SUWA, Nagano -- A natural phenomenon called "Omiwatari," in which ice forming on the surface of Lake Suwa in Nagano ...

An ice bridge rises up from Lake Suwa, connecting its opposite shores ... parishioners from Yatsurugi Shrine came to the lake in winter to pray for its appearance and to add to a centuries ...

The basin, ringed by the Yatsugatake mountain range and the Southern Japanese Alps and with Lake Suwa at its center ... The messengers left the cave when winter ended, returning aboveground ...