Lake Shikotsu

About Lake Shikotsu

A lake that filled the Shikotsu caldera, formed by a huge eruption about 40,000 to 45,000 years ago. Mt. Eniwa and Mt. Tarumae are volcanoes that grew after the caldera formed. Its maximum depth of 360.1 m is the second greatest in Japan after Lake Tazawa in Akita, and it is Japan's second-largest caldera lake after Lake Kussharo. The Ministry of the Environment describes it as the northernmost lake in Japan that does not freeze over, with a distinctive deep blue surface. Its transparency in the 1991 survey was 17.5 m, among the clearest in Japan.

Sources: Japan Meteorological Agency, Caldera volcanoes (National Catalogue of the Active Volcanoes in Japan), Ministry of the Environment, Shikotsu-Toya National Park, Environment Agency of Japan, Lake Survey Report (1993) (sources in Japanese)

Lake data

Area

78.48 km²#3 in Hokkaido

Maximum depth

360.1 m#1 in Hokkaido

Average depth

265.4 m

Surface elevation

248 m

Transparency

17.5 m#3 in Hokkaidoas of the 1991 survey

Origin

Caldera lake

Lake type

Oligotrophic

Fresh or brackish

Freshwater

Freezing

Does not freeze

Unmodified lake

No

Natural park

Shikotsu-Toya National Park

Lake number

1010number in the national lake survey

Sources: Geospatial Information Authority of Japan, Area Statistics of Prefectures and Municipalities 2026 (as of July 1), Geospatial Information Authority of Japan, Lake Survey (surveyed 1967-1968), Environment Agency of Japan, 4th National Survey on the Natural Environment: Lake Survey Report (1993). Area and depth use newer figures from the Geospatial Information Authority of Japan where available. Origin, lake type, transparency, freezing and unmodified status are as of the 1991 survey.

Themes that include Lake Shikotsu

• Caldera lakes
• Oligotrophic lakes
• Freshwater lakes