Hokkaido Trivia – Hokkaido Mountains

I was traveling to Niigata the other day (Niigata is a vertically long prefecture in mainland Japan along the Japan Sea).  I was paying a visit to my family grave.  It’s my homeland💓  Like many Japanese (especially in the mainland), my family cherishes “homeland” (the place where your ancestors come from or where you grew up or where your domicile is registered).  Niigata is a land surrounded by mountains and ocean, famous for its signature rice “Koshi-Hikari”. 

If you travel to Hokkaido, you’ll realize that the mountains outside Hokkaido are much higher.  The nearest mountain to my homeland is Mt. Myoko 2454m in height.  The Northern Alps inland from Niigata is more than 3000m high.  In comparison, the tallest mountain in Hokkaido is only 2291m, which is Mt. Asahi.  The “high” peaks in Shiretoko that you can see from Abashiri are between 1000-1661m (highest Mt. Rausu).

One reason is that many of the mountains in Hokkaido are formed by volcanic activities rather than plate tectonics.

Because of the geographical (and the consequential botanical characteristics), Hokkaido’s mountains have a unique beauty different from those in mainland.  You can understand why 9 out of the “100 Beautiful Mountains in Japan” are from Hokkaido!

Hope this can be a little hint for you to enjoy your activities in Hokkaido in your future travels!