A Night When the Water's Edge Glows Blue
Late on a spring night, on a moonless beach along Toyama Bay, the waves pull back and sometimes leave the sand scattered with points of pale blue light. Step closer and you find they are tiny squid. As your eyes adjust to the dark, there are nights when the line of the surf itself seems to give off a faint glow. This is the phenomenon known as the beaching of the firefly squid — in Japanese, their minage.
Firefly squid normally live in deep water, and in spring they swarm toward the shores of Toyama Bay to spawn. Few seas in the world are said to see whole swarms come this close to land, and the waters around Namerikawa are especially well known for it. On dark nights around the new moon, part of a swarm that has drawn near the shore can be washed up onto the beach — that is the beaching. When and where it happens, though, is entirely up to the sea, and there is never a guarantee you will see it. The direction of the wind, the moonlight, how near the swarm has come: only on nights when everything lines up does the beach glow blue.
If Not on the Beach, Then at the Table
Even if the night ends with nothing, in spring Toyama the firefly squid will be waiting at the table. The classic preparation is a quick boil, served with vinegared miso: put one in your mouth whole and the plump body gives way to the deep, concentrated savor of its innards. Its other face is okizuke, squid marinated in a soy-based sauce — lifted with chopsticks it has a glossy weight, the kind of morsel that keeps the local sake flowing. The glowing creature in the sea and the rich taste on the plate are two faces of the same small squid.
The Freedom to Walk Out to a Midnight Beach
The beaching happens between late night and the small hours — a window no day trip can reach. And even if you do go out, most nights will end with nothing at all. Whether to head for the beach anyway comes down to one thing: your plans for the next day. If nothing happens, you simply watch the dark spring sea for a while and walk back. Only someone with no morning schedule to answer to can afford that. The midnight beach belongs to travelers who don't need to worry about the morning after.