The Jigokudani Monkey Park in Nagano Prefecture is the
place where you can see Snow Monkeys bathing in a
natural hot spring. The park is within the natural habitat
for the Japanese Macaque, which is Jigokudani Valley in
Yamanouchi. It is close to the onsen towns of Shibu and
Yudanaka. To give better access to people wanting to
see the snow monkeys they built a man-made onsen (hot
spring) for the primates to enjoy. Snow monkeys are
known to have thick coats of fur for the cold weather. The
color of their fur is of a brown-grey variety and their faces
are red. They have short tails and as species they are
referred to as Nihonzaru.
Jigokudani Monkey Park was first established in 1964
near the Yokoyu River. Jigokudani translates to Hell
Valley and it is called that because of the steam coming
from the natural hot springs resembles mythological
description of it. Back before the park opened the snow
monkeys would sneak into onsens at hotels, hostels, and
ryokans (traditional Japanese inns) to stay warm during
the winter. The Japanese Macaques can be found in
different parts of Japan, but in the Jigokudani Monkey
Park their unusual love for the onsen can be seen.
Thousands of visitors go to the area to take photos the
snow monkeys relaxing in the heated water.
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