Hokkaido Places
Mukawa (むかわ町), April 2026

Town Iburi Subprefecture

Mukawa むかわ町

むかわちょう

Mukawa is a long, narrow town that follows the Mu River (鵡川) from the Pacific coast of eastern Iburi up to the forested edge of the Hidaka Mountains. Its coastal district is famous for true shishamo (柳葉魚). Its inland Hobetsu district produced Kamuysaurus japonicus ("Mukawa-ryū"), which the town calls the largest complete dinosaur skeleton found in Japan. It went on show in a new museum hall in April 2026.1234

Population (2020 Census)
7,651
Area
711.36 km²
District
Yūfutsu District (勇払郡)
Official website
www.town.mukawa.lg.jp

Known for

  • Kamuysaurus japonicus ("Mukawa-ryū", むかわ竜): a hadrosaur about 8 m long and about 72 million years old. A local fossil hunter, Horita Yoshiyuki (堀田良幸), found the first bones in Hobetsu in 2003. The town calls it the largest complete dinosaur skeleton found in Japan. It was named as a new genus and species in Scientific Reports in September 2019.31415
  • Hobetsu Dinosaur Museum (むかわ町穂別恐竜博物館): it reopened on 25 April 2026 with a new Dinosaur Hall and passed 50,000 visitors on 26 July 2026.4 The Iburi Subprefecture counts "Mukawa-ryū" among its "Five Great Heritages" (いぶり五大遺産).16
  • Mukawa shishamo (鵡川ししゃも): true shishamo (Spirinchus lanceolatus) are found only along part of Hokkaido's Pacific coast.12 "Mukawa Shishamo" became a regional collective trademark in 2006. Stocks have collapsed: normal fishing last took place in the 2022 season, and in 2026 only a small trial catch was allowed.1718
  • Hobetsu melon (ほべつメロン): a summer melon from the inland district, trademarked in 2007. The town has called it one of its two main furusato-nozei gifts.111920
  • Marine fossils: Hobetsu's Late Cretaceous marine rocks have also yielded the plesiosaur Hobetsu Araki-ryū ("Hoppy"), mosasaurs and sea turtles. The town museum was founded in 1982 to keep the plesiosaur locally.2122
  • Mukawa Onsen Shiki no Yakata (むかわ温泉四季の館): a Michi-no-Eki on National Route 235 with a hot spring, hotel, pool and gym.23
  • Ainu culture: the Mukawa Ainu Culture Preservation Society is one of the recognized keepers of Ainu traditional dance, an Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property. It also performs the Shishamo Kamuy-nomi, a prayer for a good catch.2224
  • Recovery from the 2018 earthquake: the Hokkaido Eastern Iburi Earthquake reached intensity 6-upper in Mukawa. The town has since pursued "creative reconstruction" (創造的復興), with the dinosaur as one of its symbols.2526

Sights & activities

Museums & heritage

  • Hobetsu Dinosaur Museum (むかわ町穂別恐竜博物館), Hobetsu 80-6: reopened on 25 April 2026 in two buildings. The new Dinosaur Hall (恐竜館) was built in 2026. The Marine Fossil Hall (海洋化石館) is the original museum building from 1982.421
    • Dinosaur Hall: a full replica of Kamuysaurus stands above the real skeleton, which is displayed under the floor. There is also a replica of "Scotty", the world's largest Tyrannosaurus rex (13 m), and a life model of the giant crocodilian Deinosuchus.76
    • Marine Fossil Hall: the plesiosaur Hobetsu Araki-ryū (8 m), the mosasaur Phosphorosaurus ponpetelegans, the sea turtle Mesodermochelys, ammonites, giant Inoceramus clams and Cenozoic whale fossils.7715
    • Hours and fees: 9:30–17:00 (last entry 16:30). Closed on Mondays, the day after public holidays and at New Year. Tickets are ¥600 for adults and ¥300 for primary and junior-high pupils; one ticket covers both halls. Year passes cost ¥1,500 and ¥800.78
  • Hobetsu fossil-spot walk: Hobetsu's main street is decorated with fossil and dinosaur features. They include the roughly 900-m "Road of Evolution" lined with metasequoia trees, a relief wall in the park on the old Hobetsu Station site, Hoppy Park's iron dinosaurs and a giant ammonite sculpture.79
  • Nakamura Memorial Hall (中村記念館): the Taishō-era house (1921–24) of the Hobetsu pioneer Nakamura Heihachirō, with a Japanese main house and a two-storey clapboard Western wing. It was registered as a Tangible Cultural Property in 2001 and moved next to the museum in 2004. Entry is free, and it opens from the third Saturday in April to 31 August on museum opening days.38 It is not the same place as Nakamura Memorial Park, the site of the Nisanai Chashi.28
  • Former Tomiuchi Station (旧富内駅), Hobetsu Tomiuchi 81-1: the 1923 station building of the old Tomiuchi Line. The station house, its stone platform and 380 m of track, which includes Belgian-made rails, are registered Tangible Cultural Properties.22 Station fittings were used in the film Poppoya (鉄道員).11
  • Mukawa Moritsuchi burial mounds (鵡川盛土墳墓群), Shiomi 189-17: a Hokkaido Historic Site on a terrace above the Mu River.22
  • Mukawa Tairyō Jizō-son (鵡川大漁地蔵尊), Miyato 74: the Jizō hall and the Hachiōji Sennin Dōshin memorial.2236
  • Kaitakushi triangulation monument: at the car-park entrance of the Taura baseball ground. It was unveiled on 18 November 2018 and marks the 1873 Mukawa base point.37

