Lake Shikotsu Ice Walk | Experience the Crystal-Clear Beauty of Japan’s Most Pristine Lake

Highlights

  • Break the ice, jump into Lake Shikotsu, or float on frozen water—stay warm and dry in a full dry suit!
  • A hot new trend! Experience a unique winter marine adventure playing with ice
  • Enjoy the experience at Lake Shikotsu Onsen, located in Shikotsu-Toya National Park, about 1.5 hours by car from Sapporo

What to expect

Enjoy a unique Ice Walk on Lake Shikotsu, available only during winter! Walk on frozen ice, dive into snow, and stay warm in a dry suit. No swimming skills needed. Easy access from Sapporo!

Reviews

4.50
2 reviews
51
41
30
20
10
It was a warm winter, so the appearance was a bit disappointing, but it was a healing experience listening to the sounds of the ice.
Posted Date: 2020/01/26
こぎむ
I signed up for this experience because I thought, "This is something you can't do often!" since you can play on the ice in a lake in mid-winter. However, I was worried about whether the ice would be solid due to this year's record warm winter, so I directly inquired before signing up, and they responded quickly and very kindly. They assured me that the ice was fine, so I was able to sign up with peace of mind.

The actual time spent playing on the ice was about 30 minutes, including preparation a…
I signed up for this experience because I thought, "This is something you can't do often!" since you can play on the ice in a lake in mid-winter. However, I was worried about whether the ice would be solid due to this year's record warm winter, so I directly inquired before signing up, and they responded quickly and very kindly. They assured me that the ice was fine, so I was able to sign up with peace of mind.

The actual time spent playing on the ice was about 30 minutes, including preparation and wrap-up. Following the instructions, I applied a heat pack to my toes and wore a dry suit, which made it completely comfortable (though it was also a day with no wind, which they called "perfect for ice walking").

Usually, I would expect to take photos with a Nordic atmosphere amidst a snowy landscape while playing on the ice, but this time there was almost no snow, resulting in images set against a rather bleak winter scenery, which was disappointing.

