Minami Alps National Park

The Southern Alps consist of three mountain ranges: the Kaikoma and Houou Mountains, the Shiramine Mountains, and the Akaishi Mountains. It has more than ten 3,000-meter-high peaks, including Kitadake (3,193 m), the second highest peak in Japan, and is the source of the Oi River, Tenryu River and Fuji River. Located in the southernmost part of the Japanese Alps, it is a mountainous area with much rainfall in summer and little snowfall in winter. The area has many deep-cut V-shaped valleys due to river erosion caused by heavy rainfall, and the low snowfall means that the forest limit is high and forests cover the area up to the ridge line. This is the southernmost place in Japan where there are traces of glaciers, and glacial and periglacial landforms created around 20,000 years ago still exist in the alpine zone. The curls (cirque valleys) seen on Senjogatake and Arakawa Sanzan are one such example. The area is also home to a wide variety of flora and fauna, such as grouse, ptarmigan, butterfly, and alpine butterflies that were distributed during the glacial period and still live in the alpine zones. The area has also been the object of mountain worship since ancient times, and is important not only for its natural environment, but also for the inheritance of culture. (Source: Ministry of the Environment website https://www.env.go.jp/nature/nationalparks/list/)