Nature & scenery

  • Hobetsu Dōmin no Mori (ほべつ道民の森), Hobetsu 108-2: a 12-ha forest park with about 12,000 azaleas, a cherry avenue and more than 3 km of paths. An open-air "museum" among the trees has plesiosaur and ammonite sculptures.70 A giant Hoppy-shaped play structure in the azalea garden doubles as a lookout.79
  • Hobetsu Dam (穂別ダム): on National Route 274 between Hobetsu Campground and Fukuyama. The 506-m Hobetsu Bridge crosses the reservoir and looks toward Mt. Yūbari.50
  • Tanpopo Park (たんぽぽ公園), Ōhara: dandelions along the running course in late April and May. It is about 40 minutes by car from the museum.69
  • Mu River estuary and Shiomi coast: the river mouth where the shishamo run, with tidal flats used by migratory birds.2730 In autumn, look for the shishamo drying blinds in town.58

Onsen

  • Mukawa Onsen "Shiki no Yu" (むかわ温泉四季の湯): at the Michi-no-Eki. A strong sodium-chloride spring with sauna and outdoor bath; see the Michi-no-Eki section below.2380
  • Jukai Onsen Hobetsu (樹海温泉ほべつ), Hobetsu 79-5: a new "bathing café" opposite the museum, with fossil and dinosaur-themed interiors. The water is a calcium-sodium chloride cold mineral spring (冷鉱泉). There is a large bath, a dry sauna and a cold plunge.
    • Baths: 13:00–21:00 (last entry 20:30).
    • Restaurant: 11:00–14:00 and 17:00–21:00 (last order 20:00).
    • Closed: Mondays, or the next day when Monday is a holiday.
    • Fees: adults ¥520, primary pupils ¥300.81
    • It replaced Jukai Onsen Hakua, which closed on 31 March 2026.48

Outdoor & seasonal activities

  • Hobetsu Campground (穂別キャンプ場), Hobetsu Inasato 553:
    • Season: 1 May–25 October in 2026. Check-in 13:00–17:00, check-out by 11:00.
    • Accommodation: bungalows for 4–16 people (¥3,000–9,000) and two tree houses (¥4,500).
    • Sites: auto sites (¥2,500), trial dog sites and a wood-deck site (¥3,500), rider sites (¥600), and unreserved tent sites (¥600–1,200 per tent). Every camper also pays a ¥200 hygiene fee.
    • Booking: reserved sites are booked on the "Nap" booking site.
    • Tax: since April 2026, bungalow and tree-house guests also pay Hokkaido's accommodation tax (¥100 per person per night below ¥20,000).82
  • Park golf: Hobetsu Fureai Park Golf Course has 27 holes over three courses named after haskap, azalea and maple, with views of Mt. Yūbari. It is open 29 April to mid-November, 8:30–18:00. Visitors pay ¥500 a day.83 The town also lists the Undō Kōen and Hōshin courses and Hobetsu Ski Area among its tourist facilities.84

Food experiences

  • Shishamo season (October–November): see the drying blinds outside the processors and try seasonal shishamo sushi and set meals (see "Local specialties").5864
  • Popponta Ichiba: a farm and fishery direct-sales shop with morning-picked vegetables and local processed goods.2358
  • ONSEN Gastronomy Walking: an 8-km walk from Mukawa Station to the Michi-no-Eki, with food stops and a soak at the end. It was held on 25 October 2025 (¥4,000).85

Roadside stations (Michi-no-Eki)

Mukawa Shiki no Yakata (道の駅むかわ四季の館)

  • Location: Miyuki 3-3-1 (美幸3丁目3-1), Mukawa, on National Route 235. Tel. 0145-42-4171.23 The station was registered on 8 August 2003, and the Hidaka Expressway's Mukawa IC opened two days later, on 10 August.2342 Highway buses from Sapporo stop at "Shiki no Yakata-mae".49 Mapcode 455 261 556.23
  • Hours (as of September 2026 — check before visiting):
    • Station: 8:00–22:00.
    • Shop: 8:00–21:00 (these hours since 14 July 2025).86
    • Restaurant: 11:00–14:30 and 17:00–19:50 (last order).
    • Hot spring: 10:00–22:00.
    • Café: 11:00–16:30 (last order).
    • Closures: no regular closing day, but the building closes twice a year for maintenance.23
    • Conflicting hours: the tourism association and the operator's own site list the restaurant as 11:00–21:00 (last order 20:00), and the association says the restaurant and café close on Mondays. The operator's site gives the café as 11:00–17:30, and the association as 11:00–17:00 (last order 16:30).645887
  • Shops & products:
    • Saison de Mukawa (物産館「セゾンdeむかわ」): the shop sells Mukawa vegetables, farm and livestock products, processed foods and sweets.2367 Its own products include shishamo soy sauce and Mukawa shishamo kelp rolls.67 The operator says almost every Mukawa souvenir can be bought here.88
    • Machi Gacha: capsule-toy machines with the "Machi Gacha" souvenirs are also installed here.61
  • Food:
    • Tanpopo (お食事処たんぽぽ): fresh seafood and light meals, with shishamo dishes in season. The hokki-fry set is its best-known dish.2364
    • Coffee Shop Shiki (コーヒーショップ四季): an original beef curry, soft-serve ice cream and soft-serve sundaes.58
    • Hotel Shiki no Kaze (ホテル四季の風): the attached hotel serves a shishamo breakfast with Mukawa Nanatsuboshi rice.65
  • Facilities:
    • Parking: 200 cars and 3 large vehicles.23 Japanese Wikipedia lists 4 large-vehicle and 2 accessible spaces.41
    • Toilets: some are open 24 hours, including 1 of 3 men's stalls, 2 of 4 urinals, 2 of 5 women's stalls and the accessible toilet.87 There are heated bidet seats, an ostomate facility and a diaper-changing table.23
    • Rest area: a free rest area with vending machines is open 24 hours, and a security guard is on duty at night.87
    • EV charging: one charger in the car park. It came back into service on 15 December 2025 after a fault.8789
    • Hot spring: Mukawa Onsen "Shiki no Yu" has a sauna and outdoor bath.23 Day entry is ¥520 for adults and ¥210 for primary pupils; pre-schoolers are free. The ticket also covers the heated pool and gym, and a towel set costs ¥300.80 The water is a strong sodium-chloride spring at 28.8 °C. It is heated, and partly circulated and chlorinated.4180
    • Library: the Manabi Land library room is open 13:00–20:00 and closed on Mondays. It holds 31,400 books.75
    • Hall and meeting rooms: the Tanpopo Hall seats 300–500, and there are meeting rooms.75
    • Other: Wi-Fi; credit cards and other cashless payment; information terminals for road, tourism and medical information.2387
  • Notes:
    • History: the hot spring was struck in 1993, and Shiki no Yakata opened on 27 April 1997. The hotel opened on 1 April 2005.41
    • Registration: registered as a Michi-no-Eki on 8 August 2003, Hokkaido registration No. 80. The station stamp can be pressed during opening hours.23
    • Nearby: Popponta Ichiba farm shop (Matsukaze 3-1, 10:00–17:00).23

