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This 176 km route runs from Taiwa to Morioka, passing through Miyagi and Iwate. In the past 30 days, 163 bear sightings were reported within 5 km of the route. The past 7 days account for 19 of them. The latest sighting was reported 2 days ago near Morioka Higashinakano, Iwate.
This is an active bear corridor. Drive through with full caution, but rerouting is the safer choice.
A schoolchild spotted three bears (one adult and two cubs) wandering in Hachimancho, Morioka City.
Morioka Higashinakano, Iwate
Found one young bear in the field.
Morioka Higashinakano, Iwate
June 25
Taiwa Yoshioka-Tennojihigashi, Miyagi
A bear was sighted in Maesawa Komizu, Oshu City.
Ōshū Maesawa, Iwate
June 24
Ohira 大森, Miyagi
Three bears (one adult, two cubs) observed
Morioka, Iwate
June 24
Taiwa Ochiai-Matsusaka, Miyagi
June 24
Ohira 奥田, Miyagi
Spotted one young bear near a house.
Morioka, Iwate
June 23
Osaki 古川雨生沢, Miyagi
June 23
Osaki 三本木蟻ケ袋, Miyagi
June 23
Taiwa Tsurusu-Kitameosaki, Miyagi
June 23
Osaki 三本木伊賀, Miyagi
June 23
Osaki, Miyagi
Around 7:30 AM on 2026-06-23, a bear was sighted in Iwadeyama Kamiyamazawa, Osaki City, Miyagi Prefecture.
Osaki, Miyagi
June 23
Osaki 古川雨生沢, Miyagi
Heard a bear making noises around the baseball field.
Morioka Momijigaoka, Iwate
A bear was sighted in Shimonokawara Shijūda, Morioka City.
Morioka Shimokuriyagawa, Iwate
A bear was sighted in Yumoto 12-chome, Hanamaki City.
Hanamaki Yumoto, Iwate
Around 10:40 on June 21, a bear was sighted in Yumoto 7-chiwari, Hanamaki City.
Hanamaki Ohata, Iwate
At around 7:06 PM on 2026-06-20, a bear was seen moving in Waga-cho Iwasakishinden 10-chiwari, Kitakami City.
Kitakami Wagacho-Iwasakishinden, Iwate
A man driving a car spotted one bear, about 1.5 meters long, crossing the road and going into the mountains at Omoriwakiguri in Ōhira Village.
Ohira 桔梗平, Miyagi
June 20
Ohira ときわ台南, Miyagi
A bear was sighted in Kamineko Hōzen, Hanamaki City.
Hanamaki Nishihareyama, Iwate
One bear, believed to be a cub, was sighted on the road in front of Shiroito Machinami Exchange Hall in Nishineurakoji, Kanegasaki Town, Iwate, and crossed Route Esashi-Kanegasaki from north to south.
Kanegasaki, Iwate
June 19
Kurihara 築館字蟹沢, Miyagi
One bear was sighted in Higashi-Senboku 2-chome, Morioka City.
Morioka Higashianiwa, Iwate
June 19
Osaki 三本木蟻ケ袋, Miyagi
June 19
Ohira 駒場, Miyagi
In Hachimancho, Morioka City, a schoolchild spotted one bear roaming around.
Morioka Higashinakano, Iwate
One adult bear (or bear-like animal) sighted
Morioka Otobe, Iwate
June 17
Osaki 三本木坂本, Miyagi
June 17
Taiwa Yoshioka-Tennojihigashi, Miyagi
Around 5:10 PM on 2026-06-17, a bear was sighted in Takagi 20-chiwari, Hanamaki City, Iwate Prefecture.
Hanamaki Takaki, Iwate
Found large bear footprints.
Morioka Otobe, Iwate
The spot where a culled sika deer was buried has been dug up and the carcass taken. There are drag marks nearby, as well as bear tracks and droppings.
Morioka Otobe, Iwate
One bear sighted near the home's garage
Morioka, Iwate
One bear was sighted on the opposite side across the Neda Shigekawa (Nedashigekawa) River.
Morioka, Iwate
June 17
Osaki 三本木蟻ケ袋, Miyagi
A bear was sighted in Sanbongi Otonashi Amida, Osaki City, around 19:00 on June 17.
Osaki 三本木音無, Miyagi
Empty honey boxes and the place where hive frames were stored were ransacked.
Morioka Otobe, Iwate
Bear droppings are on the road. There are also bear tracks nearby.
Morioka, Iwate
Around 9:30 on June 15, a bear was sighted in Tsurusu Kitemi Osaki Shinnyama-shita, Taiwa Town, Miyagi Prefecture.
