We were all bundled up for our guided hike this morning through the Shiretoko Five Lakes region inside the Shiretoko National Park. Because of its remote location Shiretoko is home to many endangered species, and the goverment takes great pains to protect it. From May 10 to July 31, during peak brown bear season, an authorized tour guide trained in bear defense tactics must accompany you on the three hour hike inside the woods. After a rather frightening intro video on the dangers of bears we nervously followed our trusty guide, Hidetatsu, into the wilderness. Basically, bears don’t like to be surprised, so we made sure to stomp our feet extra hard.
Legend has it that the lakes were formed when God touched this part of the world with each of his fingerprints. What I really loved is how the personality of each lake was unique with its own atmosphere, look and feel. The moisture in the air from the light rain highlighted the smell of the evergreens and moss-covered stones and trees. Jules enjoyed holding the exoskeleton of a cicada, feeling the deer fur lining the inside of a bird’s nest and checking out the eerie ghost, or corpse, plant (a parasitic plant with no chlorophyll). The hike ended with a stunning trek along the elevated boardwalk, built to protect the ecosystem and to protect visitors from curious bears. Apparently, a bear had been spotted on the boardwalk before despite its great height and the electric fences surrounding it.
We didn’t get to see as much wildlife as we had hoped inside the park, but then again, it wouldn’t have been fun to spot a wild bear at close range either. We headed back towards town for lunch when suddenly we saw two dark shapes on the road in front of us. What the?? Are those bears crossing the road?!? Mama bear and her cub were ambling over to the river to snack on some of their favorite delicacies, skunk cabbage, and we had front row tickets! I was able to get some shots with my zoom lens at a respectful distance inside our closed window vehicle, but other maniacs jumped out of their cars to run over to get their photo. Hmm, yes, that sounds like a good idea. Run out of your car after a mama bear and her baby with a two foot long telephoto lens. People are crazy.
With our adrenaline still going we continued on our way when I spotted a brownish red blur to my right — a red fox! We slowed down and pulled over, and this guy ran right up to the car, looked at us and then slowly squinted his eyes in a pleading way, as if to ask for food. You wily fox. Hold on, why is a wild fox running up to our car in the first place? Well, selfish tourists who will do anything for a photo actually lure foxes with bags of potato chips to get their shot and drive away, creating begging foxes who will run into the street after cars hoping for some snacks. Ultimately, the world ends up with foxes as road kill…grrrrr.
Goodness, who knew that all of these wildlife encounters were waiting just meters down the road outside of the national park! OK, back to finding a lunch spot. Deer! What? A few feet to my left on a steep hillside stood a beautiful deer with velvet antlers munching on some grass. Aaaahhhh, this place is too much!
On our way back to our hotel we spotted this lovely seaside seafood joint advertising crab and salmon, two of Hokkaido’s specialties. The kegani, or hairy crab, is in season right now, so I picked the one I wanted out of a tank, and the chef prepared it for me two ways: sashimi (raw) and boiled. The crab was insanely fresh, and the sashimi was so sweet. This will be the crab of my dreams from now on. Jules feasted on a gorgeous bowl of boiled crab meat and salmon roe while Philip opted for the salmon sashimi rice bowl.
The next day we made our way west across Shiretoko peninsula to the town of Rausu to spot killer whales. The air became decidedly chillier as temperatures on the western coast were averaging 10 deg F cooler than our home base. The small and off the beaten track Rausu Kunashiri Observatory offered up stunning views of the town of Rausu and the Japanese-Russian disputed island of Kunashiri. We also popped into the Rausu Visitor Center, which is simply one of the loveliest and most informative visitor centers ever. Our timing was such that we made it to the visitor center minutes before the geyser behind the center was supposed to erupt. We stood with a few Japanese tourists and gasped with everyone else when the geyser blasted its spray.
After a lunch of shio (salt) ramen we boarded the Shiretoko Nature Cruise with around 40 other passengers and embarked with hopes of spotting porpoises and whales. Jules opted to stay in the cabin with Philip due to the chilly winds and rain, but I figured the multiple layers I had on would protect me from the elements. A few Pacific white-sided dolphins swam alongside the boat as we ventured further out to deeper waters to find the killer whales and Minke whales frequenting the area around this season. Dall’s porpoises with their signature ‘rooster tail’ spray swam and jumped around us. The boat’s sonar showed whales in the area as well, but after an hour and a half without surfacing the captain realized it was a lost cause. Having stood at the very front of the boat to get the shot, bearing the brunt of the winds head on for the past hour and a half took its toll on me. Not to mention the wicked seasickness I get. I was able to keep my lunch down, but only after 20 minutes in a scalding hot bath was my body finally able to warm up to living human temperature again…brrrrr.
My nausea couldn’t bear to get back into a car again, so we walked ten minutes down the road to a fantastic cozy local izakaya (Japanese pub) that served up delicious yakitori (grilled yumminess) and whisky highballs. The perfect way to end the day.
