other rivers
Nakama River
仲éå· Nakamagawa. On the east side of the island, accessible from Ohara. Much the same as Urauchi, except that instead of waterfalls the trail at the end leads to a giant mangrove tree said to be the largest and oldest in Japan. The 70-minute cruise costs ¥1,500.For jungle rivers minus the tour groups, head for Maira åè¯, Shiira å¾è¯ on the east coast or Yutsun ã¦ãã³ on the north coast. All are suitable for canoeing.
Pinaisala Falls
ããã¤ãµã¼ã©ã®æ». Inland from the inlet east of Funaura spanned by the bridge. Pinaisala Falls is the largest waterfall in Okinawa prefecture, with a height of about 55m. Pinai means a beard and sala means a waterfall, based on the dialect in Yaeyama islands. You can see this fall like a beard man from a long distance. Many local hotels offer tours where you kayak up the river then hike the rest of the way. It's possible, with some guidance, to hike all the way from the mouth of the river about 2-3 hours round trip. If you want to go to the top and basin of this fall by tours, it will take about 6-7 hours in round trip.
urauchi river
Urauchi River 浦å å· Urauchigawa. On the west side of the island. The longest river in Okinawa, running deep inland through dense mangroves and often likened to a little Amazon. The views can be quite spectacular, especially on a still morning.
Cruises
up the Urauchi River are probably the most popular activity on the island. ¥1,800 per person, the exact schedule changes daily but departures are frequent every 30 minutes or so in the mornings. Cruise commentary is Japanese only, but an English-language summary leaflet is provided. The departure point is near the Urauchibashi bus stop. Tel. 09808-5-6154, (http://www.urauchigawa.com/).At the end of the 8-km cruise you can disembark at Gunkan-iwa Rock and trek for half an hour through the jungle down a well-trod path to a viewing pavilion å±æå° tenbÅdai with views of the Mariyudu Waterfalls ããªã¦ãã¥ã®æ» Mariyudu-no-taki.
Another 10 minutes from here the trail descends to the upper level of the falls. As of December 2006, this section of the path is roped off due to a fallen tree.
5 more minutes down the main trail will take you to the KanbirÄ Waterfalls ã«ã³ãã¬ã¼ã®æ» KanbirÄ-no-taki. The cross-island trail starts from here.
You can also canoe your way up the river. Canoe rentals from ¥800/hour, or take a guided "eco tour" with boat transfer upriver for ¥6000.
On your way back, pop into the little museum on the second floor of the cruise pier building, featuring a selection of stuffed and mounted big bugs and crabs including the scary-looking yashigani see Eat. Free.
Star Sand Beach
æç ã®æµ Hoshizuna-no-hama. West of Uehara, accessible by bus. One of two beaches in Japan — the other is on Taketomi — where, for some mysterious reason, deposits of tiny white star-shaped shells regularly wash up. These days most of it ends up in bottles in souvenir shops.