The summer night sky is lit with impressive fireworks such as colorful star mines, and powerful 'nishakudama' which has an exploded diameter of ~500m! Keep an eye on the river too 🎆
Details for 2024
When: August 16th
Where: the Town of Kawasaki (Ichinoseki), along the bank of the Kitakami River, beside Kitakami Ohashi (bridge). Address: 岩手県一関市川崎町 北上川薄衣堤防付近 Start time (for fireworks) : 7pm , finishes ~9pm
Cost: 500 yen per person as a donation when entering the viewing area,
free for children under elementary school age
Event parking costs 1000yen Access: temporary buses will be in operation https://www.ichitabi.jp/imagem/event/1720136918_01.pdf
My experience
Every year on August 16th, Kawasaki Town holds a large fireworks display along the Kitakami River.
My coworkers had been mentioning this event for a while, so I was really looking forward to it. I anticipated that the event would be canceled because it rained heavily all morning on the morning of the event, and there was even a landslide warning. Luckily, the weather cleared up in the afternoon, and the event was a go!
My friends and I arrived at around 5 p.m. to get a parking spot. There was no free parking left, so we opted for one of the many paid parking areas (all 1000 yen). We set up our picnic sheet along the river bank and went to the food stalls. Yakitori, yakisoba, fried gyoza, crepes, shaved ice, beers—we're all set. The rain brought cooler weather, and the clouds made for some amazing sunset shots!
At around 7 p.m., the countdown began. The program launches around 10,000 fireworks over two hours. The event's main draw is the 'nishakudama', a massive firework that is rarely seen at fireworks celebrations in the prefecture. What's more, they are viewable in close proximity. Sadly, I wasn't able to capture a clear image of the nishakudama, but for comparison, the smaller-scale "isshakudama" is seen above.
At this event, I was able to appreciate the beauty and intensity of each firework. I am used to seeing multiple fireworks blowing up at once along the horizon, but this gave me a chance to savor the glory of each firework. One program introduced each name or style of firework before they were launched. Fireworks sponsored by family or friends had stories attached to them, some in the form of congratulatory messages and some as a dedication to loved ones who had passed on.
I thoroughly enjoyed the local and intimate feel of the event, the intensity of the fireworks, the fantastic backdrop of the Kawasaki Bridge, and the reflection in the river.
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