長野トップ100温泉:白馬鑓温泉 Nagano Top 100 Onsens: Hakuba Yari

August 2, 2012: その他 Miscellaneous

Unbelievable Yari Onsen

「長野の一番ワイルド温泉」

この間、インバウンド関係の講演会で白馬館の荒谷社長にあった時に、そう言われました。白馬館を経営していながら、標高2100mの白馬鑓温泉小屋もやっている。名前通り、白馬鑓ヶ岳の途中にある、自然に湧き出している所の山小屋。

私が長野県の温泉をあちらこちら回っている中で、この白馬鑓温泉はトップクラスです。お湯は豊富で強い硫黄の香りがあって、「温泉だ!」って感じ。湯船は風情のある岩風呂。温度は最適な41℃。そして、眺め。その眺め!2100mからの絶景。尚且つ、混浴にもなっている。(夜は露天風呂が女専用となるそうです。)今回はお昼に寄ったが、荒谷社長によるとその露天風呂に浴びながら、日の出を見るのは最高だそうです。

ただ、問題はアクセスです。北アルプスの白馬連峰を登っていた僕らたちは天狗ノ頭から降りた。それだけでも2時間ぐらいかかった。尚且つ、最後の一時間は良きとけと道が混じっていて、滑り易くて危険な道だった。

じゃ、上からじゃなくて下からは?1250mの猿倉荘とハイキングコースが結んでいる。登りは何時間かかったか分かりませんが、下りは約4時間もかかった。登りは恐らく5~6時間ぐらいだと思う。半端じゃない。

私のアドバイス: 目的は温泉だけだったら、止めた方が良いかもしれない。温泉も山登りも好きだったら、最適だと思う。

"Nagano's #1 Wildest Onsen"

That's how Hakuba Yari Onsen was explained to my when I met the owner Aratani-san at a speech I gave in Omachi a few weeks ago. You know this onsen-loving guy just had to go and check it out. So on the mountain climbing trip my sons and I took for our summer vacation, we made a point of including Yari Onsen in the itinerary.

As far as onsens go, Yari Onsen is spectacular. The onsen water comes up to the surface naturally. And it has a strong sulphur content giving it a real "onsen" feel. The onsen bath surround is made from river rocks, giving it a natural ambience. The temperature is a perfect 41C. And the view is outstanding. You can see for miles from its 2100m location. To top it off, the outdoor bath is co-ed (ladies only at night time). We were there at noon, but according to Aratani-san, if you spend the night you can enjoy soaking in the outdoor bath while watching the sun come up.

The only problem is the access. The boys and I went there by descending from Tengu Mtn. It was a 2 hour descent, and the last half was a harrowing slip-sliding obstacle course. Not for the faint of heart.

So how about approaching it from below? There is a trail connecting Yari Onsen to Sarukurasou Hut down at 1250m. It took us around 4 hours to make the descent, so to climb up would probably take around 6 hours or so.

My advice: If your main purpose is to enjoy the onsen, then forget about it. But if you enjoy onsens AND mountain climbing, then Yari Onsen is for you.




Overhead view of Yari Onsen


Footbath at the base of Yari's outdoor bath





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