Marukoma Hot Spring （湖畔の宿 支笏湖丸駒温泉）| Hot Spring Inn by Lake Shikotsu | Chitose

"Marukoma Hot Spring （湖畔の宿　支笏湖丸駒温泉）", a hot spring inn, is located just by Lake Shikotsu and famous for its outdoor hot spring connected to the lake. It also serves delicious dishes such as grilled or sashimi kokanee salmon caught in the lake!

They belong to "Japan Association of Secluded Hot Spring Inn （日本秘湯を守る会）" and very popular not only among tourists, but also among local people.

Let's enter the facility!

Hina dolls were decorated in front of the entrance. Yes, Doll's Festival for girls is held on the 3rd of March. We, Japanese, display a set of dolls and pray for the sound growth of girls in the family. We also offer sweet mild sake and diamond-shaped rice cake on the doll's stand↓

*Note
Hina dolls should be put away immediately after the 3rd of March, otherwise the girl, we believe, will have trouble getting married! Interesting, isn't it??

Well, well, well, let me get back to the main story!
First, we enjoyed the local fish at a restaurant in the inn.

Look at this!
We really enjoyed the wonderful scenery from our table!!!!!

Fried noodles with seafood are the most popular dish in this restaurant, but our guests and I wanted to enjoy something local available only in this area...........

Let me see.........
Deep fried oysters sound delicious and so do crabs and seafood bowls!

Have you ever heard kokanee salmon, which live in lakes and don't go to the ocean? The special smaller salmon live in only some limited lakes, including Lake Shikotsu, in Japan, and very rare and delicious! I'm sure the fish is perfect for my guests from England!

Voila!!!
We ordered a set of kokanee salmon↓

I wholeheartedly recommend this grilled salmon! This is so fresh that it's not fishy! If you like lightly- but well-seasoned fish, you must love it!

How about its sashimi???

Please open your mouth!
(Yummy x 2!!!) Hahaha!

The salmon is less fatty than ones which go to the ocean!

Definately this is a very local dish!

After enjoying the wonderful lunch, I went to the wonderful hot spring! 

Look at the outdoor hot spring!

We can enjoy the very soothing water, while appreciating the beautiful surrounding nature!

Do you like this hot spring inn?
Well, well, well.............I think it is too early for you to come to a conclusion!

I'll show you a main attraction here!!
They have the other outdoor hot spring which is connected to Lake Shikotsu!

The abundant natural hot spring, which bubbles up from the bottom of this area, is clear and warms us through to our body's core.
The height of the hot water is as same as the one of the lake, depending on the weather and the season. Sounds very lovely♪

I really recommend this historical hot spring inn which started its operation in 1915. We can enjoy very green mountains and trees in the spring & summer time, colored leaves in the autumnal time, and snow in the winter time around this area.

The inn is located in Shikotsu Toya National Park, a very peaceful and comfortable area apart from the city downtown.

See?? This is like a picture card!!!

■Where is "Marukoma Hot Spring （湖畔の宿　支笏湖丸駒温泉）"?

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■Tour guide information■

Do you need a nationally-licensed English-speaking tour guide when you travel to Hokkaido?

I'll guide you! Plz click here!

The 34th Chitose - Lake Shikotsu Ice Festival （第34回 2011千歳･支笏湖氷濤まつり）| Jan. 27th through Feb. 12th in 2012

The "Chitose - Lake Shikotsu Hyoto Ice Festival" held at Lake Shikotsu Hot Spring area attracts a lot of people from Japan and abroad every year. About 30 big and small ice statues in this festival are created with water from Lake Shikotsu.The festival is a long-run event from the 27th of Jan. through the 12th of Feb.

You must be impressed with these wonderful "blue" ice statues. Lake Shikotsu is very transparent, pure and cold that can naturally make the ice cube blue, which is dubed as "Shikotsu Blue".

I'll show you some of my favorite ice statues in this festival this year.
Look at Lake Shikotsu↓ Very beautiful, isn't it?

Go down the slope, and you will arrive at the festival venue.

Voila!
This is the main gate tunnel!

Today's temperature was - 7.5C. When you come here, please wear a thick coat!

Are you ready? Let's enter it!

Wow! Wow! Wow! How romantic it is! It is like an ice wonderland!

■Blue Tower
After passing through the runnel, the huge tower welcomes you! Beautiful, isn't it??? I love this so called "Sikotsu blue"!

■Ice Falls
Beside the tower, there is a huge waterfall and

you can see kokanee salmon swimming in the basin. This smaller salmon is the landlocked version of the sockeye salmon and living in the lake. Actually it is very delicious!