However, I was satisfied with the experience of hearing the sound of the ice cracking as I took my first step and the chime-like sounds of broken ice colliding in the water, all while floating thanks to the buoyancy of the dry suit, gazing up at the blue sky. The staff were all friendly, and my middle and high school sons, who are at a difficult age, seemed to enjoy themselves without hesitation. Thank you very much.
 真冬の湖で氷遊びが出来ると言う事で、「これはなかなか出来ない体験!」と申し込みました。
 しかしながら、今年の記録的な暖冬で氷が張っているのか心配で申し込み前に直接問い合わせをしたところ、迅速かつとても親切に対応して頂きました。
氷は問題ないとの事で、安心して申し込むことが出来ました。
 体験は準備から終わりまでの時間で実際氷遊びをしているのは30分程度です。ご案内の通りにホカロンをつま先に張ってドライスーツを着た事もあり、全く寒くなかったです。(この日は風もない「アイスウォーク日和」とお墨付きを頂い…
 真冬の湖で氷遊びが出来ると言う事で、「これはなかなか出来ない体験!」と申し込みました。
 しかしながら、今年の記録的な暖冬で氷が張っているのか心配で申し込み前に直接問い合わせをしたところ、迅速かつとても親切に対応して頂きました。
氷は問題ないとの事で、安心して申し込むことが出来ました。
 体験は準備から終わりまでの時間で実際氷遊びをしているのは30分程度です。ご案内の通りにホカロンをつま先に張ってドライスーツを着た事もあり、全く寒くなかったです。(この日は風もない「アイスウォーク日和」とお墨付きを頂いた日だったからと言うのもありますが。)
 例年通りならば、雪景色の中での氷遊びでちょっと北欧の様な雰囲気の写真が撮れたかと思いますが、今回は雪がほぼなくて、殺風景な冬景色の中での画像となってしまったのは残念でした。
 でも、自分が踏み出した一歩から氷が割れていく音や、水の中で割れた氷同士がぶつかって奏でる風鈴の様な音を聞きながら、ドライスーツのお陰で(浮力が付与)ぷかっと浮かびながら、青空を仰ぐ癒しの時間を体験出来て、満足でした。
 スタッフの方々は皆さんフレンドリーで、難しい年齢の中・高校生男子の息子たちも臆することなく楽しんだ様です。どうもありがとうございました。
Machine translated from Japanese
Reply from the operator
Thank you for participating in the Ice Walk. We are very happy to hear that your whole family enjoyed it. As you mentioned, the warm winter resulted in less ice formation, but the sound of the wind chimes when breaking the ice is something that can only be experienced when the ice is freshly formed and there is no snow accumulation. The way the ice forms changes the activities we can enjoy. If you have another opportunity, please come back to experience different ways to play and other activitie… Thank you for participating in the Ice Walk. We are very happy to hear that your whole family enjoyed it. As you mentioned, the warm winter resulted in less ice formation, but the sound of the wind chimes when breaking the ice is something that can only be experienced when the ice is freshly formed and there is no snow accumulation. The way the ice forms changes the activities we can enjoy. If you have another opportunity, please come back to experience different ways to play and other activities. この度はアイスウォークへの参加ありがとうございました。
ご家族皆様か楽しまれたことはスタッフにとってとても嬉しい限りです。
お客様もおっしゃってた通り暖冬により氷の張りが少ないことなどもございましたが、氷を割って風鈴の音色がなるのは氷が張りたてで雪も積もってない時にしか体験できなかったりと、凍り方で遊ぶ内容も変わってきます。
また機会がございましたら、また違った遊び方や他のアクティビティを体験しにきてください。
Machine translated from Japanese
It wasn't cold during the ice walk!
Posted Date: 2020/02/26
まつもと
I participated in mid-February 2020. When I arrived at the meeting place, I was relieved to have someone carefully teach me how to put on the dry suit and help me with it. After a short 5-minute drive, we reached a small cove on Lake Shikotsu, where an area about the size of two tennis courts was frozen. From a distance, the white and transparent ice looked mottled. I learned that the lake water freezes clear, while the snow that accumulates on top freezes white. At first, I thought the transpar… I participated in mid-February 2020. When I arrived at the meeting place, I was relieved to have someone carefully teach me how to put on the dry suit and help me with it. After a short 5-minute drive, we reached a small cove on Lake Shikotsu, where an area about the size of two tennis courts was frozen. From a distance, the white and transparent ice looked mottled. I learned that the lake water freezes clear, while the snow that accumulates on top freezes white. At first, I thought the transparent ice was thin and melting, but it turned out to be quite thick. The guide brought a pickaxe and let me borrow it to try to break the ice, but it wouldn't break at all. When I picked up a piece of broken ice, it had a unique crystalline shape that I had never seen before. I could also enter the lake from the edge of the ice. It was surprisingly warm for this time of year, with an outside temperature of 5°C and a water temperature of 2°C, so I hardly felt any cold except on my face, which was directly exposed to the water. By the way, I wore a T-shirt and sweatpants under the dry suit, and I had adhesive heat packs on my toes, but I was slightly sweating after the experience. Since I intentionally didn't let the air out of the dry suit, I floated comfortably in the water, which made me feel secure even though I couldn't swim. Floating without feeling cold while gazing at the blue sky was very pleasant, and I wished I could have stayed like that for another hour. The guide also lent me a snorkel, so even though my face was extremely cold, I could observe the underside of the ice and the bottom of the lake closely. The time spent standing on the ice and being in the lake was about 40-50 minutes, and with the remaining time for putting on and taking off the dry suit, moving around, and settling the payment, the total duration was just a little over an hour. Since it wasn't cold, it felt too short, and I would have liked to have at least double the time. I was very satisfied to have such a rare experience that is hard to come by. 2020年2月中旬に参加しました。集合場所につくとドライスーツの着方を丁寧に教えてもらえ、また着るのも手伝ってもらえるので安心でした。車で5分くらいの支笏湖の小さな入り江のほとりに行くとテニスコート2個分くらいのエリアが凍ってました。遠くから見ると白い氷と透明な氷がまだらに見えました。これは湖の水がそのまま凍ると透明になり、降り積もった雪が凍ると白くなるそうです。最初透明な氷は厚みがなくて溶けかかってるのかなぁと思いましたがそんな事はなくかなり分厚い表層でした。ガイドさんがツルハシを持ってきていて貸し… 2020年2月中旬に参加しました。集合場所につくとドライスーツの着方を丁寧に教えてもらえ、また着るのも手伝ってもらえるので安心でした。車で5分くらいの支笏湖の小さな入り江のほとりに行くとテニスコート2個分くらいのエリアが凍ってました。遠くから見ると白い氷と透明な氷がまだらに見えました。これは湖の水がそのまま凍ると透明になり、降り積もった雪が凍ると白くなるそうです。最初透明な氷は厚みがなくて溶けかかってるのかなぁと思いましたがそんな事はなくかなり分厚い表層でした。ガイドさんがツルハシを持ってきていて貸してもらい割ろうとしましたが全然割れませんでした。割れている氷を手に取ると見たことのない形で結晶化していて珍しかったです。氷の端から湖に入ることも出来ました。この時期にしてはとても暖かく外気温5℃、水温2℃との事で水が直接触れる顔以外は寒さ冷たさはほぼ感じませんでした。ちなみにドライスーツの下はTシャツと上下スウェットを着込み、足先には貼るカイロを着けていましまが、体験後うっすら汗ばんでいる程でした。ドライスーツの中の空気をあえて抜かずに入るので水にプカプカ浮くので泳げなくても安心でした。冷たさを感じずにプカプカ浮いて青空を眺めているととても気持ちよかったのであと1時間くらいこうしていたかったです。ガイドさんからシュノーケルも借りれるので、顔がめちゃくちゃ冷たいですが、氷の裏側を見たり湖の底をじっくり観察することも出来ます。氷の上に立ったり湖に入ってる時間は40-50分程で残り時間でドライスーツ着たり脱いだりの準備と移動、精算などで全部で1時間とちょっとの所要時間でした。寒くなかったので、もう倍くらいの時間あっても良いくらい短く感じました。なかなか出来ない珍しい体験ができてとても満足です。
Machine translated from Japanese
Reply from the operator
Thank you for the experience of the Shikotsu Lake Ice Walk. We are very happy that the weather was favorable and that our customers enjoyed themselves. The way the ice forms and the amount of snow accumulation can change how we play, so please come back again when you have the chance. And let's count on your support for good weather next time, so we can enjoy other activities as well.支笏湖名物アイスウォークの体験ありがとうございます。
天気にも恵まれお客様に楽しんでいただけて大変嬉しく思います。
アイスウォークは凍り方や雪の積もり方で遊び方も変わってくるのでまた機会がございましたら遊びに来てください。
そして次回もお客様の力で良い天気にしていただき他のアクティビティを含めて楽しみましょう。
Machine translated from Japanese

Explore more