Resident register: 703 on 31 August 2026.2 The village website gives 433 households.10 |
| Area | 147.79 km² (GSI, 1 April 2026; the 2020 Census uses the same figure).118 The village plan gives 147.80 km², and English Wikipedia shows an older 147.71 km².112 National forest covers 86% of the land.1 |
| Density | About 4.8 people/km² in August 2026 (resident register ÷ GSI area). The 2020 Census figure was 5.9/km².8 |
| Municipal history | 1751: Okada Yasoemon (岡田弥三右衛門), a merchant from Ōmi, opens a trading post here. 1869: the area becomes part of Furuu District. 1872: first village headman (戸長). 1880: headman offices open at Kamoenai and Sannai. 1888: the two offices merge. 1 April 1906: Kamoenai becomes a second-class village (二級町村) that includes Akaishi and Sannai.1137 It has had no mergers since. |
| Neighboring municipalities | Shakotan (northeast), Furubira (east), Tomari (south)1 |
| Symbols | Tree: Sakhalin fir (トド松). Fish: salmon (サケ). Both were adopted on 3 November 1982.613 The emblem shows the Furuu River and the harbor, with a seagull at the center.6 No village flower or bird was found. |
| Mascot | Dragon-ta (どらごん太), a dragon chosen in 1992. His official title is "tourism section chief". His partner Tatsu-hime (たつ姫) was named by public contest in 2012.4 |
| Official website | https://www.vill.kamoenai.hokkaido.jp/ (Japanese) |
Name origin
- Village explanation. The name comes from the Ainu Kamuy-nay, "beautiful stream of the gods". The village says it describes a mysterious stream in terrain too steep for people to approach.6
- Hokkaido Government list. The Ainu place-name list gives kamuy-nay, "god + river", with a certainty grade of B. It says the area was once called Furuu (フルウ). One reading in the list says the Nagaya-no-sawa stream (長屋の沢), which flows into town from the north, was probably the original Kamuy-nay. The name later spread to the whole area. The "god" may have been the bear.24
- Other Ainu names:
History
- Prehistory. Kannon Cave (観音洞窟) has been excavated several times. Doshisha University found prehistoric remains there in 1959. The Otaru Museum dug in 1968. Sapporo University found Satsumon-period remains in 1984.13
- Early herring fishing and the trading post. Japanese Wikipedia says Wajin (ethnic Japanese) fishermen were catching herring here by 1594.7 In 1751 Okada Yasoemon opened the Furuu trading post (basho), and large-scale development began. By the Meiji and Taisho eras, "Furuu basho" was known across Japan.1 Itsukushima Shrine (厳島神社) marked its 200th anniversary in 1952.13
- Meiji period. A headman and the Furuu Hospital were set up in 1872.27 Kamoenai became a second-class village in 1906, with 3,917 residents.13
- Herring boom and bust. The village counted 5,171 people in 1913. The first census in 1920 found 4,357.13 Families borrowed to build fukuroma, stone-walled coves for holding herring.28 The herring had gone by the mid-1950s. Fishing turned to pollock, salmon, trout, hokke and squid.13
- Roads end the isolation. For most of its history the village depended on sea transport. Road links came step by step:127
- 1922: road to Moiwa in Tomari.
- 1936: bus service to Iwanai.
- 1967: road over Tōmaru Pass to Furubira.
- 1996: National Route 229 through to Shakotan.
- Disasters. A tsunami in August 1940 swept away more than ten boats. The 1993 Hokkaido Nansei-oki earthquake tsunami killed two villagers.13
- Nuclear power and tourism. The village council gave conditional approval to a nuclear power plant in 1977. The plant was built in neighboring Tomari.13 Tourism facilities were built from the 1970s on:
- Recent events.
Geography & climate
- Shape and coast. The village runs 39.27 km north–south and 13.73 km east–west.1 The coastline is 30.8 km by the subprefecture's count, or about 39 km by the village's plan.321
- Terrain. The eastern mountains belong to the Shakotan volcanic group. Mount Ponneanchishi (ポンネアンチシ山) reaches 1,145 m and Mount Sannai 1,091 m.1 Terraces end in sea cliffs about 50 m high. The only flatland is the lower Furuu River (古宇川), where the village center stands.1
- Settlements. There are four: Kamoenai, Akaishi (赤石), Sannai and Kawashira.1
- Tōmaru area. Mount Tōmaru (799.5 m) is on the Furubira border. Tōmaru Pond lies on its western side.26
- Park. Niseko-Shakotan-Otaru Kaigan Quasi-National Park was designated on 24 July 1963.18
- Climate. 1991–2020 normals at the Kamoenai weather station:33
- Mean temperature: 9.1°C for the year, −2.3°C in January and 21.4°C in August.
- Precipitation: 1,257.6 mm a year, heaviest July–October.
- Records: high 33.6°C (12 August 2026), low −13.8°C (February 2019), strongest gust 34.2 m/s from the west.34
- Snow is not measured at the station. Japanese Wikipedia calls Kamoenai one of Hokkaido's mildest places in winter.7
Economy & industry
- Fisheries. Fishing is the main industry. The Furuu District Fisheries Cooperative (古宇郡漁協), which also covers Tomari, has a branch here.732 In 2024 the village landed 585 t worth ¥272.5 million:32
- Main catches by weight: hokke 226 t, scallops 65 t.
- Most valuable: sea cucumber (¥46.3 million from 8 t) and Kitamurasaki sea urchin (¥42.0 million from 3 t).
- Seaweed beds and aquaculture.
