Nikko-Shirane Ropeway Base Station

A high-altitude ropeway gateway

This camera sits at the sanroku (foot) station of the Nikko-Shirane ropeway, the aerial gondola that carries visitors up the flank of Mount Nikko-Shirane (Nikkō-Shiranesan), at 2,578 metres the highest peak north of Tokyo. From here the cabins glide toward the alpine treeline and the volcanic massif above.

Marunuma Kogen resort

The base station anchors the Marunuma Kogen resort, a year-round mountain playground. Its open grassy slopes host a long summer luge run and lift-served activities, while the same terrain becomes one of the region's most reliable ski and snowboard areas once the peaks turn white.

A living volcanic landscape

Nikko-Shirane is an active stratovolcano within Nikko National Park, ringed by emerald crater lakes, marshland and dense highland forest. The stream captures the ever-changing mountain sky and the quiet rhythm of a remote alpine outpost far above the valley floor.