About Misato
About Misato
Misato town has a traditional culture and many natural resources such as Gounokawa River and Chugoku mountain chain.
Gounokawa River, which is the most grand river in Chugoku area, flows in the middle of Misato town. We can see many beautiful trees along the river.
Misato town used to develop as a part of Iwami-ginzan(silver mine) ,which was registered as a world heritage in 2007.
As many spas are located in Misato, many tourists visit Misato to enjoy hot springs. Gounokawa River provides tourists with chance to enjoy canoe or to watch Hiburi-ryo , which is a very traditional fishing.
The rich nature brings many specialities to Misato. Especially,Matatabi(nuts of a silver vine tree), Soba(Japanese buckwheat noodles), Ayu(a sweet smelt), and the meat of a wild boar are popular as Misato‘s specialities.
The origin of the town‘s name “Misato”
Gounokawa River and mountains in Misato town create a beautiful scenery which changes every seasons. If you see the scenery of Misato, it will remind you of Japan in the old days.
“Mi” means beauty and “sato” means a hometown in Japanese.We named our town hoping that it will be a rich and beautiful hometown forever. When you hear the word “Misato” ,you will realize that it has a very heartwarming meaning. “Misato” express that people in this town are very kind and cheerful.
Town symbol
“Misato” is expressed as “みさと” in Japanese. This town symbol is based on the capital letter “み”.
This symbol, which makes you imagine the bird flying lustily in the sky, express that people and this town are full of energy. Blue and green express the rich nature blessed with the water and the trees. The red circle express the “hope”.
Town flower: Rhododendron）
The rhododendron is self-sown in Hananotani National Forest. Japan and our town are trying to preserve the rhododendron. The delicate, pink flower which is divided into seven is very mysterious and is called “ the Queen of the flower”. It is the symbol of the town full of nature.
Town tree: Japanese apricot
The Japanese apricot endure the hard winter and in the early spring, the white, red, or pink blossoms bloom. In the early summer, it fruits. As the Japanese apricot plays an important role as our food-stuff, it relates to our life closely. It symbolizes this town which is creating a lively future and developing vigorously.
The geography of Misato
Misato town is located in the center of Shimane Prefecture. Gounokawa River which is the most grand river in Chugoku area (the total length:194km) run winding through Misato .Gounokawa River made its coast very steep and full of ups and down by encroaching.
The habitations were made in the valleies and flood plain. The downlands of about 300m high are located in the northwest of the town. In the east, steep mountains which is about 400-700m high range with Chugoku mountain chain.
Area of Misato
The total area of Misato is 282.92km and covers 4.2% of that of Shimane Prefecture. As most of the area are mountains and forests, there are little habitations.
