My recent summer was mostly spent in Asia, with the longest time spent in Japan. Since it was boiling hot down in central Japan, I made an unexpected change in my plans and went up to Hokkaido, to see a bit of the wonderful scenic north and cool down a bit on the mountains. I was mostly based in Sapporo, but took occasional getaway trips.
Niseko was one of my getaways, but an even nicer one was the getaway I did to Lakes Shikotsu and Toya. It was absolutely gorgeous weather, and just about an hour trip from Sapporo up the mountains the scenery changes and once the lakes become visible it’s breath-taking. We started with a stop at lake Shikotsu, and tour a short boat trip around the lake with a transparent bottom yacht so that we could see the fish through the very clear water. We then made our way to Lake Toya where we had a great Japanese lunch and walked around. Some folks did some hotsprings. We then drove to Mount Oso to take the cable car up the mountains for spectacular views down at the coast and Lake Toya.
Lake Shikotsu
Lake Toya
Mount Usu
Lake Shikotsu
Toya Lake
Gorgeous day trip from Sapporo, do this if you have the time to explore!