Hamatombetsu Town

• Hokkaido
• Area Info
• Sightseeing
• Accommodation
• Food
• Activities
• Nature
• Spring
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• Autumn
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Hamatombetsu Town, a quiet harbor town of around 3,600 residents on the Okhotsk coast of the Soya region, is home to Hokkaido's most internationally celebrated birdwatching destination — 'Lake Kutcharo', a 13km² brackish Ramsar Convention wetland (registered 1931) that serves as one of Japan's most important staging posts for the whooper swan migration. Every spring (April–May) and autumn (October–November), thousands of whooper swans rest at Lake Kutcharo during their annual migration between Siberia and Japan. The pre-dawn spectacle of swans rising from the mist-draped lake in golden light is one of Hokkaido's most celebrated natural photography moments. The 'Hamatombetsu Kutcharo-ko Waterbird Observatory' provides telescope observation of swans and other rare species including Steller's sea eagle, red-crowned crane and long-tailed duck. Lakeside camping, star-gazing and autumn foliage make Hamatombetsu a rewarding year-round nature destination.