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Walking Softly Live!
John Osaki's Blog
Amy Osaki's Blog |
 Meakandake & Akan Fuji seen
over Onneto. Japan's mountains offer an unusual escape from the ordinary!
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NEWS!
Walking Softly's hiking trips are now offered
under our "Mountain Hiking Holidays" label. You can access
information about our hiking trips at the Mountain Hiking
Holidays website at
www.MountainHikingHolidays.com. |
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For a more complete description of the
Hokkaido hiking
trip, please go to the
Hokkaido
Trails page at the Mountain Hiking Holidays website. |
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Join us on a hiking tour of Japan’s
northern island of Hokkaido. Hokkaido offers some of the wildest
landscapes and best hiking opportunities in the country. On this trip,
sample the mountain trails in the Shikotsu-Toya, Daisetsuzan, Akan, and
Shiretoko national parks. |
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The
lava dome of Tarumae-san. Photo by John Osaki. |
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Days 1-3: In the heart of the
Shikotsu-Toya National Park, hike to the summit of the Tarumae-san
volcano with its impressive and still steaming lava dome. Enjoy a walk
to the Moss Gorge (Koke-no-domon) whose walls are home to some
thirty different moss species. In the Niseko region, hike the Niseko
Circuit, a trail that leads though a varied and volcanically-created
landscape. Steaming thermal areas contrast with quiet lakes and deep
green bamboo thickets. Travel north to Daisetsuzan National Park and the
Ashaidake Onsen at the foot of Asahidake volacano, Hokkaido's tallest
peak. |
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Boardwalk
trail at Shinsen-numa on the Niseko Circuit hike. |
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Days 4-6: From Asahidake Onsen, a
cable car lifts you into the high country of the Daisetsuzan range. From
the Sugatami ponds ascend the trail up the cinder slopes of Asahidake to
reach its summit. Energetic hikers can complete a traverse of the
Daisetsuzan range descending at the end of the day to the
waterfall-lined gorge of Sounkyo. On another day, a loop hike leads past
several picturesque mountain ponds on the Daisetsu Kougen (Daisetsu
Plateau). Travel to the Akan National Park and the lake of Akan-ko, one
of three "crater lakes" for which the park is known. |
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The
Daisetsuzan high country. Photo by John Osaki. |
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Midori-numa ("Green Pond") is one of
several small lakes on the Daisetsu Kogen. Photo by John Osaki. |
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Days 7-9: From the lovely lake of
Onneto, hike to the top of Meakandake volcano crowned by two enormous
craters. An optional hike leads to the top of Meakandake's neighbor, the
symmetrical Akan Fuji. Travel to the caldera lake of Mashū-ko which some
hold to be Japan's loveliest. Enjoy a hike along a bamboo-lined trail to
a dramatic viewpoint high above Lake Kussharo, the third of Akan
National Park's crater lakes. Travel north to reach the Shiretoko
Peninsula whose wild landscapes are protected in the Shiretoko National
Park. |
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Meakandake (left) and Akan Fuji reflected in Onneto. Photo by John
Osaki. |
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Days 9-10: Hike to the summit of the
dormant Rausudake volcano to enjoy views down the mountainous spine of
the Shiretoko Peninsula. On a clear day, views extend out over the Sea
of Okhotsk to the Tyatya volcano on Russian-held Kunashiri Island. At
the end of the trip, travel to Memanbetsu in northern Hokkaido for your
departure. |
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The view
from Rausudake. Photo by John Osaki. |
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Hokkaido autumn flora.
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For a more complete description of the
Hokkaido hiking
trip, please go to the
Hokkaido
Trails page at the Mountain Hiking Holidays website. |
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