Getting there & around

  • Rail: Mukawa Station (鵡川駅, Suehiro 2-1) is the terminus of the JR Hidaka Line.39 Trains from Tomakomai take about 30 minutes, and the fare is ¥750.4978 From Sapporo, take a limited express (Hokuto or Suzuran) to Tomakomai, about 45 minutes, and change there; the whole trip takes about 1 hour 30 minutes.49 There is no station in Hobetsu. The JR Sekishō Line crosses the north of the town but has only signal stations there, with no passenger stops.11
  • Buses:
    • From Sapporo: the Pegasus (to Urakawa) and Hidaka-go highway buses stop at Shiki no Yakata-mae after about 1 hour 30 minutes.49
    • From New Chitose Airport: the Urakawa-go express reaches Mukawa Nōkyō-mae in about 1 hour 40 minutes.49
    • From Tomakomai Station: about 45 minutes by express bus.49
    • To Hobetsu: a reservation-only bus runs from Chitose and Minami-Chitose stations to Hobetsu Chūō. It takes about 80 minutes and costs ¥1,500. Book by 17:00 two weekdays ahead (tel. 0145-47-7180).78
    • Mukawa–Hobetsu: Dōnan Bus runs between the two districts (¥200). Change at Mukawa Ekimae for the train.78
  • Car:
    • Coast: the Hidaka Expressway's Mukawa IC serves the coastal district.42
    • Hobetsu: the Dōtō Expressway's Mukawa-Hobetsu IC is about 20 minutes from the museum.4378
    • Tomakomai-Higashi IC to Mukawa: about 40 minutes.49
    • New Chitose Airport to Mukawa: about 45 minutes.49
    • Sapporo to Hobetsu: about 2 hours, either via Chitose or via the Dōtō Expressway to Yūbari IC and Route 274.49
    • Chitose to the museum: about 1 hour.78
    • Tomakomai to the museum: about 1 hour 30 minutes.78
    • Obihiro to the museum: about 2 hours 30 minutes on Route 274.78
  • Main roads: National Route 235 along the coast and Route 274 (the Sekishō "Jukai Road") across the north.116
  • Nearest airport: New Chitose Airport. The town suggests allowing about 2 hours 30 minutes from Tokyo Haneda to the Mukawa district, and about 2 hours to Hobetsu.49

Practical tips

  • When to go:
    • Late April–May: the dinosaur museum's spring season, dandelions at Tanpopo Park and azaleas at Hobetsu Dōmin no Mori. The museum and the park are about 40 minutes apart by car.6970
    • Mid-July: Hobetsu melon harvest.20
    • September–November: most of the festivals, and shishamo season.71735963
  • Shishamo supply: there has been no normal fishing since the 2022 season, and the 2026 trial catch is limited. Shops still dry shishamo landed at other Pacific ports.1820 If Mukawa-caught fish matter to you, ask the shops before you go.
  • Two districts far apart: the Mukawa and Hobetsu town centers are about 38 km apart. Buses between them are infrequent, and the airport bus to Hobetsu must be booked ahead.4978
  • Museum visits: the museum is closed on Mondays and the day after public holidays. On busy days its car park fills and overflow lots are used.784
  • Information: the Mukawa Tourism Association (むかわ町観光協会) is at Miyuki 2-37, near the town office.90 Its website lists restaurants and shops with opening hours.64
  • Winter: the coast gets little snow, but inland Hobetsu has recorded −30.3 °C and averages about 451 cm of snowfall a year.5554 Drive with care on Route 274 and on mountain roads.
  • Wildlife: brown bears live in the forests. The town posts bear information and links to the "Higumap" (ひぐまっぷ) sighting map.91 Watch for Ezo deer on the roads, especially at dusk.
  • Recent disruption: in August 2026, parts of Hobetsu lost their water supply after a main leaked and heavy rain muddied the water. Check local notices after bad weather.46

