A Fall Foliage Viewing Spot in Hokkaido: Breathtakingly Beautiful Kosetsu-en, a Garden Constructed by a Magnate by the Name of Iwafune in the Meiji Period

Kosetsu-en was constructed by Minejiro Iwafune, a local magnate, in Meiji 31 (1898). So it is also called Former Iwafune Family Garden. The then abbot of Chion-in, the headquarters of the Pure Land Buddhism, visited the garden and acclaimed it as a “garden with scented plum blossoms in snow” for he was overwhelmed by its beauty, and thus the garden got the name “Kosetsu-en” (which literally means Scented Snow Garden).

In Showa 2 (1927), in gratitude for the locals, the Iwafune family leased the garden to the Hakodate Government, which have had the garden open to the public for free since then. Now, Kosetsu-en is the sole nationally designated cultural property among the gardens in Hokkaido.

Between late October and early November, the fall foliage, including those of ginkgo, palmate maple, red maple, oliver maple and baby’s breath, lend red and yellow to Kosetsu-en, which is amazingly beautiful. Red Foliage Garden that is elaborately adorned and the Red Foliage Path that runs for about 100 m in the garden are simply a riot of colors and full of poetic charm.

Further, during this period, an annual small concert is staged in the Green Center (a recreational facility in the garden), and when night descends, the fall foliage is illuminated to create a dreamlike romantic atmosphere.