The photo above was taken from the top of the ropeway up Mount Usu: the lake the lefthandside is Lake Toya and the brown rock on the righthandside is part of Japan’s newest volcano, Showa Shinzan. The mountain has been growing higher and higher over recent years and it is well worth watching the video in the gift centre at the top of the ropeway to learn of the impact of these changes and how the locals learn to live with volcanos.
So, on one side of the mountain you see Lake Toya and on the other you see the Pacific Ocean.
The many stairs on the way to the Mount Usu Observatory Point were flanked with lovely flowers, as a distraction from the climb maybe?
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