Ougizawa (扇沢) is a trailhead for the mountaineering in Kita Alps. It is also the eastern entrance of a road tunnel to Kurobe Dam (黒部ダム flic.kr/p/2nwnR4b), which is part of the Tateyama - Kurobe Alpine Route for tourists.

The mountainside is thickly forested mostly with broadleaf trees such as oak, beech and birch at this altitude.
Ougizawa is located at an altitude of 1,433 m. A few peaks of Kita Alps can be climbed in a day from Oogizawa if you wake up early.

Tags:   mountain Nagano Oomachi Omachi 長野県 大町市 forest landscape Kita Alps 北アルプス summer

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A photo taken in the morning from a trail along the Kago-gawa (篭川) river. The stream is a tributary of the Kago-gawa.
It may look like a cascade due to a 200 mm equivalent zoom lens.

Dakekanba (Erman's birch, Betula ermanii) is a birch species native to Japan, Northeast China and Russian Far East. It grows in subalpine areas up to the forest limit. This photo was taken at an altitude of around 1700 m and the forest limit in Kita Alps is more or less at an altitude of 2,500 m.
Wikipedia writes that it is a popular street tree in London!?

A few straight conifer trees are probably Ooshirabiso (Maries' fir, Abies mariesii), which is endemic to Japan. It is known to be closely related to Pacific silver fir (Abies amabilis) in North America.

Tags:   stream plant mountain Nagano Oomachi Omachi 長野県 大町市 北アルプス Kita Alps tree river landscape summer

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Mt. Harinoki-dake (針ノ木岳) is a peak of Kita Alps with an elevation of 2,821 m. Its peak is seen in the upper centre of the photo.
The Kago-gawa rises in Mt. Harinoki-dake. The uppermost part of the river is covered with snow throughout the year and called Harinoki Snowy Gorge (針ノ木雪渓). It is not a glacier as it is not moving downhill.

The altitude of the photo shooting location was around 1,800m. Dominant tall trees were Dakekanba birch and Ooshirabiso fir.

Tags:   Japan Nagano Oomachi Omachi mountain landscape snow river 長野県 大町市 北アルプス summer

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Vegetation by the trail along the Kago-gawa leading to Harinoki-dake and Rengue-dake.

Ooba Giboushi (Siebold's plantain lily, Hosta sieboldiana) is a perennial flowering monocot native to Japan, which is a species of the Agavoideae (agave) sub-family. It is a popular gardening plant, but the one in the photo is wild growth.

Pink flowers are probably Shimotsukesou (Filipendula multijuga) that is a perennial herb in the rose family. It is endemic to Japan.

Tags:   Japan Nagano Oomachi Omachi flower plant vegetation 長野県 大町市 北アルプス 北 Kita Alps summer

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Mountaineers heading for Mt. Harinoki or Mt. Rengue need to use Eisen (Steigeisen, crampons) to walk the Harinoki snowy gorge, in particular, when they climb down.
The Kago-gawa flows beneath the snow, and it could be dangerous if the surface collapses. Dangerous parts of the snow is marked by the national park management.

Altitude of the photo shooting location is 2,000 m, more or less.
Triangular peak in the upper right is Jiigatake (爺ヶ岳 2,670 m) which means "grandpa peak."

Tags:   Japan Nagano Oomachi Omachi snow mountain tourist landscape 長野県 大町市 Kita Alps 北アルプス summer

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