Location: Kamiatsu, Yamazoe-mura, Yamabe-gun, Nara Prefecture
View of the levee from the plaza on the hill
I took Meihan National Highway (Route 25) to visit Universal Studios Japan, and I stopped by on my way home. The approach to the site is relatively easy to find, as you can see the signboard when you get off the Yamazoe IC of the Meihan National Highway and drive west on Nara Prefectural Road No. 80. There is a major dam nearby, the Nunome Dam, but due to time constraints, we only covered the Uetsu Dam. I would like to cover the Nunome Dam again someday if I have the chance.
View of the embankment from the right bank
Photographing conditions were difficult because it was near evening, but I managed to do my best. The flood discharge is a natural overflow type.
View of the top edge from the right bank
It is said that people lived in this area in the early Jomon period, and the ruins were excavated when the dam was constructed. Therefore, replicas of Jomon earthenware are placed here and there at the dam site, but most of them were damaged because they were placed in such a messy manner. There were also some rocks in the area, such as "Fox Rock," which is said to have supernatural and legendary significance, but they were destroyed during the dam construction. I wondered if it was right to destroy such a historically significant place called "Nara" in such a convenient manner. Couldn't they at least relocate it? A dam may be necessary, but I think this kind of thing is also important.
View of the levee (downstream side) from the left bank
View of the embankment (lake side) from the left bank
View of the dam lake from the left bank
View of the levee from the high ground of the Jomon dwelling site on the left bank
View of the dam lake from the high ground of the Jomon dwelling ruins on the left bank
Uetsu Dam Specifications
| Model | gravity-fed concrete dam |
| Objective | irrigation water |
| Bank height | 63.5m |
| Bank length | 264m |
| levee length and width | 6.0m |
| Dam volume | 210,000m3 |
| Watershed Area | 18.9km2 |
| Reservoir area | 36 ha |
| Total storage capacity | 5,600,000m3 |
| Effective water storage capacity | 5,120,000m3 |
| Name of Dam Lake | Uetsu Dam Lake |
| River Name | Yodo River System Late River |
| Year of launch | 1975. |
| Year Completed | 2001 |
Other facilities/observations
If you search for this dam on a search site, you will find something about the extended layer construction method, but not much description of anything inconvenient. The Yamazoe Village website did not even describe the rock, let alone the dam. Although the dam was completed in 2001 and is a very fine dam, it is a dam that makes me feel disappointed in many ways.
| Parking lot | ○ |
| Toilet | ○ |
| Park | ○ |
| PR Exhibition Hall | × |
Accommodations that may be close to Kozu Dam
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