Amagase Dam entrance

The dam is open to visitors, but you’ll have to record your name and the number of people in your group at the entrance. If you’d like a commemorative card with information about the dam, you can ask for one here.

Hours of entry: 8:00 am to 4:45 pm

Rest area and video

You can watch a video introducing Amagase Dam in the rest area.

Restrooms

Restrooms are located in the yellow building. Please note that there are no facilities on the opposite side of the dam at the end of the walkway.

Amagase Dam Management Branch Office

The dam has a branch office of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism’s Yodo River Integrated Dams Control Office. The dam’s gates are controlled from this control room.

Spectacular arched walkway

Amagase Dam is known as a dome-shaped arch dam, and a 254-meter walkway runs along its top. The mountains that you can see on the right bank, at the end of the walkway, comprise Amagase Forest Park. You can enjoy panoramic views of Amagase Dam from the observation space in the park.

Management walkway (catwalk)

The catwalk is used to manage Amagase Dam. Although it’s not open to the general public, you can experience what it’s like to walk on the catwalk and see equipment inside the dam if you apply for a tour in advance.

Two types of gates

Amagase Dam has two types of gates. The lower three, called conduit gates, are used to release water during times of normal flooding.
The view of water being released from the walkway is spectacular!

The top four gates are called crest gates, and in fact they’ve only been used once since the dam was completed.

That was during Typhoon Man-yi in September 2013. You can see water being released from the conduit gates behind the water being released from the crest gates.

Lake Ho-o

The lake created by the dam was named Lake Ho-o, meaning “phoenix,” because it resembles a bird spreading its wings when seen from downstream. The lake has excellent water quality since the water it holds turns over multiple times every year.

Log booms

Since Lake Ho-o is surrounded by mountains, large quantities of driftwood, illegally dumped trash, and other materials flow into it during times of flooding. Nets known as log booms have been installed at the dam site as well as at two sites slightly upstream to keep debris from interfering with gate operation.

About 150 tons of debris flow to the dam every year, although the volume varies with the extent and frequency of flooding.

Intake

Amagase Power Station’s intake is located on the left bank upstream from the dam. Water entering the intake is used to generate electricity at the power station on the left bank downstream from the Amagase Dam.

Boathouse

The boathouse stores a boat that is used to patrol Lake Ho-o. The boat is lowered into the lake via two rails.

Amagase Power Station

Kansai Electric Power Company’s Amagase Power Station can be seen on the left bank. The company generates power at two plants: here at the dam and at Kisen’yama Power Station, which is located about 5 kilometers upstream.

Former Shizugawa Power Station

The brick building you can see on the right bank downstream from the dam is the former Shizugawa Power Station.

Before the Amagase Dam was completed, Omine Dam was located about 3 kilometers upstream from here, and the Shizugawa Power Station generated electricity using water from that dam. However, both facilities were decommissioned with the completion of Amagase Dam.

Stilling pool

The facility that can be seen directly beneath the dam is called a stilling pool, and it performs the important function of slowing the flow of water released from Amagase Dam before it enters the Uji River.

Hakko Bridge (“White Rainbow” Bridge)

Hakko Bridge crosses the Uji River downstream from the dam. The bridge was replaced in 2016 as part of the Amagase Dam Redevelopment Project. The new bridge is designed to blend in with Amagase Dam and the surrounding landscape.