Photos

  • Mukawa (むかわ町), April 2026 Apr 2026

More about Mukawa

At a glance
Field Details
Type Town (町)
Subprefecture Iburi (胆振総合振興局). Mukawa is at its eastern end.56
District Yūfutsu District (勇払郡)
Population 2020 Census: 7,651, down 11.0% from 8,596 in 2015.7 Latest: the town's resident register counted 7,176 people (3,657 men, 3,519 women) in 4,198 households at the end of August 2026.8 Hokkaido's resident-register network gives 7,186 for 31 August 2026. That figure includes 459 foreign residents, up from 236 in January 2026.9 Peak: 19,859 at the 1960 Census.2
Area 711.36 km² (GSI, 1 April 2026).10 The former Mukawa town covered 164.88 km² and the former Hobetsu town 546.48 km².1 About 79% of the town is forest.2
Density About 10.1 people/km² (calculated for August 2026). It was 10.8/km² at the 2020 Census.7
Municipal history Mukawa: a village office for Mukawa and seven other villages opened in 1895, which the town counts as its founding. Mukawa became a town in 1953. Hobetsu: it got its own village office in 1912, was renamed Hobetsu Village in 1929 and became a town in 1962.2 Merger: the two towns merged as Mukawa on 27 March 2006.1
Neighboring municipalities Atsuma to the west, Yubari to the northwest, Shimukappu to the northeast, and Hidaka and Biratori to the east. The Pacific lies to the south.2
Symbols Trees: Japanese yew (イチイ) and Sakhalin spruce (アカエゾマツ). Flower: azalea (ツツジ). Town fish: shishamo (ししゃも). All were adopted on 27 March 2006.111 The old town of Mukawa had already named shishamo its town fish in July 1995.12 The town's profile lists no town bird.1
Mascot Mukaron (むかろん): chosen for the 10th anniversary of the merger from designs by local primary-school pupils. It has a Hobetsu-melon face and a plesiosaur biting its head. It carries a lettuce bag with dried shishamo inside and wears a dandelion shirt.13 Museum characters: the plesiosaur "Hoppy" (ホッピー) and the dinosaur PR character "Kyōryū Horitan" (恐竜ホリたん).4
Official website https://www.town.mukawa.lg.jp/

Name origin
  • The river name: "Mukawa" is the hiragana spelling of the Mu River (鵡川), which runs the length of the town.11
  • Choosing the town name: at the February 2005 meeting of the merger council, 25 members voted on the new name. むかわ won 16 votes in the first round and 19 in the run-off. The other finalists were 東いぶり (Higashi-Iburi), 穂別 (Hobetsu) and 鵡川 written in kanji.11
  • Ainu origin: the river name comes from Ainu, but its original meaning is disputed.2711 The main theories are:
    • Mukka-pet / Muka-pet (ムッカ・ペッ／ムカペッ), "the river that gets blocked": sand pushed in by the tide often closes the river mouth. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) cites this reading from Yamada Shūzō's Hokkaidō no Chimei.272829
    • Mukap / muk-ap (ムカップ), "place where tsuru-ninjin grows": tsuru-ninjin (ツルニンジン, Codonopsis) is a climbing bellflower that grew in the grassland near the beach.2829
    • Muka (ムカ), "where water wells up": this reading comes from the Edo-period survey Chimeikō narabini Riteiki (地名考并里程記).3027
    • Britannica Japan's versions: Mukappetsu (ムカッペツ), "place where the river mouth keeps moving", and Mutsukuatsu (ムツクアツ), "place with much tsuru-ninjin".31
  • Old spellings: before the Meiji era the name was written as 武川, 武加和, 六川, 牟川, ム川 or ムカワ. The spelling 鵡川 became standard after 1868.28
  • Other local names:
    • Hobetsu (穂別): from Ainu Pon-pet, "child river".28 The asteroid (4774) Hobetsu is named after the former town.32
    • Shimukappu (占冠) and Tomamu (苫鵡): the town reads upstream Shimukappu as "the great Mukawa", and Tomamu means marshland.28

