Fishing Spot Japan

Sweetfish fishing in Kinugawa system

July, August and September are the prime months. A cooperative day permit is required.

When

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D

Season grading is our editorial judgement, not a sourced figure. It says when the fish is catchable, not when the water is legally open — for that, read the closed seasons below.

Do you need a permit?

A cooperative day permit is required. Typically ¥1,000–2,000, and more for ayu.

Water
Freshwater
Prefecture
Tochigi
Region
Kanto
Getting there
2 h from Asakusa by limited express

How far our answer goes here

  • ✓National lawApplies everywhere. Foreign-national gear limits, protected species, bluefin controls.
  • ?PrefectureMinimum sizes, closed seasons and legal gear. This is a floor — local rules add to it, never subtract.
  • ~Sea-area / inland committeeDirectives that close specific waters or periods. We hold these for a few prefectures only.
  • ✓Cooperative permitTochigi Kinugawa Fishery Cooperative
    Tel 028-666-8899. Buy the ticket BEFORE you step into the river — bought on the bank it costs exactly double. Day tickets: all-species incl. ayu ¥3,200, non-ayu ¥1,700, coarse fish ¥1,000. Its rights also cover the Daiya, Ara, Kokai, Gogyo, Ta and Sugata Rivers, so one co-op governs a very wide area.

Rules stack. Everything above the line we hold; everything below it you still need to confirm on the ground. That gap is exactly what a local guide is for.

Size limits and closed seasons

Not yet transcribed for this prefecture. The cooperative’s permit rules and national law still apply.

About Sweetfish

Grazes algae off river stones and defends a territory — which is what makes tomozuri possible. Smells of watermelon.

Japanese
· ayu
Scientific name
Plecoglossus altivelis
Typical size
15–30 cm (6–12 in)

How it is fished here

Tomozuri

Tomozuri — Ayu are territorial, so a live ayu is swum through another's territory to provoke an attack onto trailing hooks. It exists nowhere else.

Elsewhere

Sweetfish is also listed at Kitakami River system, Nagara River (Gujo), Kuma & Kawabe Rivers. Everything caught in Kinugawa system.