Torii x beautiful higanbana at abandoned shrine

Torii x higanbana at a shrine in Kumagaya – Today on my way from Yoshimi’s higanbana to a completely different higanbana shrine I came across this abandoned shrine with stunning higanbana in bloom. I struggled with the lighting so unfortunately the photos aren’t great. But I just love higanbana x torii. There was no missing the higanbana from the street, as I could see the vibrant reds from miles away. But much to my surprise there was not one other person there. There was no signpost for the shrine, so I used google maps to pinpoint my location and it would seem the shrine is called Hachiman shrine.

Hachiman Shrine beside Sakura Riverside Park

I do not know anything about this shrine! If Google ever goes back to being a decent company (i.e. stops shadow banning small sites and stealing content for A.I.) I will research it and add information! For now, what I can tell you is that apart from red spider lilies there were three winter cherry blossom trees with a few sakura blossoms open. Also, it is right beside Sakura Riverside park. I think they share a parking lot. There was a signpost to say it was the parking lot for the park, but nothing about the shrine. However, it seems to be shrine’s land. I don’t know for sure though.

There are quite a lot of spider lilies here. Maybe not as many as at Iwatsuki’s famous higanbana shrine, Shinooka Hachiman shrine in Saitama City, but much more than at Kawagoe’s higanbana shrines – Shirahige or Senba Hikawa. I think there is probably more or at least the same amout as at Shinden Hiratsuka Hikawa shrine too, but spread out: the spider lilies are all around the circumference of Hachiman shrine.

Sakura Riverside Park

The sakura riverside park is known for its cherry blossoms. It is on the south of the Wada Yoshino river. Its a small park with two roller slides and three spring rides. There is also a wading river with stepping stones. Its a nice place for a quiet hanami with kids. You can barbecue there, bring your own, without a booking. There were two separate groups barbecuing there today! The park’s web page on the Kumagaya City website.