History
  • Jōmon period: the oldest trace of people in town is Earliest Jōmon pottery from the Ninomiya site, about 9,000–8,000 years old, stamped with scallop-shell patterns. The Kashiwayama site in Shiomi, with Sannai-Maruyama-style earth mounds, is the largest Jōmon site found in town so far. Digs on the terraces at Shiomi, Miyato and Yonehara have found more than 100 Jōmon pit traps.33
  • Epi-Jōmon burial mounds: the Mukawa Moritsuchi burial mounds (鵡川盛土墳墓群) stand on a river terrace about 2.5 km southeast of Mukawa Station. A 1963 dig found two round earth mounds, 7–10 m across, over grave pits holding pottery, stone tools and ornaments. They became a Hokkaido Historic Site in 1966.22 An earlier version of the town's heritage page added that 8th-century "Hokkaido-style tumuli" may have been built on top of the older graves.34
  • Medieval legend and Ainu chashi:
    • The 17th-century Matsumae chronicle Shinra no Kiroku (新羅之記録) names Mukawa as the eastern limit of Japanese (Wajin) settlement on the Pacific coast.28
    • Ainu chashi (hilltop sacred places and forts) appeared here from about the 13th century. Seventeen chashi sites are known in the Mu River basin: one in Mukawa and sixteen in Hobetsu. The Nisanai Chashi in Nakamura Memorial Park is one of the older examples in Hokkaido.28
  • Matsumae trading posts: under the Matsumae domain the area had two trading posts (basho):
    • Kami-Mukawa: around Hobetsu, held for generations by the Fumoto family of retainers.35
    • Shimo-Mukawa: the lower river and coast.35
    • Hawks and gold: around 1700 the domain opened two hawk-trapping grounds here, and gold panners also arrived. Both disrupted Ainu hunting and fishing.35
    • Shakushain's War: fighting reached the Mukawa river mouth in 1669.35
    • Trade: around 1786 the two Mukawa posts paid the highest fees (30 and 35 ryō) of the sixteen posts in Shikotsu basho. Their main goods were dried salmon, deer hides and kelp.35
  • Shogunate era and the Hachiōji Sennin Dōshin (八王子千人同心): the shogunate took direct control of eastern Ezo in 1799. In 1800 a party of Hachiōji Sennin Dōshin, a samurai-farmer militia from the Edo region, came to guard and farm the coast. Hara Shinsuke opened fields at the Mukawa river mouth, and about 13 houses were built at Shiomi. Cold and scurvy took a heavy toll, and the project ended in 1804. Of the 130 men sent to Ezo, 43 stayed on at Mukawa.36
  • Meiji administration: the area became part of Yūfutsu District, Iburi Province, in 1869. It was briefly assigned to the Tosa (Kōchi) domain and then came under the Hokkaido Development Commission (開拓使) in 1871. By 1873 the villages of Mukawa, Imoppe, Moebetsu, Ikubetsu, Niwan, Rubeshibe, Hobetsu and Hetonai existed.56 In 1873 the Commission set up a triangulation base point here for the Yūfutsu baseline, about 14.86 km long. The town calls it the start of accurate mapping of Hokkaido.37
  • Settlement:
    • First settlers: organized settlement of the lower valley began in 1882 with migrants from Yamaguchi Prefecture. Farming was under way by 1893, and in 1895 the eight villages of the Mu River basin got their own village office at Mukawa.302
    • Oil at Hobetsu: Nakamura Heihachirō, a merchant from Takada in present-day Jōetsu (Niigata), came to Hokkaido in 1891 to look for oil. He struck good oil at Hobetsu and settled there in 1893.38
    • Log drivers from Toyama: in the late Taishō and early Shōwa periods, many log drivers came from Shōgawa (庄川町) in Toyama to float timber down the river. Some settled, which is the root of today's sister-city tie.1
  • Railways and mines:
    • Coast line: the Tomakomai Light Railway reached Mukawa on 1 October 1913 and became the national Hidaka Line in 1927.39
    • Mining railway: in 1922–23 the Hokkaido Mining Railway built a line from Numanohata through Hobetsu to Hetonai (later Tomiuchi) to carry chromite, coal and timber.40 It became JNR's Tomiuchi Line and closed on 1 November 1986.40
  • Postwar:
    • Hobetsu's power plan: in 1954, Hobetsu's first elected village head, Yokoyama Masaaki, commissioned a Kannon statue modelled on the poet Miyazawa Kenji. He hoped it would protect the dangerous work on a village-run power station under Hobetsu's "TVA plan".22
    • Towns and population: Mukawa became a town in 1953 and Hobetsu in 1962. The combined population peaked at 19,859 in 1960.2
    • Hoppy and the museum: in 1975 Araki Shintarō found plesiosaur bones in Hobetsu, and the Hobetsu Town Museum opened in 1982 to keep them locally.21
    • Hot spring: Mukawa Onsen Shiki no Yakata opened on 27 April 1997.41
  • 2000s:
    • 2003: the Kamuysaurus bones were found on 9 April.14 On 10 August the Hidaka Expressway's Mukawa IC opened.42
    • 2006: Mukawa and Hobetsu merged on 27 March.1 "Mukawa Shishamo" was registered as a regional trademark on 17 November.11
    • 2007: "Hobetsu Melon" was registered on 16 November.11
    • 2011: the Dōtō Expressway's Mukawa-Hobetsu IC opened on 29 October.43
  • Rail cuts: wave damage stopped trains south of Mukawa in January 2015. The Mukawa–Samani section was closed on 1 April 2021 and replaced by buses, leaving Mukawa as the end of the Hidaka Line.3944 Shiomi Station closed with that section, and Hama-Taura Station closed on 18 March 2023.1144
  • 2018 earthquake: the Hokkaido Eastern Iburi Earthquake struck at 3:07 a.m. on 6 September 2018. It registered intensity 6-upper at Matsukaze (Mukawa) and in Hobetsu.2545 The quake killed one person in the town and damaged many homes, roads and public buildings.4620 At the peak more than 1,000 people, over a tenth of the population, took shelter.20 The town was among the first in Hokkaido to draw up a "pre-disaster reconstruction plan" (事前復興計画).2
  • Dinosaur era: Kamuysaurus was named in 2019.3 A new shishamo hatchery was completed in Mukawa in 2022.24 Shishamo fishing has been suspended since fiscal 2023. The town, the fishery cooperative and Hokkaido research institutes set up a recovery research group on 25 September 2023. In March 2025 the town declared 1 November "Shishamo Day".17
  • 2026:
    • March: Tochimaru Naohito, a town employee for 33 years, took office as mayor on 23 March, just before the merger's 20th anniversary on 27 March.47 Jukai Onsen Hakua closed on 31 March and was replaced by Jukai Onsen Hobetsu in the Hobetsu town center.48
    • April: the dinosaur museum reopened on 25 April.4
    • Summer: on 14 July the mayor announced a trial shishamo fishery that would land and sell a small catch for the first time in several years.18 In August a leaking water main and then muddy water after heavy rain cut water supplies in parts of Hobetsu.46

