Walking around Matsukawa and Ippeki Lakes in the Izu Peninsula, Japan.
There are two small lakes in Izu which I have never been to, but which have interested me since I got a hiking map of the area and saw that there are walks around both of those bodies of water. So this weekend, we decided to go to those lakes and walk around them. We drove there, because the lakes are separated by a few kilometers and we were feeling lazy. The first lake we went to was Matsukawa. Its an artificial lake with a dam at one end and a meandering river at the other, but with lots of other smaller streams going into it. The distance around the lake via the walking course is just shy of 5km, which was why there were so many joggers there when we went. Its a very nice lake, with a suspension bridge, many walks, not just the jogging course, a museum (closed now because of the virus), a nice view from on top of the dam, 3 car parks, a eucalyptus grove, nice parks by the water, cherry trees and plum trees which must be nice in the spring and a lovely relaxed and cool feeling to the place. I really recommend it for a picnic, or jogging, or a leisurely walk, which is what we did.
Next, after going into Ito town nearby for a quick lunch in Cocos, we went to the next lake, lake Ippeki.
This lakes water is much nicer to look across than the previous lake, but its pretty smelly in places, as it was formed from an old volcano caldera and so does not have much water coming in to it to replenish it. However, there are a lot of fish in the main lake.
The other smaller lake is covered with reeds and surrounded by second homes and is pretty smelly. The main lake has some nicer things to see. The café and rental boats at the car park, the shrine and tori gates, the wildlife and so on. The path round the lake tends to go up and down a lot, so you find yourself sweating more, and there are quite a few hungry mosquitoes in places too, so watch out. This lake has a bus stop near it, so its possible to come by public transport, but a car is a lot more convenient. All in all, it was a very nice peaceful and scenic day. Another beautiful spot in Izu, which is absolutely resplendent with them!
PS: You can now search for your travels on-the-go with our Android App. Download it on Google Play