Tochigi Prefecture Dam

0578-Kuriyama Dam/Kuriyama Dam

4.0
Tochigi Prefecture Dam
This article can be read in about 6 minutes to read.

Location: Hiratadake, Sashikabe, Nikko-shi, Tochigi
Date of interview: 2010/10/03 (Sun.)

The gate of the ranch, part 1

The gate of the ranch, part 1

Kuriyama Dam is a dam that functions as an upper reservoir for pumped-storage power generation with Imaichi Dam as a lower reservoir. However, although it is connected to the Imaichi Dam by a waterway, the road itself is not connected, requiring a turn from the national highway via Kawaji.

I myself took an open-air bath nearby after covering the Kurobe Dam (Tochigi), and furthermore, returned to the Kinugawa River to procure food and fuel, then went back upstream again to take night photos at Kawaji Dam, and then to Kuriyama Dam. To stay overnight in the car at Kuriyama Dam...

To reach the Kuriyama Dam, visitors pass through a pasture, and to prevent grazing livestock from escaping, gates like this one have been installed along the road. This is a sliding gate. To be honest, I did not want to get out of the car, being alone in the middle of the night and frightened that a bear might appear, but I managed to open and close the gate....

The gate of the ranch, part 2

The gate of the ranch, part 2

If there is an entrance to the ranch, there is an exit, and there is another such gate. This one is a double-door type. The problem occurred when we tried to close the gate.

When I closed one side, I couldn't reach to close the other! I tried to close the left side, and when I tried to close the right side, the left side opened again... I was having a one-man contraption in the middle of the night. I couldn't leave it open, so what was I going to do?

But apparently I was stupid enough to realize that if I close it completely when I close it, it will not move.

The explanation is also poorly written, so if you don't understand what I'm saying, please visit the site.

TEPCO's patrol (probably...)

TEPCO's patrol (probably...)

After passing through the gate and tunnel, we came to an open space. I decided to park my car there, relying on my memory of what I saw on the web.

Then I thought I'd start getting ready for bed... but then I heard a car light up from behind me! It seems we ran into the TEPCO's patrol.

TEPCO's patrol (probably...)

TEPCO's patrol (probably...)

He was opening and closing the gate leading to the top edge of the building. I wanted to talk to him, but I was afraid I would interrupt his work and that I would be too suspicious in the middle of the night, so I stared at him from a distance.

TEPCO's patrol (probably...)

TEPCO's patrol (probably...)

It is too dark to see clearly, but I think the car was a RAV4....
Still, he seemed strangely flustered somehow...or was it my imagination?

View of the levee from the plaza on the downstream side

View of the levee from the plaza on the downstream side

And then came the morning, frightened by the bear. I was scared of a bear........ It was a thick fog, a thick fog. It was better that it wasn't raining, but we wanted to get to the next dam, so we couldn't wait for the fog to clear....

Incidentally, the building in front of the dike is a restroom.

View of the levee from the plaza on the downstream side

View of the levee from the plaza on the downstream side

First, we strolled downstream. There were crows cawing a lot, and I was already scared that a bear might appear.

View of the levee from downstream on the right bank

View of the levee from downstream on the right bank

And it is dark because of the unfavorable sky and kiri....

Gate on the road leading to the top edge

Gate on the road leading to the top edge

Now we come to the top end.
It does not appear that you can drive to the top of the mountain, so you will have to go on foot. It is quite a long way and uphill. It took about 10 to 15 minutes with my leg strength.

View of the levee downstream from the left bank

View of the levee downstream from the left bank

We came to the top edge level. However, we could not get any closer to the dike because of the fence. Unfortunately, this is often the case with pumped storage power generation. We gave up on this point.

View of the top edge from the left bank

View of the top edge from the left bank

The top end is a very ordinary top end, as is typical of rock-fill dams. Looking only at this point, it looks like an earth dam.
The fill material that forms Kuriyama Dam is made of rocks created when the dam lake was excavated, and like the Imaichi Dam, it seems to be built in an environmentally friendly manner.

View of the monument and dam lake from the left bank

View of the monument and dam lake from the left bank

It is too dark to see the words Kuriyama Dam written on the stone monument....

View of the embankment on the lake side from the left bank

View of the embankment on the lake side from the left bank

The Kuriyama Dam seems to be under construction and should be storing water, but as you can see, it is empty. Conversely, the Imaichi Dam in the Lower Pond is full of water.

View of the dam lake from the left bank

View of the dam lake from the left bank

There is some left, but it is almost empty.

View of flood discharge

View of flood discharge

Here's what scared me! The flood discharge is tunneled. When I looked at the levee from downstream, I did not see a flow guide wall, so I imagined that it might be behind a mountain. But to my surprise, it was a tunnel type.

On the way walking from the plaza downstream to the top edge, I could not see the discharge outlet, so I was uncertain what the outlet itself looked like, but I checked Google Maps and found it. It seems that we had to go down a road that didn't even seem to be paved, but I didn't notice it at all at the time.... But even if I had known about this road originally, I don't know if I would have actually gone there, given the possibility of running into a bear on foot. w

View of the dam lake from the left bank

View of the dam lake from the left bank

It's not that I didn't want to do a full circle around the dam lake, but I couldn't due to lack of time and fear of bears.

View of the dam lake from the left bank

View of the dam lake from the left bank

How I did it, Kiri sometimes gets thicker....

Unmanned control center on the left bank

Unmanned control center on the left bank

This place is unmanned and appears to be remotely monitored.

View of the levee from the plaza downstream

View of the levee from the plaza downstream

We are back at the plaza on the downstream side. The kiri has cleared up considerably.
The Kuriyama Dam was the most interesting dam I have ever personally visited. After all, it is interesting to get there. Please visit it for driving, hiking, climbing, etc.

I thought it was a benbecue, but it's a barbecue plaza.

I thought it was a benbecue, but it's a barbecue plaza.

As a side note, the guardrail on the road from the downstream to the top of the river read "Benbecue Plaza" and I did not understand what it meant at first, but after a while I realized that it was a "barbecue. I am not sure if there are really people who barbecue in such a place or not...

dam characteristics

River NameTone River System Nebesawa River
Objectivegeneration (e.g. power)
Modelrockfill dam
Bank height97.5m
Bank length340m
Dam volume2,517,000m3
Watershed Area0.9km2
Reservoir area32 ha
Total storage capacity7,070,000m3
Effective water storage capacity6,200,000m3
Dam operatorTokyo Electric Power Co.
Main body constructorMaeda Corporation, Japan Land
Year of launch1978
Year Completed1991
Name of Dam LakeKuriyama Adjustment Pond

Other facilities/observations

The PR exhibition hall is located a short distance from here on the Kinugawa River.TEPCO Kinugawa LandThe "TEPCO Kinugawa Land" is available. For a more detailed tour of the power plant and other facilities, you can apply for a free tour at TEPCO Kinugawa Land. However, it seems to be limited to groups. However, the Kuriyama Dam is not included in the tour course.  
Hours: 9:00-16:30
Closed: Wednesdays (or the following day if Wednesday is a national holiday)
Unfortunately, the museum is closed.

Parking lot
Toilet
Park×
PR Exhibition Hall
Fishing×

Accommodations that may be close to Kuriyama Dam

This article was written by.
Shin Jinma

Dam enthusiast who loves Momosuke Fukuzawa / Dampedia and Dam News administrator / Certified Dammeister (01-018) by the Japan Dam Foundation / Started selling discharge caution goods.https://shop.dampedia.com

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