Geography & climate
  • Shape and setting: Mukawa lies south of central Hokkaido, within easy reach of Sapporo, Chitose and Tomakomai. It is long and narrow, running north from the Pacific. Outer ranges of the Hidaka Mountains enclose it on the east, west and north.21 The two former town centers are about 38 km apart.49
  • Mu River (鵡川): a Class A river 135 km long, with a basin of 1,270 km². It rises on Mt. Karifuri (1,323 m) in Shimukappu and is joined by the Hobetsu River at Hobetsu before reaching the Pacific at Mukawa. More than 80% of the basin is forest, and the river is a spawning river for shishamo.27 The town describes it as one of the cleanest rivers in Japan.1 The tidal flats at its mouth are a stopover for migratory birds.30 Other rivers include the Irushikabetsu, Niwan and Chin.11
  • Mountains and lakes: the highest peaks are Hattaomanai-dake (1,021 m) and Shufuku (主府久, 1,018 m), in the north.11 Hobetsu Dam (穂別ダム) is an irrigation dam on the Hobetsu River, built over about ten years from 1966. Its reservoir covers 109 ha when full.50 Fukuyama Gorge (福山渓谷), on the Mu River around Hobetsu-Fukuyama, is known for its autumn colors.2911
  • Forests: forests covered 56,241 ha in 2023, about 79% of the town. National forest accounts for 20,028 ha of that.2
  • Geology: Hobetsu is underlain by the Cretaceous Yezo Group of marine sediments. This is why so many marine reptiles, ammonites and the Kamuysaurus (from the Hakobuchi Formation) have been found there.2251
  • Climate: the coast gets southeasterly winds in spring and summer and is fairly mild with little snow in winter. Inland Hobetsu has a continental climate with large temperature swings, less rain and many clear days.2 Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) figures (1991–2020 normals):
    • Mukawa (鵡川, coastal): annual mean 7.1 °C. January averages −6.0 °C and August 20.3 °C. Annual precipitation is 1,018 mm and sunshine 1,800 hours.52 The record high is 33.5 °C (10 August 1994) and the record low −26.7 °C (2 February 1996).53
    • Hobetsu (穂別, inland): annual mean 6.5 °C. January averages −8.1 °C, with a mean daily low of −15.8 °C. About 451 cm of snow falls in a year, and the average deepest snow is 57 cm.54 The record high is 34.8 °C (24–25 August 2023) and the record low −30.3 °C (17 February 1978). The deepest snow on record is 78 cm (14 February 1987).55

Economy & industry
  • Workforce: in the 2020 Census, 4,198 residents were employed. Of these, 32.3% worked in primary industries, 16.9% in secondary and 50.7% in tertiary. Primary industry's share was 61.8% in 1960.2 The Iburi Subprefecture's 2026 overview gives slightly different figures: 4,146 workers, split 31.9%, 16.8% and 50.3%.56
  • Farming:
    • What is grown: rice was the traditional base, and the area is one of Iburi's main rice districts.30 Most farms now combine rice with greenhouse vegetables, flowers, field crops and beef cattle, and vegetables make up about half of farm output.2 The coast grows tomatoes, broccoli, lettuce and flowers alongside beef cattle. Inland Hobetsu is known for Hobetsu melon, pumpkins and nagaimo yam.57 Racehorses are also bred here.31
    • Farms: farm households fell from 810 in 1995 to 359 in 2020. The average farm grew to 15.2 ha, and 5,474 ha were farmed in 2020.2
    • Cattle and flowers: most Mukawa wagyu calves are shipped out of Hokkaido to be raised under famous brands such as Ōmi, Matsusaka and Iwate. Flower growing began in 1988 with gypsophila and statice and now includes alstroemeria, freesia and lilies.19
  • Fisheries:
    • Catch: the main species are shishamo, salmon, hokki (surf clam) and scallops. Output was worth ¥499 million in 2023, against ¥546 million in 1995.2
    • Shishamo: poor catches have lasted for years. Normal fishing last took place in the 2022 season. For 2026 the co-op was allowed a limited trial catch, the first shishamo sold in several years.1817
  • Commerce and manufacturing:
    • Shops: there were 65 in 2021, down from 167 in 1994, with total sales of ¥8.8 billion.2
    • Manufacturing: shipments were worth ¥5.08 billion in 2024.2
    • Notable companies:
      • Kanedai Ōno Shōten: founded in 1923, it is the oldest surviving shishamo processor in town.5811
      • Isuzu Hokkaido proving ground (いすゞ北海道試験場): at Yonehara. It tests vehicles and also hosts events.1159
      • Sanwa Kagaku Kenkyūsho: closed its Hokkaido plant on 31 March 2022.11
  • Tourism: tourist visits peaked at 431,800 in 2004 and fell to 89,200 in 2021. They reached 291,900 in 2024.2 Hokkaido's count for fiscal 2025 was about 280,000, after about 120,000 in fiscal 2023.16
  • Population and ageing: between 1980 and 2020 the population fell 47.6%, and the share aged 65 or over rose from 9.5% to 40.8%. The town's population vision projects 4,725 residents by 2040 and 2,628 by 2060. The whole town is designated a depopulated area (過疎地域).2 Foreign residents have grown quickly: 459 were registered at the end of August 2026.9
  • Revitalization:
    • Main strategies: the plans center on the "Mukawa Dinosaur World" concept and on farm and seafood brands.2
    • Dinosaur research: in 2018 Hokkaido University Museum opened its first paleontology research branch inside the Hobetsu museum.20
    • Recent projects: the "Future Mukawa Shishamo Project" and Shishamo Day.17 The tourism association has worked with Mukawa High School students on a retort curry and on "Machi Gacha" capsule-toy souvenirs.6061
    • Furusato-nozei: donations reached 4,123 gifts worth ¥90.3 million in fiscal 2025.62

