, also referred to as Hakone Lake or Ashinoko Lake, is a scenic lake in the Hakone area of

Kanagawa Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Kanagawa Prefecture is the second-most populous prefecture of Japan at 9,221,129 (1 April 2022) and third-densest at . Its geographic area of makes it fifth-smallest. Kanag ...

Honshū , historically called , is the largest and most populous island of Japan. It is located south of Hokkaidō across the Tsugaru Strait, north of Shikoku across the Inland Sea, and northeast of Kyūshū across the Kanmon Straits. The island sepa ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...

. It is a crater lake that lies along the southwest wall of the

caldera A caldera ( ) is a large cauldron-like hollow that forms shortly after the emptying of a magma chamber in a volcano eruption. When large volumes of magma are erupted over a short time, structural support for the rock above the magma chamber is ...

of Mount Hakone, a complex volcano that last erupted in 1170 CE at

Ōwakudani is a volcanic valley with active sulphur vents and hot springs in Hakone, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. It was created around 3,000 years ago, as a result of the explosion of the Hakone volcano. It is a popular tourist site for its scenic vi ...

. The lake is known for its views of

Mount Fuji , or Fugaku, located on the island of Honshū, is the highest mountain in Japan, with a summit elevation of . It is the second-highest volcano located on an island in Asia (after Mount Kerinci on the island of Sumatra), and seventh-highest ...

, its numerous

hot springs A hot spring, hydrothermal spring, or geothermal spring is a spring produced by the emergence of geothermally heated groundwater onto the surface of the Earth. The groundwater is heated either by shallow bodies of magma (molten rock) or by circ ...

, historical sites, and ryokan. The lake is located on the Tōkaidō road, the main link between Kyoto and Tokyo. A number of pleasure boats and ferries traverse the lake, providing scenic views for tourists and passengers. Several of the boats are inspired by the design of sailing warships. Most visitors to Lake Ashi stay in one of the hotels or ryokan located in the area to visit some of the local attractions. There is also a campsite at the north end of the lake. Hakone Shrine is a shrine that has been visited by shōgun, samurai, and many travelers over the centuries. Large sections of the Old Tōkaidō road are preserved here. Onshi Park was the summer retreat for the imperial family that is now a public park. Taking the aerial tram Hakone Ropeway to The Great Boiling Valley. From Togendai on Lake Ashi, the Hakone Ropeway aerial tram connects to Sounzan, the upper terminus of the Hakone Tozan Cable Car funicular railway. This in turn connects to the Hakone Tozan Line

mountain railway A mountain railway is a railway that operates in a mountainous region. It may operate through the mountains by following mountain valleys and tunneling beneath mountain passes, or it may climb a mountain to provide transport to and from the ...

for the descent to Odawara and a connection to

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.46 ...

by the

Tōkaidō Shinkansen The is a Japanese high-speed rail line that is part of the nationwide Shinkansen network. Along with the Sanyo Shinkansen, it forms a continuous high-speed railway through the Taiheiyō Belt, also known as the Tokaido corridor. Opened in 19 ...

. Visitors can also take the Hakone Sightseeing Cruise with its pirate ships from Togendai to Moto-Hakone Port and Hakone-Machi Port on opposite ends of the lake. The cruise line began in 1950. The name means "lake of reeds" in Japanese: 芦 (ashi) is "reed", and 湖 (ko) is "lake". The abundance of nature makes it popular with hikers. There are many trails with different levels of challenge. Lake Ashi is emptied by the toward Susono, Shizuoka since its completion in 1670, not by the Haya River toward Odawara, Kanagawa.

Gallery

File:Hakone Volcano 20121110.jpg, Viewed from the South File:Lake Ashi from Mt.Komagatake 02.jpg, Lake Ashi from Mount Komagatake File:Mt.Fuji from Mt.Taikanzan 大観山.jpg, With Mount Fuji File:庐之湖海盗船.JPG, Lake Ashi pirate ship File:Hakone Volcano 3D. Relief Map(b). SRTM-1 Ver3.jpg, Hakone volcano File:The lake of Hakone in the Segami province.jpg,

Hokusai , known simply as Hokusai, was a Japanese ukiyo-e artist of the Edo period, active as a painter and printmaker. He is best known for the woodblock print series '' Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji'', which includes the iconic print ''The Great W ...

File:Hiroshige11 hakone.jpg, Hiroshige

References

External links

Hakone Tourist Association

- Hakone Geopark * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ashi, Lake Volcanic crater lakes Lakes of Japan Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park Hakone, Kanagawa Izu–Bonin–Mariana Arc Landforms of Kanagawa Prefecture Tourist attractions in Kanagawa Prefecture Calderas of Honshū