Taiwa Tsurusu-Toya, Miyagi
June 15
Taiwa Tsurusu-Toya, Miyagi
June 15
Osaki 三本木伊賀, Miyagi
A bear was sighted in Mizukoshi, Inasecho, Kitakami City, around 5:15 a.m. on June 15.
Kitakami Inasecho, Iwate
June 15
Osaki 三本木伊賀, Miyagi
While working in the apple pre-cooling shed within the orchard, a bear was sighted. Apple boxes outside the shed and the refrigeration unit's drain pipe were damaged.
Morioka Kawamata, Iwate
One bear was observed crossing the road.
Morioka Kawamata, Iwate
Observed one adult bear entering northwest into the woods from the area near Kinugawa Junior High School.
Ōshū 衣川古戸, Iwate
The beehive box at the apiary beside the house was knocked over, and one hive frame was damaged.
Morioka Haba, Iwate
One beehive box at the apiary beside the house was missing. Bear footprints and paw prints were found nearby.
Morioka, Iwate
June 13
Osaki 三本木坂本, Miyagi
June 13
Osaki 三本木坂本, Miyagi
June 13
Osaki 三本木坂本, Miyagi
On National Route 456 heading from Esashi toward Daitō, observed one adult (bear) moving from right to left across the road.
Ōshū 江刺岩谷堂, Iwate
One bear sighted in the hot spring facility's parking lot
Morioka Kagano, Iwate
A bear was sighted in Kaminai Nooto, Morioka City, around 16:20 on 2026-06-12.
Morioka Shimoyonai, Iwate
Observed one medium-sized bear inside an apple orchard
Morioka Shimokuriyagawa, Iwate
On 2026-06-12 around 09:35, a bear was sighted moving in Kamionikiyanagi 2-chiwari, Kitakami City, Iwate Prefecture.
Kitakami Kamioniyanagi, Iwate
Bear tracks were found in the rice field east of the road east of Higashimizusawa Junior High School.
Ōshū 水沢佐倉河, Iwate
June 12
Ohira 奥田, Miyagi
I sighted a mother bear and her cubs on the premises.
Morioka Shimoyonai, Iwate
A bag of rice bran at a nearby shed was ravaged by a bear.
Morioka Shimokuriyagawa, Iwate
June 11
Ohira 大衡, Miyagi
June 11
Taiwa Ochiai-Matsusaka, Miyagi
One bear about 1 meter long was seen walking north along a roadside in Ochiai Matsuzaka Akasaka, Taiwa Town.
Taiwa Ochiai-Matsusaka, Miyagi
June 11
Ohira 大森, Miyagi
The field's mulch was torn, and there were footprints. The compost was disturbed.
Morioka Nagai, Iwate
Around 10:05 on 2026-06-11, one bear was sighted in Maesawa Ropponmatsu, Oshu City, Iwate Prefecture.
Ōshū 衣川日向, Iwate
Bear scat believed to be present at the boundary between the soccer field and the ground golf course in Sakurazutsumi Park.
Ōshū 水沢佐倉河, Iwate
June 11
Kurihara 築館字沢入, Miyagi
Around 5:10 AM on June 11, a bear was sighted in Nakaneko Nijūni Shinmei, Hanamaki City.
Hanamaki Nakaneko, Iwate
A bear was sighted in Yukuchi Hirabayashi, Hanamaki City, Iwate, around 13:05 on June 11.
Hanamaki Nishihareyama, Iwate
Around 8:00 on 2026-06-11, a bear was sighted in Isawa Koyama Harakawa, Oshu City, Iwate Prefecture.
Ōshū, Iwate
Witnessed one adult bear entering the mountain to the south from the household premises.
Ōshū Maesawa, Iwate
Observed one adult bear and two juvenile bears on the riverbed of the Otobe River.
Morioka Kawamata, Iwate
Bear sighted in the Hidaka-nishi area. (Details unknown)
Ōshū 水沢, Iwate
Around 15:30 on 2026-06-10, a bear was sighted in Mizusawa Hidakanishi, Oshu City, Iwate Prefecture.
Ōshū 水沢, Iwate
On 2026-06-10 around 14:50, a bear was sighted moving in Oniyanagicho Todori, Kitakami, Iwate.
Kitakami Oniyanagicho, Iwate
Apples stored in a shed used for farm work and storage had been eaten/raided. Also, there were numerous droppings believed to be from a bear both inside and outside the shed.
Morioka Yamagishi, Iwate
Observed one bear moving north on the road west of the pharmacy.
Ōshū Mizusawa-Miyashitacho, Iwate
June 10
Kurihara 築館字築館蟹沢, Miyagi
At around 09:15 on 2026-06-10, a bear was sighted in Shiwahime Hachisugiurayama, Kurihara City.
