A Treasured Creation S2021E03 - Today's Treasure - "Natural Ice Farmers"

At the foot of the Nikko mountains lives Yamamoto Yuichiro (age 70) and his son Jinichiro (45), who produce the hardest natural ice in Japan without relying on any machines. The season begins in late fall when they adjust the amount of spring water daily while waiting for the cold weather. If the first centimeter freezes solid, then it will make fine ice. But if it doesn't, then they have to break it and start over. Yuichiro says, "Man can only do very little to nature. So what ice artisans do is just assist the ice to grow without obstructing nature." In December, they scrape snow to help the ice to grow and keep careful watch as it slowly grows until harvest time in 3 months. We take a close look at the efforts of these men who produce "hard-to-thaw" ice in harmony with nature.