Live camera
Kappa-bashi, Kamikochi live camera — Matsumoto, Nagano
The best-known view in Kamikochi: the Hotaka range standing beyond the suspension bridge over the Azusa river. The number of people on the bridge tells you how busy the valley is.
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What you are looking at
A wooden suspension bridge over the Azusa River, with the Hotaka range standing behind it. This is the most photographed view in Kamikochi, and the number of people on the bridge is your read on how busy the valley is today.
Kamikochi is a narrow valley at about 1,500 metres, pinned between the Hotaka peaks and Mount Yake. The Azusa widens here and runs shallow, carrying snowmelt straight down from above, so the water stays cold and clear even in August. The skyline in front of you runs from Oku-Hotaka to Mae-Hotaka, above 3,000 metres.
Being a valley floor, it collects mist on clear cold mornings; once that burns off, late morning gives the best look at the ridge. Cloud tends to build over the Hotaka side in the afternoon, and summer afternoons in particular hide the peaks.
The valley floor is this flat because it used to be a lake. Debris from Mount Yake dammed the Azusa, water backed up behind it, and sediment then filled that lake in; what is left is the flat ground you see. That is why walking here is oddly easy for somewhere in the mountains, and why the river stays this wide. The bridge itself has been rebuilt many times; the wooden suspension bridge in frame dates from 1997.
The valley is open from spring to late autumn, and private cars are never allowed in. The camera has no season and no opening hours, so you can also see Kappa Bridge with nobody on it. It is a live video feed, so the river and the crowd both move in real time.
About this camera
| Place | Matsumoto, Nagano |
| Format | Live video |
| Time zone | Asia/Tokyo (UTC+9) |
| Category | Nature |
| Operator | Gosenjaku Hotel Kamikochi |
| Terms of use | Links free, no reuse |
The operator's own page
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