Hello! I’m Aya, the host of Oyado Chiyosato.
About 40 minutes by car from our house lies a lake often called the most beautiful autumn lake in Japan.
It is Shirakoma Pond, cradled in a forest 2,100 metres above sea level.
The colours usually peak between late September and mid-October.
(In October 2026 I finally walked Shirakoma Pond in its autumn colours, and have added that story and photos below.)
So today, for anyone planning to visit Shirakoma Pond this autumn, here is a local’s guide to the timing, the car park, how long the walk takes and what to wear.
A confession: I walked there in April, when snow was still lying
In fact, I visited Shirakoma Pond this April, together with a German guest who lives in Tokyo.
The pond was still frozen white, and snow lay thick along the edges of the boardwalk.
The air was crisp. April up there is a completely different season from spring down in the valley.
And above all, it was quiet.
So quiet that we found ourselves lowering our voices without meaning to.
There is an atmosphere in that forest I still cannot quite put into words.
And yet the forest is astonishingly green.
Right beside snow-covered rocks, the moss alone stays deep green and breathing.
One sentence from a hiker that I still remember
That day, we happened to speak with someone coming down from the mountain.
“From summer into autumn, it gets unbelievably crowded.”
“Honestly, this season — when you can just soak in the quiet — might be my favourite.”
For some reason, those words have stayed with me.
Shirakoma Pond seems to have two faces: one lively with visitors, and one utterly still.
Neither is the right one. Both are worth seeing.
And the autumn foliage season is unmistakably the first.
And then, October: Shirakoma Pond in autumn
This autumn, I finally walked Shirakoma Pond in its full autumn colours.
It was the middle day of a three-day weekend in October, under a clear sky.
It was truly beautiful.
Bright red trees lining the water’s edge, golden yellow above them, and deep green forest behind. The blue sky was mirrored on the surface of the pond, and every direction looked like a painting.
There were people, of course. But it was nowhere near overcrowded — I could get to the toilets easily, and take photos without anyone in the frame.
A completely different face from the April quiet that made us lower our voices.
It is a view worth seeing at least once.
Getting there, however, was a real struggle. I will be honest about that a little further down.
What kind of place is Shirakoma Pond?
It sits at about 2,115 metres.
As a natural lake above 2,000 metres, it is said to be one of the largest in Japan.
But it is the forest around the water that is truly remarkable.
It is an old-growth forest home to 485 species of moss, designated one of Japan’s “Precious Moss Forests” by the Bryological Society of Japan.
The roots of centuries-old hemlock and fir trees are completely wrapped in moss.
Sunny days are lovely, of course — but locals will tell you this forest is at its most beautiful in mist, or just after rain.
When is the best time for autumn colour?
In a typical year, the colours are at their best from late September to mid-October.
In many years the peak falls in the first half of October.
Because of the altitude, the leaves turn three to four weeks earlier than down in the valley.
Golden birch and crimson enkianthus mix into the deep green of the conifers, and all of it is mirrored on the surface of the pond.
That layering of colour is, I think, why people call it the most beautiful in Japan.
The single most important thing: how you get there
In foliage season, simply getting to Shirakoma Pond is the hard part.
The paid car park near the pond (600 yen for a regular car, about 200 spaces) fills up in the early morning at the peak of the season. According to the mountain hut by the pond, on some days it is almost full by around 4 a.m.
On busy days, a free shuttle bus runs from the car park at Yachiho Kogen Ski Resort.
We used it too — but on a sunny three-day weekend, we waited 40 minutes on the way there, and an hour on the way back, so in the end we took the paid local bus home. I won’t pretend it wasn’t exhausting.
Then, as we were leaving at around 2 p.m., we noticed the car park was starting to empty.
It turns out this is the pond’s usual rhythm: the car park stays full from early morning until early afternoon, and spaces start opening up after 2 p.m.
So my advice is: drive there after 2 p.m. And if you can, go on a weekday.
The shuttle bus does not run every day, so check the operating dates on the Sakuho Town tourism website. You can also check how full the car park is on a live camera.
How long the walk takes, and what to wear
From the car park to the shore of the pond is about a 15-minute walk.
The trail around the pond takes roughly 30 to 40 minutes at an easy pace.
Allow an hour to an hour and a half in total, and you can take your time with photos.
The path is a mix of boardwalk and tree roots. It gets slippery after rain, so proper walking shoes beat sandals.
And then there is clothing — the part most people underestimate.
A forest at 2,100 metres can be nearly 10°C colder than the valley below.
Having walked there in April, I can tell you that chill is hard to imagine until you feel it.
Think of Shirakoma Pond in October as early winter.
A light down jacket or a windproof layer will make the day far more comfortable.
One more thing: pets are not allowed in the park area, so please keep that in mind if you travel with a dog.
You can only go there half the year
Route 299, the Märchen Highway that leads to Shirakoma Pond, closes for the winter.
The car park is generally open from late April to mid-November.
Once the autumn colours are gone, the forest moves straight into the snow season.
So Shirakoma Pond can be walked for only about half of the year.
And its most spectacular weeks are from late September to mid-October.
If you are staying nearby, the afternoon you arrive is your chance
After 2 p.m. is the time to go, I wrote above.
The surest option is to stay at one of the mountain huts by the pond — Shirakoma-so, Seitai-so, Takamiishi-goya and Mugikusa Hütte are all up there.
If you are staying down in the valley, it is easy to plan your day so that you stop at Shirakoma Pond around 2 p.m. on the day you arrive, then head on to your accommodation.
Our house is in Sakuho, and check-in is from 4 p.m. Shirakoma Pond is about 40 minutes away by car, so if you arrive at the pond around 2 p.m. and take your time walking around it, you will reach us at just the right time.
If you are staying with us, please feel free to ask about a lift to Shirakoma Pond — we will help when our schedule allows.
In closing
Snow in April, colour in October. Having walked it in both seasons, I can say that this forest leaves you a little lost for words, whatever the time of year.
In autumn, colour is added to all of that. It was even more than I had imagined.
And I believe that hiker was right, too.
Once you have enjoyed the busy season, do come back for the quiet one.
Shirakoma Pond in late spring, with snow still lying, is quiet enough to make you lower your voice.
When I wrote this article in spring, I promised to walk it myself this autumn — and I kept that promise.
Until next time.
Aya, Host of Oyado Chiyosato