Kurihara 志波姫台東, Miyagi
June 10
Kurihara 志波姫横峰浦, Miyagi
A single bear cub was seen moving eastward along the bank of the Yonai River in Nodō, Morioka City.
Morioka Shimoyonai, Iwate
June 10
Kurihara 築館字内南沢, Miyagi
A bear was sighted in Tsukidate Takada 2-chome, Kurihara City, Miyagi.
Kurihara 築館字内南沢, Miyagi
Near the apple orchard, sighted one adult bear and two cubs.
Morioka Yamagishi, Iwate
A bear was sighted moving in Fujisawa 15-chiwari, Kitakami City, around 04:07 on 2026-06-10.
Kitakami Ryutsu-center, Iwate
June 10
Kurihara, Miyagi
Around 9:30 on 2026-06-10, a bear was sighted in Takashimizu Nakano-sawa, Kurihara City, Miyagi Prefecture.
Kurihara 築館字築館蟹沢, Miyagi
A bear was sighted in Semine Ōwanidani, Kurihara City.
Kurihara, Miyagi
At a residential lot in Kurokawa, Morioka City, a rice-polishing machine and a wooden box in a work shed were found damaged, believed to be caused by a bear.
Morioka Kurokawa, Iwate
A bear was sighted in Mizusawa Ohatajikoji, Oshu City, around 10:05 on June 10.
Ōshū Mizusawa-Miyashitacho, Iwate
A bear was sighted in Kamiyonai Matsukihira, Morioka City, around 9:00 AM on June 10.
Morioka Yamagishi, Iwate
June 9
Osaki 岩出山, Miyagi
Observed one adult bear entering the woods near Shimoodaibukuro Bridge.
Ōshū 衣川古戸, Iwate
A nearby resident spotted one bear, about 60 cm long, in a wooded area in Tsukidate Kido area, Kurihara City.
Kurihara 志波姫南堀口, Miyagi
June 9
Kurihara 志波姫南堀口, Miyagi
June 9
Kurihara 金成沢辺, Miyagi
While working in a rice field, the reporter spotted one medium-sized bear on the lower slope of the nearby mountain. They scared it off with a rocket firework, and it fled up the mountain.
Morioka Kagano, Iwate
A bear was sighted in Kanari Sawabe Maemonzawa, Kurihara City, on 2026-06-09.
Kurihara 金成沢辺, Miyagi
A bear was sighted in Ishidoriya-cho Kuronuma 8-chiwari, Hanamaki City.
Hanamaki Ishidoriyacho-Kuronuma, Iwate
June 8
Kurihara 志波姫南堀口, Miyagi
A single young bear was sighted near the parking lot reserved for staff of the Handmade Village.
Morioka Yuzawa, Iwate
A bear entered the grounds of a prefectural apartment complex in Yuzawa-Higashi, Morioka, tore open fertilizer bags, and scattered fertilizer.
Morioka Yuzawa, Iwate
A single medium-sized bear was sighted moving toward Iwayama near the Iwayama entrance on National Route 4.
Morioka Yuzawa, Iwate
June 7
Kurihara 築館字下待井, Miyagi
June 7
Ohira ときわ台, Miyagi
Around 13:30 on 2026-06-07, a bear was sighted in Ohira Heirin, Ohira Village, Miyagi Prefecture.
Ohira ときわ台, Miyagi
June 6
Ohira ときわ台, Miyagi
June 6
Ohira ときわ台南, Miyagi
One bear was sighted in grassland in the Ohira Shionami area of Ohira Village.
Ohira ときわ台南, Miyagi
A single juvenile bear was sighted near the staff-only parking lot of the Handmade Village.
Morioka Higashimirumae, Iwate
Around 09:04 on 2026-06-06, a bear was sighted in Sanbongi Saida Magishi, Osaki City, Miyagi Prefecture.
Osaki 三本木斉田, Miyagi
At around 5:30 a.m. on June 6, one bear was passed by on Route 457 in Yoshioka Ishigamizawa, Taiwa Town.
Taiwa Yoshioka, Miyagi
In Yoshioka, Taiwa Town, a driver spotted one bear about 1 meter long moving south on Route 457.
Taiwa Yoshioka, Miyagi
A single young bear was sighted, believed to have come down from the mountains.
Morioka Higashimirumae, Iwate
A bear about 1 meter in length was seen moving in the direction of the paddy fields to the south.
Morioka Otobe, Iwate
June 5
Osaki 古川清水, Miyagi
At around 13:37 on 2026-06-05, one bear was seen moving in Shimooni 2-chiwari, Kitakami City, Iwate Prefecture.
Kitakami, Iwate
A single young bear was sighted near the parking lot reserved for staff of the Handmade Village.
Morioka Sanbonyanagi, Iwate
Observed one bear heading south on the prefectural road from Ainazawa toward Nagane.