Local specialties
Specialty Category Details & where to get it
Mukawa shishamo (鵡川ししゃも) Seafood (regional collective trademark, 2006) Season: the fish run up the Mu River to spawn from late October to late November.12 The co-op normally fishes for 40 days from early October, dragging bag-shaped nets from boats.63 Where to buy: in autumn, processors hang them to dry on bamboo blinds (すだれ干し) outside their shops. These include Kanedai Ōno Shōten (9:00–17:00 and open daily from October to December), Marudai Ōno Shōten (8:00–18:00, open all year) and Maruichi Satō Shōten (open October–December only).58 Check first: local supply depends on the fishing suspension and the small 2026 trial catch.18
Shishamo dishes Local cuisine Taihō Sushi (大豊寿司): shishamo nigiri from about 10 October to 10 November. Shishamo yanagawa, tempura and shishamo sake are served all year. Shiosai (潮騒): shishamo ramen all year. Kappō Musashi (割烹むさし): shishamo pressed sushi in October–November (booking needed). Tōsenbō (灯泉房): a shishamo set meal in the same months.64 Sashimi: male shishamo is eaten raw only locally, and only in the fishing season.12 Breakfast: the Michi-no-Eki hotel serves a shishamo breakfast.65
Hokki clams (ほっき貝) Seafood Landed all year. The co-op leaves small clams in the sea, so each one weighs about 300 g.66 The hokki-fry set is the popular dish at the Michi-no-Eki restaurant.64
Hobetsu melon (ほべつメロン) Fruit (trademark, 2007) Growing conditions: grown in inland Hobetsu, where hot days, cool nights and free-draining soil suit melons. The season is summer.19 History: growing began about 50 years before 2021, when Kobayashi Isamu, who had moved from Yubari, developed a sweeter, thicker-fleshed melon. It is certified under Hokkaido's "Yes!clean" low-chemical scheme and won a Minister of Agriculture award in 1996. Shipping: the furusato gift is shipped from mid-July.20
Rice and rice products Grain Mukawa-grown Nanatsuboshi rice is served at the Michi-no-Eki hotel.65 Kosaka Nōen makes salt koji and soy-sauce koji from Nanatsuboshi.58 Flower Hills makes germinated brown rice.11
Mukawa wagyu (むかわ和牛) Beef Lean, tender beef with a large rib-eye. Most calves go on to famous brands elsewhere.19
Vegetables Produce Reduced-pesticide spinach, pumpkin, May Queen potatoes, lettuce, cabbage and nagaimo yam.19 They are sold at Popponta Ichiba (ぽぽんた市場, Matsukaze 3-1), open 10:00–17:00 and closed 27 December–6 January.23
COLOMBO Buta-shabu Curry (豚しゃぶカリー) Retort curry Origin: made with Mukawa pork and launched in March 2025. The tourism association, Mukawa High School and Sapporo's Curry House Colombo developed it together. Award: the general-food Grand Prix at the Hokkaido Omiyage Grand Prix 2025–2026. Where to buy: Popponta Ichiba, Mukawa post office, Hobetsu Campground and the Challenge Shop in town.60
Shishamo monaka (柳葉魚最中) Sweets A shishamo-shaped wafer cake from Cake Shop Onodera, and a classic Mukawa souvenir.64
Dinosaur and shishamo taiyaki Sweets Fish-shaped cakes from Ippukudō (いっぷく堂), which is closed on Mondays.58
Asparagus yōkan and "Hoppy's egg" Sweets Shōeidō (正栄堂) in Hobetsu makes yōkan with Hobetsu asparagus, monaka, and dinosaur-themed "Hoppy's egg" sweets.58
Cheese, venison and smoked seafood Local products Cheese: ASUKA's cheese workshop makes string cheese and mozzarella. Venison: "Mukawa Jibie" sells Ezo deer meat and sausages at Popponta Ichiba. Smoked seafood: Yoshimura Kunsei Kōbō smokes octopus, whelk, salmon toba and flounder caught by local fishers.58
Michi-no-Eki originals Souvenirs Shishamo soy sauce (ししゃも醤油) and Mukawa shishamo kelp rolls (ししゃも昆布巻), sold at the station shop.67
Furusato-nozei gifts Gifts The top-ranked item on Furusato Choice is a set of 20 female and 20 male fresh-dried shishamo from Kanedai Ōno Shōten (¥34,000 donation). Other offerings include dinosaur plush toys, frozen octopus legs from the Mukawa co-op, and 1-cm slices of rail from the closed Shiomi Station.20 At the top end, a made-to-order life-size (1:1) skeleton replica of Kamuysaurus is offered for a donation of ¥80 million.68

