> Hiking Rishiri-zan - 利尻山を登る
Access to the site: frequent ferry on peak season, plan carefully your departure time. Difficulty level: hard. 1719 meters to be climbed from sea level. Path: well marked, it can turn very steep, with very loose scree: use the ropes! The Kutsugata trail is for serious hikers. Departure point: Oshidomari ferry terminal. Arrival point: Kutsugata. Duration: 6 to 8 hours, depending on weather. Landscape: very scenic, on a clear day, you can see up to Sakhalin Island, or Daisetsu-zan mountains (central Hokkaidô...!). What if it rains ?: to reach the top is serious matter. The path down to Kutsugata turn into a river. Season: July and August. Weather can be very unstable though... Rishiri peak tends to attracts all clouds around... Map: Yama-to-Kôgen (n°1), Shôbunsha: Shiretoko, Rishiri-tô and Rebun-tô. Attention: the trail down to Kutsugata is the hardest part, don't underestimate it. |
As for the first hikes described in this section, this first edition is still quite rough. I'll add a map as soon as I can.
Access
From Wakkanai, it is well deserved by ferry, especially during summer. Check
Higashi Nihon Ferry for details on schedule. There is basically ferries 4 to 5 times a day between Wakkanai and Rishiri-tô (1h40 - around 2000 yens); or
between Wakkanai and Rebun-tô(1h55 - around 2000 yens), and twice a day, a boat run between the two islands, both from Kutsugata and Oshidomari, to Kafuka
on Rebun island. The hikes described here goes from Oshidomari (North East point of Rishiri) to Kutsugata (on the Western coast).
Basically, you can catch the last ferry (15:40 during peak season) who goes from Kutsugata to Rebun island if you live early enough in the morning from Oshidomari.
You'd better spend the night on Oshidomari in order to have an early start (let's say before 6 am), and thus arrive
on Rishiri island the day before. If you choose to embark the earliest ferry from Wakkanai (around 6:30 am), be aware that it takes around 1h40 to reach Oshidomari.
In that case, you probably won't be able to catch the 15:40 ferry leaving from Kutsugata to Kafuka. One solution is to sleep
at Kutsugata (there is a very nice camping ground!) and leave on the following morning, or catch the bus (the last one is around 17:00) to Oshidomari ferry terminal, and go back to Wakkanai.
However, if you're a well-fitted experienced hiker, and provided the weather is and has been fine (which means the last part of the Kutsugata road is NOT a river!),
you may complete the hike in time to catch at least the last bus back to Oshidomari. My advise would be to take your time, enjoy the nature, and spare some
energy for the vertiginous Kutsugata road.
Food and water
You should prepare yourself for
a long hike without any water source past the Oshidomari camping site. Bring at least 3 liters for the whole hike.
You can find some convenience store or grocery store in Oshidomari, not far from the ferry terminal. Of course the best
solution is to bring all your provision before taking the ferry: Wakkanai offers more choice (as a general rule, conbinis
are not the cheapest place to buy food in Japan...). Onigiri is a good bet for energetic food, so as banana or cereal biscuits.
Camping facilities
The good thing with the Oshidomari
camp site is that it is well inside the island, about 45 minutes walking from the ferry terminal. If you arrive the day before, you can really have
an early departure, not be too hot during the exhausting part of the climb, avoid the crowds (especially around the end of July - beginning of August)
and maybe catch the ferry to Rebun-to at Kutsugata. There is also a Youth Hostel in Oshidomari, but you should book well in advance
in case you are relying on it.
You can also reach the island by plane, but it's certainly not the cheapest way to arrive there.
In Kutsugata, you can enjoy the best onsen ever! Late in the afternoon, having a bath with a view on the sea toward the West is just awesome. You
can really feel how "far away" you are on this very moment, like if you were lost on the last piece of land available on Earth...
There is a very nice camping ground in Kutsugata, just between the onsen (which is actually part of a hotel) and the ferry terminal, and it is free! For 200 yens, you can laundry
your wet socks (remember, the last part of the path to Kutsugata is some piece of adventure!) and clothes. If you cannot sleep, enjoy the night and its bright stars: there is no way
you'd be disturbed by light pollution!
You can also rely on mountain hut; there is one on the way up, and another one on the way down. It can be crowded during peak times, and be aware it is very basic:
a roof and 4 walls, that's it.