- The Moba LAND project, paid for by corporate sponsors, has restored about 1.5 ha of kelp beds. The kelp had been lost to isoyake (coastal seaweed loss).35
- In 2019 the village tested IoT-monitored land tanks for sea urchin and sea cucumber with Fujitsu. The land-based aquaculture project won an encouragement prize in the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications' ICT Regional Revitalization Awards 2020.3637
- Winter sea urchin: from September–October, urchins are held in harbor cages and fed off-grade Chinese cabbage (hakusai) and pumpkin from Iwamizawa. Shipments run December–February; 783.4 kg was shipped, against a 750 kg target (as of September 2024).38
- Scallops have suffered die-offs. The FY2023 catch was 102.2 t, against a 170 t target.38
- Tourism. Hokkaido counted 219,400 visitors in FY2025, up from 195,200. Only 6,000 stayed overnight.39 Furusato nozei gifts brought in ¥4.07 million (reported September 2024), against a ¥50 million target.38
- Population and finances. In 2015, 45.6% of residents were 65 or older.1 The village's fiscal strength index is among the lowest in Hokkaido: 0.10 in FY2019.1
- NUMO survey. NUMO studied the whole village and the seabed out to about 15 km. Its November 2024 report excluded everything within 15 km of the Shakotan-dake volcano (積丹岳); the report notes that this boundary is not exact. Only the rest can go forward as a candidate for the next stage, the preliminary investigation (概要調査). On land, that leaves the village's far south.40 NUMO's page shows the most recent event as a local dialogue forum on 16 May 2025. It shows no move to the next stage.5
Local specialties
| Specialty | Category | Details & where to get it |
|---|---|---|
| Sea urchin (うに) | Seafood | June–August.14 The roadside station sells salt-water-packed and salt-cured (amazuke) urchin in summer.3 |
| Live scallops (活ホタテ) | Seafood | Firm adductors from rough Sea of Japan water; season June–September.15 At the roadside station you net your own from the tank.341 |
| Hokke (Atka mackerel) | Seafood | Dried and grilled over charcoal. Also made into izushi (fermented with rice) and kirikomi (salt-cured with its innards). Season July–December.42 |
| Hokke burger | Local dish | Fish burger with a sweet sauce, sold at the roadside station on some weekends and holidays.41 |
| Dried sea cucumber "Miyahi" (宮比) | Seafood / gift | Made by Kit Blue (キットブルー). Special prize at the Taberu Japan Bimi Awards 2021.43 |
| Kannori (神海苔) | Seaweed | Wild rock laver, hand-picked in late January–February. In the 2025 season it went on sale in-store only at Okada Shoten from 1 February, ¥3,300 a box.44 |
| Shakotan Glacé (積丹グラッセ) | Preserved food | Wild funori seaweed and scallop mantle, simmered with ginger. Sold at Okada Shoten and the roadside station.45 |
| Fisherwomen's products | Processed seafood | Made by the fisheries co-op women's group: split hokke, rice-bran hokke, flounder, salmon flakes, and salmon roe in soy sauce.4338 |
| Inabaya (稲葉屋) sweets | Confectionery | About 80 years in business, with no additives.43 The "Dragon-ta snacks" (a scallop monaka with white gyūhi for the adductor, dorayaki and miso buns) are sold both here and at the roadside station.41 |
| Shōei-zushi (勝栄鮨) | Restaurant | Sushi shop that the village calls famous nationwide. Meal vouchers are furusato nozei gifts.43 |
Culture & festivals
| Event | When | Highlights |
|---|---|---|
| Kamoenai Okiage Festival (かもえない沖揚げまつり) | Early July (47th: 6 July 2025) | A festival built around the village's sea and fishing.146 First held in 1972 and revived in 1979.13 In 2025, parking was at the hilltop sports ground, with a shuttle from 8:00.47 |
| Sai-no-Kawara Jizō Festival (西の河原地蔵尊大祭) | 24 June | Yearly festival at the shrine for the drowned.48 |
| Drone Soccer Kamoenai Cup (ドローンサッカー大会神恵内カップ) | October (4th: 4 October 2026) | Twelve teams at the Youth Sports Center in the Youth Travel Village grounds; free to watch.10 |
- Performing arts. The village keeps up three traditions: Matsumae Kagura (sacred dance), Ryūjin Nishinba Okiage Ondo (a herring-fishing work song) and Ryūjin Taiko drumming.1
- Religious sites. Itsukushima Shrine was rebuilt in 1910 after a fire.13 The Sai-no-Kawara Jizō hall holds about 300 stone Jizō statues. It is cared for by the Sōtō Zen temple Gesshū-ji (月舟寺).48
- Dōshinkan (童心館). The Japan Folk Toy Museum opened in 1998 in the former Sannai school. It has about 4,500 folk toys, 1,000 kites and 300 Hokkaido crafts.49
- Local History Museum. Opened in 1987 in a building modeled on a herring-fishery bunkhouse. It holds about 400 items and is open to groups only.50
Ainu heritage
Little is documented, and there is no Ainu cultural facility in the village. The Ainu legacy lives on mainly in place names: Kamoenai, Kawashira, Sannai and Tōmaru.2425 Japanese Wikipedia says Sai-no-Kawara was once called Kamuy mintar, "where the gods play".48 Kannon Cave has yielded Satsumon-period remains, from the culture that preceded the Ainu.13 The village museum has a replica of the cave and shows finds from it.50
Sister & friendship cities
- Huilong Village (回龍村), Dalian, China. A friendship memorandum was signed on 23 October 1997, followed by exchange visits. Whether the tie is still active could not be confirmed.13
- No domestic sister city was found.
Notable people
Sources
Numbers in the text link to these sources. Figures as of 23 September 2026
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