Lake Ashi

Introduction

Lake Ashi lies in Hakone, Kanagawa, Japan, a caldera lake formed some three thousand years ago when the collapse of Mt Kami on the Hakone volcano dammed a valley. It sits about 723 m above sea level, spreads over roughly 6.9 sq km and reaches 43.5 m deep, and is the centrepiece of Hakone sightseeing. On a windless morning Mount Fuji appears beyond the northern shore and lays its 'inverted' reflection on the water, framed with the vermilion Peace Torii of Hakone Shrine standing in the shallows — one of the most reproduced views in Japan. Replica seventeenth-century pirate ships and cruise boats shuttle between Moto-Hakone, Hakone-machi and Tōgendai; from the western shore the Hakone Ropeway climbs to the sulphur vents of Ōwakudani, while on the east the restored Hakone Checkpoint and the cedar avenue of the old highway recall travel on the Edo-period Tōkaidō. With the Narukawa Art Museum's Japanese paintings and lakeside hot-spring inns, the shore easily fills a full day.

✨ Highlights

🛈 Practical Info