Ōshū Maesawa, Iwate
A bear was sighted at Tsukidate Terukoshi Yamanokamimae in Kurihara City.
Kurihara 築館字荒田沢, Miyagi
June 5
Kurihara 築館字照越, Miyagi
A bear-like animal was sighted in Sanbonyanagi 4-chiwari, Morioka City.
Morioka Sanbonyanagi, Iwate
Five days earlier, in the same shed in Kurokawa, Morioka City, a bear was believed to have eaten stored rice bran.
Morioka Kurokawa, Iwate
A bear was sighted in Maesawa Ainosawa, Oshu City.
Ōshū Maesawa, Iwate
One large animal thought to be a bear the size of a large dog was sighted.
Morioka Teshiromori, Iwate
June 4
Kurihara, Miyagi
A bear was sighted in Isshō Yanagime Mochikurezawa, Kurihara City, Miyagi, around 18:50 on June 4.
Kurihara 一迫柳目, Miyagi
Observed a bear moving northward near the Tsutsumijiri Residents' Hall.
Ōshū 水沢佐倉河, Iwate
June 4
Kurihara, Miyagi
Around 7:40 on June 4, a bear was sighted in Tsukidate Ota Nakaota, Kurihara City.
Kurihara, Miyagi
June 4
Kurihara, Miyagi
A bear ate one bag of rice bran stored in a garage and farm work shed on a residential property in Kurokawa, Morioka City.
Morioka Kurokawa, Iwate
Around 2:00 on June 4, a mature bear was captured on an AI camera on the south side of Kamimachi Park in Ishidoriya-cho, Koji, Hanamaki City.
Hanamaki Ishidoriyacho-Kochi, Iwate
Around 8:00 PM on June 4, a bear was sighted in Kosegawa 1-chiwari, Hanamaki City.
Hanamaki Kunuginome, Iwate
A bear was sighted in Tengada, Hanamaki City.
Hanamaki Tenkada, Iwate
June 3
Tomiya 富谷, Miyagi
One bear cub was sighted in Teshiro-mori, Morioka City.
Morioka Teshiromori, Iwate
One bear was seen moving in Aisari-cho Kami-sanjunincho, Kitakami City.
Kitakami Aisaricho, Iwate
An adult bear was sighted near the garbage collection point.
Morioka Ueda, Iwate
Observed one young bear running away along the road.
Morioka Higashimirumae, Iwate
An adult bear was seen running east on a road in Ishidoriya-machi Ezo 9-chome, Hanamaki City.
Hanamaki Ishidoriyacho-Eso, Iwate
An adult bear was behind the garbage collection point near the caller’s home; afterward it ran off toward the forest.
Morioka Mitsuwari, Iwate
June 1st
Kurihara 築館字築館蟹沢, Miyagi
June 1st
Osaki 三本木秋田, Miyagi
June 1st
Osato Higashinarita, Miyagi
June 1st
Osaki 岩出山下野目, Miyagi
June 1st
Kurihara, Miyagi
There are bear tracks at the hands-on farm located on the south side of the elementary school.
Morioka Kagano, Iwate
May 31
Kurihara 築館字築館蟹沢, Miyagi
May 31
Tomiya 三ノ関, Miyagi
There were bear tracks in the field.
Morioka Yuzawa, Iwate
May 31
Osato Higashinarita, Miyagi
Signs suggesting a bear sighting (tracks of raspberries/blackberries eaten)
Morioka Yuzawa, Iwate
A bear was sighted in Kuzu 1-chiwari, Hanamaki City.
Hanamaki Ishidoriyacho-Eso, Iwate
On May 30 around 14:30, a bear was sighted in Waga-machi Goto 13-chiwari, Kitakami, and was seen moving.
Kitakami Nippei, Iwate
May 29
Ohira, Miyagi
May 29
Ohira, Miyagi
Around 6:55 a.m. on May 29, a bear was sighted in Kamishinai 10-chome, Hanamaki City.
Hanamaki Kaminitanai, Iwate
Peak activity at 16:00 with 15 incidents
Ursus thibetanus japonicus
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In the past 30 days, 163 bear sightings were reported within 5 km of the route. The past 7 days account for 19 of them.
The latest sighting was reported 2 days ago near Morioka Higashinakano, Iwate.
Recent sightings on this route peak around 16:00. Bears are generally most active at dawn and dusk.
This 176 km route runs from Taiwa to Morioka, passing through Miyagi and Iwate. In the past 30 days, 163 bear sightings were reported within 5 km of the route. The past 7 days account for 19 of them. The latest sighting was reported 2 days ago near Morioka Higashinakano, Iwate. This is an active bear corridor. Drive through with full caution, but rerouting is the safer choice.
