Abe River

Abe River
Abe River at Shizuoka
Native name	安倍川
Country	Japan
Basin
Main source	Akaishi Mountains 2,000 m (6,600 ft)
River mouth	Suruga Bay 0 m (0 ft)
Basin size	567 km^2 (219 sq mi)
Physical characteristics
Length	53.3 km (33.1 mi)

The Abe River (安倍川 Abe-kawa) is a river in Shizuoka Prefecture of central Japan. It is 53.3 kilometres (33.1 mi) long and has a watershed of 567 square kilometres (219 sq mi).^[1]

The river rises from Akaishi Mountains which stretch over the border between Yamanashi and Shizuoka Prefectures, and flows into Suruga Bay in the Pacific Ocean). It is known for its clear stream and forms part of the main water supply for Shizuoka city.

There are many hot springs at the river head, which is also known for its numerous landslides and for the Abe Great Falls, one of Japan's Top 100 Waterfalls. Unlike the nearby Tenryū River and Ōi River are no dams on the Abe River.

Shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu carried out extensive construction and formed the present route of the lower course of the river. Abekawamochi (安倍川餅), a mochi rice cake dusted with kinako (soybean flour) has been a local speciality of this area since at least the Edo period.^[2]

References

1. Japanese Ministry of Internal Affairs (1961). Japan statistical yearbook, Vol.12. Nihon Tōkei Kyōkai.
2. Tsuji, Shizuo (2007). Japanese Cooking: A Simple Art. Kodansha International. p. 469. ISBN 4-7700-3049-5.

34°55′47″N 138°23′38″E / 34.929749°N 138.393806°ECoordinates: 34°55′47″N 138°23′38″E / 34.929749°N 138.393806°E (mouth)