River
The Hokuriku and Shinetsu Rivers: 5 Live Cameras in Japan
Five rivers running down to the Sea of Japan: the Shinano, longest in Japan; the Joganji, its bed above the land around it; the pale gravel of the Tedori.
What you can see
All five are touring streams: one feed steps through several points along the river, so you wait a little for the place you want.
The Shinano is the longest river in Japan. In Nagano it is called the Chikuma, and becomes the Shinano when it enters Niigata. Upstream and downstream of the same river swap places within one feed.
The Arakawa and Agano are the Arakawa of northern Niigata and the Agano, which flows out of the Aizu basin in Fukushima and crosses the Niigata plain. Both are heavy snow country. The Seki, Hime and Kurobe have only a short distance from mountain to sea and steep gradients. The Hime carries jade down from Itoigawa, and the Kurobe brings snowmelt off the Tateyama range onto its alluvial fan.
The Joganji, Jinzu, Sho and Oyabe reach the Toyama plain side by side. The Joganji is a torrent that keeps carrying stone off the crumbling slopes of Tateyama, and has reaches where the bed lies higher than the surrounding land.
The Tedori and Kakehashi are the Tedori, running from Mount Hakusan to the Sea of Japan, and the Kakehashi through the town of Komatsu. The Tedori spreads into a broad fan, and its pale gravel makes for a bright picture.
Cameras you can watch now: 5
All 5 are live video. Tap one to open it in the camera list.
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Stream cover
Shinano river system
Niigata–Nagano · River
The longest river in Japan. In Nagano it is called the Chikumagawa, and it becomes the Shinanogawa on entering Niigata. Upstream and downstream of one river alternate within a single stream.
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Stream cover
Ara and Agano river systems
Niigata–Fukushima · River
The Arakawa in northern Niigata, and the Aganogawa, which flows out of the Aizu basin in Fukushima and crosses the Niigata plain. Both drain snowy country and swell in the spring melt.
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Stream cover
Seki, Hime and Kurobe river systems
Niigata–Toyama · River
Three steep rivers with only a short distance from mountain to the Sea of Japan. The Himekawa carries Itoigawa's jade downstream, and the Kurobegawa spills snowmelt from the Tateyama range onto its alluvial fan.
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Stream cover
Joganji, Jinzu, Sho and Oyabe river systems
Toyama · River
Four rivers reaching the Toyama plain side by side. The Joganjigawa is a torrent that keeps carrying stone off the crumbling slopes of Tateyama, and in places its bed sits higher than the land around it.
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Stream cover
Tedori and Kakehashi river systems
Ishikawa · River
The Tedorigawa runs from Mount Haku to the Sea of Japan, and the Kakehashigawa passes through the town of Komatsu. The Tedorigawa has a broad alluvial fan and a bed of pale, bright stone.
When to watch
The snowmelt season in spring brings a large rise in flow. The Arakawa and Agano are especially deep snow country, and run high with no rain at all. The Kurobe also carries meltwater off the Tateyama range.
The other time is heavy rain. Rivers with a short run from mountain to sea, like the Seki, Hime and Kurobe, rise quickly once rain starts. Make evacuation decisions from your local authority.
On a calm day the colour of the riverbed differs. The Tedori and Kurobe show broad pale gravel and the picture is bright. Open the Shinano the same day and its wide lower water looks like another river entirely.
The operators do not say which month brings snow or colour, so we do not set one here.
If it isn't showing
The source is the Hokuriku Regional Development Bureau. These are test broadcasts and can stop without notice. How to tell why a screen is blank is in What is happening when a live camera shows nothing.
By prefecture: three in Niigata, one in Toyama, one in Ishikawa. The Shinano also runs through Nagano and the Agano through Fukushima.
For the mountains above these rivers: Mount Hakusan for the Tedori, Midagahara, Tateyama for the Joganji, Kamikochi for the headwaters of the Shinano. Open them the same day and you sometimes see the order: cloud on the mountain, then hours later the river moves. The next basin is The Kuzuryu River.
Where to find The Hokuriku and Shinetsu Rivers
Agencies publishing the cameras on this page
- MLIT river live streams (Government Standard Terms 2.0) — Official site
The footage belongs to each agency. This site is an unofficial guide, and each sample frame was copied once per camera under that agency's terms of use.