■Moss Cave
Near the lake, there is a 420-m long moss-covered cave, which was formed through the eruption of Mt. Tarumae ,and is a tourist attraction now.
Every year a green ice cave like that natural cave is created in the festival venue. I really recommend this and you must love it! When you enter it...............

Tada!!!
See??? It looks like a real moss cave!!! Pine leaves are used for the art work.

At the end of the cave, kokanee salmon are decorated like an aquarium↓

■Child Rink
If I were a child, I could skate like them!!!!

■Blue chateau
Clime the chateau and

please enjoy the whole picture of the festival! Fantastic!!!

■Big Mountain
We are so impressed with this mountain every year! Can you imagine local people not professional artists create these ice sculpture???

Amazing!

■Gig Slope
How exciting it is!!! Of course, we enjoyed it!

Chitose city and Tsunami city have a sister city relations and tourist ambassados from Tsunami city were giving tulips, their local flowers to visitors!

If you are tired, please drop by this food court in the venue!

Personally I recommend this food stand outside of the venue.

Look at the grilled chicken! It's HUGE!

There are several restaurants between the venue and the parking lot.

"Tonton" serves such a big tempura bowl! Yummy x 2!!!

When you come this area, please enjoy kokanee dishes like this↓ I recommend kokanee tempura!

"Kotobuki" serves

kokanee tempura soba↓ This salmon is very tasty!!

If you like sweets, I recommend "Mizu no uta"↓

Their cream puff is very appetizing!!!

At night, the statues are illuminated like this! Super beautiful!

It is very cold at night, but it's worth coming here and enjoying these colorful statues!

Every weekend and holidays, we can enjoy fireworks!

Please enjoy this admirable and gorgeous sight.

*Would you like to know the general information about the lake?
If so, please refer to my other post→→click here!


■Where is Lake Chikotsu?

View Larger Map

■Tour guide information■

Do you need a nationally-licensed English-speaking tour guide when you travel to Hokkaido?

I'll guide you! Plz click here!

Lake Shikotsu （支笏湖） in September | Chitose

Lake Chikotsu is located in the southwest of Hokkaido, near Chitose Airport. It is a very blue lake, and we dub the color as "Chikotsu blue".

It is the 8th largest lake, the second largest caldera lake after Lake Kussharo, and the second deepest lake after Lake Tazawa in Japan.

Look at these roses! You can enjoy beautiful flowers on the way to the boat landing.

First, we enjoyed the scenery from the pleasure cruiser!

Here we go!

It is surrounded by three volcanoes: Mt. Eniwa (one of the Olympic sites in 1972), Mt. Fuppushi, and Mt. Tarumae.

The caldera was formed 30,000 to 40,000 years ago when the land between the volcanoes subsided.

Due to the small surface area to depth ratio, the water temperature remains quite constant throughout the year, making it the northernmost ice-free lake in Japan even in the mid-winter time!

It's very fun to see the scenery on the boat, but

when the boat approaches the lake shore, go downstairs to the ship bottom.

 There are 16 windows on the bottom like this and

you can enjoy the columnar joints here and there. The joints are formed by cooling hot magma for a short time!

If you are lucky, you can see kokanee salmon from the glass boat! 

It's about to finish the cruise!

Oops! We found NASA's GALAXY here in Hokkaido. Hahaha!

We enjoyed strolling along the lake for a while,

and then dropped by the visitor center!

You can enjoy the history, ecosystem and geography of the lake here.

If you want to take a rest, why don't you soak your feet in hot spring. There is a foot spa along the lake↓

If you are hungry, how about the sweets in "Patissier Lab."?

Wow! Wow! Wow! They are making pumpkin sweets! Looks delicious!

Let me see............ what should we choose????

I recommend "Taruyamesan shu or Mt. Tarumae cream puff", one of the most popular sweets in this shop!

And this is the latest product, drawing a lot of attentions especially from ladies! Do you have any idea what it is?

It looks like a pudding but it's not a normal one.
The answer is
↓
↓
↓
this is a miso (bean paste) pudding! It tastes like a caramel pudding! How amazing it is! Please try it when you come to Lake Chikotsu area!

＊If you are interested in "Chitose/Lake Shikotsu Ice Festival", featuring wonderful ice sculptures, please refer to my other blog→→click here!

■Where is Lake Chikotsu?

View Larger Map

■Tour guide information■

Do you need a nationally-licensed English-speaking tour guide when you travel to Hokkaido?

I'll guide you! Plz click here!