Abashiri – Sea Ice
During February the sea ice formed during the winter in the Sea of Okhotsk drifts down to push against the northern most Japanese island’s northern most coastline.
Pushing through the ice
The main attraction in Abashiri are the two Ice Breaker ships that operate during February. Both operate throughout the day with the last cruise branded the “sunset cruise”, where you can sail over the sea ice while the sun sets in the distance (it’s a popular time so best to book early). Usually the cruise starts at 16:30 as the sunset ranges from 16:30 to 17:00 throughout the month. The timetables and online booking system (Japanese only) is only available just before the sea ice season starts.
Sea ice is highly variable – will you see any?
The sea ice floats with the wind and as such, will often be pushed away from the coast. The boats will head out to sea when the ice is away from the port however as the cruise is limited to 60 minutes, if the ice is too far away the boats will not run, or else you will just see flat icebergs that the boats will try to run over.
There is a detailed record of what days were “no shows” for the ice here (Japanese only but X means “no ice” and 〇/◎/△ means “ice”). 2016 was particularly bad for sea ice viewing, with only 31% of people boarding the boats getting to view any ice. At times when the sea ice is very thick, the boats will just make circles in the harbor, skirting the edges of the ice rather than breaking a path through it. You have to chance you luck and perhaps give the Monbetsu ice breaker a go the next day.
Other attractions in Abashiri
Drift Ice museum (link)
Abashiri Prison Museum