The Hike
This a view of Rishiri from the ferry. You can already see the amount of clouds concentrated on the top. The sky can be blue everywhere else, if the smallest depressure occurs, it would give this result. When you arrive in Oshidomari, you have to follow the road on the right, and then turn left. You'll then see a roadsign indicating the camping direction. As the track starts from here, this is the way to follow. After 45 minutes, the road narrows, and you finally arrive to the camping ground. This is the last place you can fill up your bottles, don't forget it! |
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Here is the beginning of the trail: it first goes through forest following an increasing steepness. Enjoy the nature, the fresh air under the trees. It might be slippery, with wet rocks or muddy ground, but it should be less frequent as you go up. By the way, there is no bear on Rishiri-tô, so don't feel like you "must" carry a bell on your backpack...! |
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Soon, trees will rarefy, or at least get shorter and shorter (which can be very annoying, because it makes you bend, or even crawl under it), and you can enjoy very nice views on Rebun island, Wakkanai, and even Sakhalin island. |
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Here is the sixth station, still four to the top! As you cannot see on this photo, the weather was steadily getting windy. Even in summer, and even in a coastal area, Rishiri-zan is a mountain, with its own, almost unpredictable climate. |
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If you get any trouble, injury, or if the weather turns really bad, you can have a break here. This mountain hut is just before the hardest part of the climb. The path until there follows a ridge: you can see the other side of the island, well, what was hidden by what you've been climbing until now. |
From here you can really enjoy good views of the whole region, and especially the town of Oshidomari, or the Soya bay, separating Wakkanai from the northernmost point of Japan, the Soya cape, Soya-misaki in Japanese. |
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From the ninth station, the path becomes extremely steep, with very loose scree. You should soon arrive to the intersection between the way up to Rishiri-zan (around 15 minutes more), and the Kutsugata route, which is the way we'll follow afterwards. You can leave your backpack here, so as the last part will be easier. All you need is your food, camera, raincoat or sweater. It can be very humid because we're reaching the height of the clouds that concentrate on the top of Rishiri-zan. If you're lucky enough with the weather, it should be okay. If not, take care not to twist an anckle on this tricky and slippery part. Don't mind use the ropes, it's here on purpose. |
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You cannot miss the top since it is crowned with this small shrine which awaits you at an altitude of 1719 meters. Actually, this is not the real top: the highest point is a little further, just after a narrow ridge, and it is two meters higher than this point. It is closed for safety reason: crumbly grounds and stones, you'd be wise not to transgress it. Despite freezing winds, a sunset from this place is a lifetime experience, but if you decide to do so, I advise you not to take the Kutsugata trail to go down by night. The wisest attitude would be to get back to the mountain hut you passed by a couple of hours ago, and to sleep there for the night. |
Once you get back to the intersection (don't forget your backpack!), two choices are offered: to go back to Oshidomari using the same path you've been walking on until now, or to follow the left path until Kutsugata, on the West side of the island. A lot of Japanese hikers don't recommend this track because of its difficulty. The first part of it is actually very steep, with scree, mud, crawling trees and roots: there are ropes along the way, but if you're afraid of heights (giddiness), you can feel a little bit dizzy at one or two specific moments. However, it is not "mission impossible", and this way is so scenic that it would be a pity to miss it. |
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Keep in mind that Rishiri-zan is above all a volcano, and not a regular mountain. Facing the West horizon as you go down is giving goose-bump: Can you figure how far you are from Russia and the Amur River region? |
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The sea appears wide open, and so as the nature, as you follow the edge of a spectacular ridge. Pay attention to the flowers around you: some of them are only found on this very island. |
The second part of the downhill track is not so interesting, as you'll soon enter some sort of forest. If it has been raining lately, it's almost certain that you'll feel like "walking in a torrent". About 1h30 before the end of the track, there is a mountain hut, pretty much similar to the one on the way up. You can see Kutsugata and the ferry terminal on this photo. |
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Finally, you'll arrive on the road, exhausted, and probably wet. This is generally the time where you wonder how one can manage to complete this hike starting from here and not from Oshidomari: this side seems so much steeper than the other... Anyway, there is still around 6 km to reach Kutsugata. Just follow the road, enjoying the light of sunset... If you're too tired, think about the nice onsen which awaits you... |
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You may wonder what are these arrows on the road... Actually, you may have encountered a lot if you're used to wander around on Hokkaidô. This is to indicate the road when it is covered with snow. |
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Kutsugata is facing the sea. Arriving here by night sounds like reaching the end of the land... |
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To wander around the street of Kutsugata during summer night is so nice, especially after such a wonderful day! There is a Seicomart 10 minutes from the campsite, following the road circling the island toward South (the ferry terminal is on the other side). |
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Kutsugata fishermens drying algae on the beach. Three things around you: the sound of the waves, the blue sky, and the green massive mountain just behind you...
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