While the rest of Japan is still in summer, the first autumn color of the year turns on the Daisetsuzan range in central Hokkaido. The reported pattern, consistent across local outlets year after year: the summit area of Kurodake (1,984 m) starts coloring around late August, and the reds and yellows then walk down the mountain through September — reaching the Sounkyo onsen town at the trailhead around late September to early October.
That timing is the whole story. If your trip is in September, you do not need to wait for Kyoto’s November peak — the season has already started, and it starts here.
The easy way up: ropeway plus lift
The Kurodake ropeway runs from Sounkyo station (670 m) in the onsen town to Kurodake station at the 5th station (1,300 m) in about 7 minutes. From there, a chairlift continues to the 7th station at 1,520 m. From the operator Rinyu Kanko’s official page:
| Adult | Child | |
|---|---|---|
| Ropeway, round trip | ¥3,000 | ¥1,500 |
| Ropeway, one way | ¥1,800 | ¥900 |
| Chairlift, round trip | ¥1,200 | ¥600 |
| Chairlift, one way | ¥800 | ¥400 |
You do not need to be a hiker: the 5th-station rooftop terrace gives a 360-degree panorama and there is a roughly 30-minute loop walk at that level. The summit itself is a further climb from the 7th station and needs proper mountain gear — treat anything above the lift as mountaineering, not sightseeing.
Hours change with the season, and September straddles a boundary:
| Period (2026) | Ropeway | Chairlift |
|---|---|---|
| 27 June – 30 September | 6:00–18:00 | 6:30–17:30 |
| 1 – 15 October | 7:00–17:00 | 7:30–16:30 |
| 16 October – 8 November | 8:00–16:00 | closed for the season |
| 9 – 30 November | maintenance closure | — |
Two consequences worth planning around: the chairlift season ends 15 October, so after that the ropeway is the whole ride; and the last upward departure is 40 minutes before closing (ropeway) or 30 minutes before (lift). A round-trip ticket’s return leg is valid through the following day.
When the color is where
This section is held to a lower standard than the rest of the page. The operator publishes no foliage calendar, and an official forecast could not be read at the source anywhere — so the progression below is the pattern local outlets and the Sounkyo visitor centre’s photo log report each year: indicative, not a forecast. Confirm current conditions with the Sounkyo Visitor Center’s updates or the local hotels’ foliage logs before fixing dates.
The descent, as consistently reported:
- Summit area: late August. First color in Japan is usually reported here.
- 7th station: early September.
- 5th station (ropeway top): mid-September.
- Sounkyo town and gorge: late September to early October.
As one concrete anchor from 2025: the Sounkyo visitor centre’s photo log, republished by a local hotel, showed the Ginsendai area at peak around 13 September 2025, with the town-level color following weeks later. Year-to-year drift of a week or more is normal.
The practical takeaway: a mid-September visit wants the ropeway top and above; a late-September or October visit wants the town and gorge level. The lift-and-ropeway combination lets you choose your altitude on the day.
Drivers: the September car regulation
The Kurodake ropeway itself sits in Sounkyo town and is not affected by this. The regulation covers the trailhead roads on the Route 273 side — Ginsendai (for Akadake) and the Kogen-onsen area — which many foliage visitors combine with Kurodake in the same trip.
Kamikawa Town has published the 2026 regulation dates:
- Ginsendai road: 12–23 September (gate closes 19:00 on 11 September; 24-hour regulation)
- Kogen-onsen road: 19–30 September (gate closes 19:00 on 18 September) — this road was not regulated in 2025 and is regulated again in 2026
The format changed from previous years: on weekends and holidays, private cars park at the Lakeside temporary car park and a paid shuttle bus runs; on weekdays, the road runs alternating one-way traffic and private cars may pass. There are no reservations — the town says explicitly it cannot take them — and payment on site is cash only. The Ginsendai road reopens to general traffic from 16:30 on 23 September until the winter closure.
Getting there
The gateway is Asahikawa. Dohoku Bus runs the Sounkyo/Kamikawa line from Asahikawa station to Sounkyo — about two hours, with the adult one-way fare listed at ¥2,140 on the operator’s official ticket site; the timetable was revised on 1 July 2026 and the published version runs to 31 October. Sapporo–Asahikawa is about 90 minutes by JR limited express or around two hours by highway bus, so Sounkyo is a realistic overnight from Sapporo and a long day trip.
How to decide
- Trip in early–mid September? Daisetsuzan is the only place in Japan with real color that early. Base in Sounkyo, ride the ropeway plus lift, and pick altitude by how far the color has come down.
- Trip in late September–October? The color is at town level; the gorge and the ropeway ride are the show, and 1–15 October still has the lift running.
- Driving the trailhead roads 12–30 September? Check which regulation applies that day — weekend shuttle or weekday one-way — and carry cash.
- Coming after 8 November? The ropeway closes for maintenance until December. The gorge itself stays open, and winter is ice-festival season instead.
Official sources
- Rinyu Kanko — Kurodake ropeway and lift fares and hours: https://www.rinyu.co.jp/kurodake/
- Kamikawa Town — 2026 private-car regulation for the foliage season: https://www.town.hokkaido-kamikawa.lg.jp/section/sangyoukeizai/i8u8uo0000000eco.html
- Sounkyo Tourism Association — 2026 regulation notice: https://sounkyo.net/news/detail.html?content=101
- Dohoku Bus — official ticket sales (Asahikawa–Sounkyo fares): https://dohokubus.tourbooking-japan.com/A/ja-JP/product-list?tagIds=266
All prices, hours and regulation dates above were read from the official pages listed here on 18 August 2026. Ropeway and lift fares and hours are from the operator Rinyu Kanko; the 2026 regulation dates and format from Kamikawa Town and the Sounkyo Tourism Association; the bus fare from Dohoku Bus’s official ticket site. The foliage progression section is marked in place as a reported yearly pattern, with the 2025 observations from the Sounkyo visitor centre’s photo log — confirm conditions before fixing dates.
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