Culture & festivals
Event When Highlights
Dandelions at Tanpopo Park (たんぽぽ公園) Late April–May Dandelions line the running course at the park in Ōhara. The town calls them a local specialty.69
Arimori Cup Marathon (Arimori Cup マラソン大会) May Listed among Mukawa's May events in the Iburi Subprefecture's 2026 overview.16
Hobetsu Dōmin no Mori Azalea & Asparagus Spring Festival (ほべつ道民の森・つつじとアスパラの春まつり) May Held at the forest park, which has about 12,000 azaleas.1670
Mukawa Hobetsu Log-Driving Festival (むかわ町穂別流送まつり) July A summer festival in Hobetsu.16 Its name recalls the log drives (流送) that once floated timber down the Mu River.1
Mukawa Tairyō Jizō-son festival (鵡川大漁地蔵尊祭典) 23–24 August The yearly festival of the "Imoppe Jizō", a wooden statue said to have washed ashore in 1825. The grounds have a ring for exhibition sumo (花相撲), and worshippers come from as far as Hakodate and Kushiro.22
Hobetsu Shrine festival (穂別神社例大祭) September Held on 5 September in 2026.46
Mukawa Gourmet Festa (むかわグルメフェスタ) Mid-September The 12th Festa was held on 13 September 2026, 9:30–15:00, in the town office car park, about 10 minutes' walk from Mukawa Station.71
Beach-seine experience (地引き網) Late September A hands-on net-hauling event on Mukawa beach, open to visitors from outside town. The 2026 date was 26 September; it may be cancelled in bad weather.72
Mukawa Dinosaur Festa (むかわ町恐竜フェスタ) October Held on 10–11 October 2026 at the Hobetsu Community Center. Events include talks by Manabe Makoto, director of the National Museum of Nature and Science, and dinosaur sculptor Araki Kazunari, plus fossil cleaning and VR and AR dinosaurs.73
Mukawa Shishamo Family Ekiden (鵡川ししゃもファミリー駅伝大会) Mid-October The 18th race was on 18 October 2026 on the Isuzu Hokkaido proving-ground test track (Yonehara 489). Events include 3 km and 5 km runs, 8 km and 17.6 km relays, a 1.5 km parent-and-child run and a 1 km dog-and-owner run.59
Shishamo Kamuy-nomi (シシャモカムイノミ) Autumn, before the shishamo fishing An Ainu ritual that prays to the guardian gods of the village, sea, river and river mouth for a good catch.1224
Mukawa Shishamo Day (むかわ町ししゃもの日) 1 November Declared in March 2025 and registered with the Japan Anniversary Association on 10 June 2025. November is shishamo season, and the "1" looks like shishamo hanging on a drying blind.74
  • Performing arts: the Mukawa Ainu Culture Preservation Society (鵡川アイヌ文化伝承保存会) was added on 21 December 1994 to the groups that keep up Ainu traditional dance (アイヌ古式舞踊). The dance was designated an Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property in 1984 and is on UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage list. The "Fussa Hero" (フッサヘロ), a dance to drive away sickness, is the best-known local piece.22
  • Temples and shrines:
    • Eian-ji (永安寺), Hanazono: keeps the gravestone of Ichikawa Hikodayū, a Hachiōji Sennin Dōshin settler who died at Mukawa in 1806.3622
    • Tairyō Jizō hall (Miyato 74): a memorial to the Dōshin was put up in its grounds in 1985.3622
    • Tomiuchi Kannon Hall (富内聖観音堂, Hobetsu Tomiuchi 91-18): houses the 1.8-m cypress "Kenji Kannon" (1954), carved by Satō Zuikei, a pupil of Takamura Kōun. It has a small display about the statue.22
  • Museums: the Hobetsu Dinosaur Museum and Nakamura Memorial Hall are in Hobetsu; see "Sights & activities". The Michi-no-Eki building has a free public library room.75

Ainu heritage
  • Kotan and trade: in the Edo period, Ainu along the Mu River took deer and bear skins, eagle feathers, salmon and kelp to Matsumae to trade. The Hobetsu Town History records a story of a young couple who grew rich from this trade.35 The explorer Matsuura Takeshirō recorded many kotan (villages) along the river. By his time many were left with only the old and the young, because the able-bodied had been sent away to work at the fisheries.36
  • Conflict and oral tradition:
    • Shakushain's War: the fighting reached the Mukawa river mouth in 1669.35
    • 1789: in the Kunashiri–Menashi uprising, Sanoowokai of Kami-Mukawa fought on the Matsumae side.35
    • The serpent god of Shumakonne: a Hobetsu legend set during the 1789 uprising tells of a giant serpent at Shumakonne that blocked the Niwan people's boats. Because they could not pass, they escaped a massacre at Yūfutsu.35
  • Chashi sites: 17 chashi sites are known in the Mu River basin, including the Nisanai Chashi in Nakamura Memorial Park and the Chichappu Chashi in Hobetsu-Toyota.28
  • The shishamo legend: in one Ainu story, famine struck the kotan along the river, and the younger sister of the thunder god called to heaven for help. An owl goddess came down with willow branches. The gods chose the Mu River, the "gentle" river, and set willow leaves with souls in them afloat on it. The leaves turned into susuham, "willow-leaf fish".12 The word "shishamo" is usually traced to Ainu susu (willow) + ham (leaf).24
  • Living traditions: the Mukawa Ainu Culture Preservation Society still performs the Shishamo Kamuy-nomi and Ainu traditional dance. Its contact point is the Imoppe Seikatsukan (イモッペ生活館, Miyato 77-1).2224
  • Tairyō Jizō: the wooden Jizō statue was found on the Irushikabetsu shore in 1825 by Shikeankur of Chin, a man Matsuura Takeshirō also mentions. Local Ainu worshipped it as a kamuy (god).22
  • Kamuysaurus: the dinosaur's scientific name uses the Ainu word kamuy (god). The town glosses it as "Japanese dragon deity".3

Sister & friendship cities
  • Tonami, Toyama Prefecture (富山県砺波市): the old town of Mukawa became a sister town of Shōgawa (庄川町) on 8 July 1995. Both towns were named after their rivers, and they got to know each other through the National River Summits: the first was held in Shōgawa in 1992 and the second in Mukawa in 1993. Many people from Shōgawa had also come to Mukawa as log drivers. Shōgawa merged into Tonami on 1 November 2004, and the tie passed to Tonami.1 Mukawa and Tonami re-signed it, together with a disaster mutual-aid agreement, on 23 April 2007.11
  • Zuozhen District, Tainan, Taiwan (台南市左鎮区): friendship exchange agreement (友好交流協定), signed on 10 June 2025.93

Notable people
  • Suzuki Akira (鈴木章): chemist, born in the old town of Mukawa in 1930. He won the 2010 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for the Suzuki coupling reaction.92 One of the town's furusato-nozei funds, for children's education, commemorates his prize.26
  • Tabata Maki (田畑真紀): speed skater and silver medallist at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.11
  • Keaton Yamada (キートン山田): former voice actor and narrator, from the Hobetsu district.1132

Sources

Numbers in the text link to these sources. Figures as of 23 September 2026

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