Shiretoko (World Heritage site)

*In winter, marine mammals cannot be seen, but you can enjoy drift ice and bird watching.

In the sea of Shiretoko, diatoms brought in by drift ice from the distant Amur River in Russia and abundant nutrients from the Shiretoko mountain range nurture a large amount of plankton.

This in turn breeds an abundance of fish, large and small, that feed on the plankton, which in turn attracts birds and marine mammals (whales, porpoises, orcas and other marine mammals.)

Sperm whales happen to be the most popular attraction on the cruises. 12 to 18 meters long and weighing 25 to 50 tons, they are the largest toothed animals in the world.

If you didn’t know, it was also the model for the famous American adventure novel “Moby-Dick”.

With a submarine-like appearance, with two-thirds of their body as their head, the whales look pretty funny. But, from the top of the boat, the close-up view of these dynamic creatures as they spout their tides and raise their tail fins in a dynamic manner is nothing less than exceptional, and hard to find experience anywhere else.

In early summer (May to June), howeverm you can also see large flocks of Short-tailed Shearwaters in such abundance that they blacken the sea. They are the most abundant birds in Tasmania in the southern hemisphere.

*They come all the way from Tasmania in the southern hemisphere, a distance of 32,000 km (about 80% of the circumference of the earth).

Below is a list of peak seasons and your chances of encounter with animals and birds; refer to it when you deciding to take a cruise.(The below are just rough estimates.)

Animal	Season	Encounter %
Sperm whales	June–September	40-80%
Minke whales	May–July	15-30%
Orca	April–July	30-50%
Dall’s porpoise	May–October	70-95%
Short-tailed shearwater	May–August	20-80%
Steller’s sea eagle	February–March	90%
White-tailed eagle	February–March	90%

From the boat, the view of the Shiretoko mountain range – the highest peak being Mt. Rausu at 1,661 meters above sea level – and Kunashiri Island is a marvelous sight.

It can get quite cold at sea during the summer season as well, so best to bring a light jacket.

Advance reservations are required for nature cruises. Use the below multilangual sites to reserve tickets.

Reservations	Hamanasu Cruise Veltra Whale And Bird Watching Shiretoko Nature Cruise
Address	Honcho, Rausu-cho, Menashi-gun, Hokkaido
Access	By Bus:13-minute walk from Rausu Office on each bus route. Approx. travel time: roughly 50 min. By Car:65 min from Nakashibetsu Airport.
Closed	Mid-October to late January Mid-March–late April
Time	Each company offers one tour in the morning and one in the afternoon The tour takes 2 hours and 30 minutes.
Fee	Adults: ¥8,800 Child (3 yr old–elementary school age): ¥4,400

Brown Bear Watching

This cruise traverses along the coast of Cape Shiretoko on a small boat, skillfully maneuvered by fishermen familiar with the waters. These boats allow you to get an up close view of the bears, if you’re lucky. Rusha bay, in particular, has a 90% encounter rate.

The view of strangely shaped rocks and precipices from close by is also very impressive.

Brown bear watching requires advance reservations, so please try the following multilingual sites.

Reservations	Shiretoko Peninsula Cruising Shiretoko Cape Bear Cruise
Closed	Mid-October to mid-April
Time	Each company offers one tour in the morning and one in the afternoon, each lasting 2 to 3 hours (depends on the course)
Fee	Adults: ¥6,000-¥10,000 Child: ¥3,000-¥5,000 (depends on the course)

Pleasure Cruise

This is cruise takes passengers on a large ferry to the west coast of the Shiretoko Peninsula, where precipitous cliffs continue.

There are two courses:

1. Secret ground Shiretoko Cape route
   Departs from Utoro Port and returns to Shiretoko Cape in 3 hours and 45 minutes
   (operates from June–September)
2. Kamuiwakka Waterfall Route
   Returns to Kamuiwakka Waterfall in 1 hour and 30 minutes
   (operated from late April–late October.)

This cruise is popular among Japanese, but not recommended.

Despite the high cost, the cruise is simply boring, with no interesting sights to be seen; it just follows the coastline. And, the speakers are constantly playing Japanese announcements and strange songs (Japanese blues), and it is very noisy.

The ocean voyage is quite bumpy, so those who are prone to seasickness will… well you can imagine.

A lot of negative things were written above, so it’s only fair to mention a postitive note: you can take your time admiring the scenery, which you cannot see from the land.

If you decide to board the boat, you should sit on the right side (running direction), which is closer to the shoreline and offers a better view.

Shiretoko Sightseeing Boat “Aurora”

This is cruise takes passengers on a large ferry to the west coast of the Shiretoko Peninsula, where precipitous cliffs continue. There are two courses: Secret ground Shiretoko Cape route Departs from Utoro Port and returns to Shiretoko Cape in 3 hours and 45 minutes (operates from June–September) Kamuiwakka Waterfall Route Returns to Kamuiwakka Waterfall […]

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Walking in Shiretoko

Below are the two courses for enjoying a stroll around the Shiretoko Five Lakes.

Elevated wooden path
This 3 to 5 meter-high raised-wood deck style (high deck) promenade is well maintained, safe, easy to walk along, and it is free!

• If you come by car, you will need to pay the ¥500 parking fee.

Although you can only reach the first lake of the Shiretoko 5 lakes, you can see the Shiretoko mountain range reflected in the lakes and the Okhotsk Sea stretching far out from the observation platform.

• 1.6 km round trip
• takes roughly 40 min
• Recommended for those who have limited time for sightseeing.

Ground Pathways
Since you will be walking on the ground where brown bears live, it is necessary to take a lecture at the “Shiretoko Five Lakes Field House” located near the entrance of the pathways.

• lecture fee: ¥250 no reservation required
• Approx. 10 min.

After the lecture, visitors can choose one of two routes to explore the area on their own, however, because of the danger of brown bears during the season of May 10–July 31, you must be accompanied by a professional nature guide.

3-km “Big Loop Course”

• Visits all the lakes
• About 1 hour and 30 min
• Fee: ¥5,000
• you need to apply in advance to the tour company through the following website.

“Small Loop Course”

• Visits the second lake and the first lake
• About 40 min
• Fee: ¥2,500
• reservations cannot be made in advance and must be made at the “Shiretoko Goko Field House” on the day of the tour.

With both courses you can safely take in the great outdoors with a lecture by a professional guide, including observation of brown bear tracks.

Shiretoko Five Lakes

The Shiretoko Five Lakes are five lakes surrounded by lush primeval forests at the base of Mt.Rasau and Mout Iō. Shiretoko’s scenic mountains (1,500m class) and trees quietly reflect off the pristine surface of the lakes giving you a sense of healing; take in the wonderful views of the ocean, forests, mountains, and lakes all […]

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Great Views

Shiretoko Pass

A 738-meter altitude pass located approximately halfway along the Shiretoko Highway connecting Utoro on the Sea of Okhotsk side and Rausu on the Nemuro Channel side. Popular as a photogenic spot where visitors can enjoy a magnificent view. Mt. Rausu — the highest mountain in the Shiretoko mountains — directly in front of you, the […]

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Rausu Kunashiri Observation Tower

This observatory – located on a hill 167m above sea level — presents a great panoramic view of Rausu city, the Shiretoko mountains, the Nemuro Channel, and Kunashir Island (about 25 km away). Stationed telescopes are available, which is nice.

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