【A New Landmark in Tsuchiyama, Koka City】A Vast, Graphic Geological Cross-Section at an Excavation Site — Hard to Believe This Is Japan.

A Natural Photography Spot That Feels Uniquely Un-Japanese.

Near a dam in the mountainous area of my hometown, I came across an unexpected place.
A massive cross-section of exposed geological layers, revealed through excavation.

The first time I noticed it, I was genuinely moved.
The non-everyday sense of scale, and the fact that this incredibly graphic, almost designed appearance is actually a natural formation — it was astonishing to realize that something like this exists in nature, and even more so, that it was right here, so close to home.

A Beautifully Maintained Excavation Site

This location is the Koka Ballast Aodo Plant, located in Koka City, Shiga Prefecture.
It appears to be an excavation site where one or two mountains have been gradually carved away to extract resources such as limestone.

When you get close, it’s hard to grasp the full picture.
But viewed from the dam at a distance, the entire shape of the excavated mountain comes into view, revealing its impressive scale.

Colorful Geological Layers Spread Across the Mountainside

What immediately draws the eye is the exposed mountainside itself.
The cut surface forms beautifully defined geological layers, creating elegant horizontal stripes from the base all the way to the summit.

You can’t help but wonder:
How many tens of thousands of years did it take for these layers to accumulate?
The sense of time embedded here is overwhelming.

If you look closely, you can spot tiny excavators and dump trucks moving up and down the slope.
Their yellow bodies act like small visual accents — at that scale, the scene almost resembles a carefully designed graphic poster.

A Romantic Encounter with Five Million Years of Earth’s History

In Japan, geological layers are often said to form at a rate of about 1 cm per 100 years, meaning 1 meter takes roughly 100,000 years.

The clearly visible section in these photographs alone appears to be around 50 meters high.
That would represent approximately five million years of geological history.

Standing before these layers, you realize you’re face-to-face with five million years of time itself — an experience that exists on a completely different scale from everyday life.

No Entry Allowed

Of course, I did not approach the site itself.
This is an active work area, and it’s best to keep a safe distance.

That said, photographing the site from the dam using different lenses, across various seasons and times of day, could be incredibly rewarding.

Access to Koka Ballast Aodo Plant

Photographs of the Geological Layers at Koka Ballast Aodo Plant.