---
node: spot_hakone_lake_ashi
type: spot
slug: lake_ashi
destination: dest_hakone
title: "Lake Ashi"
lead: "Lake Ashi fills the caldera of Hakone volcano, formed by an eruption about three thousand years ago. Replica sailing ships cross it, and on a clear day Fuji stands directly behind the northern shore."
published: 2026-08-12
updated: 2026-08-12
image_file: spot_hakone_lake_ashi.jpg
image_source: "https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lake_Ashi_%26_Mt_Fuji_%26_Hakone_Shrine.jpg"
image_author: "Charlie fong"
image_license: "CC BY-SA 4.0"
---

## Overview

The lake is 40 metres deep at most and has no natural outlet to speak of, which keeps it cold and clear; it is stocked with trout and smelt. The pirate ships are frankly silly and are also the practical transport between Moto-Hakone, Hakone-machi and Tōgendai, all covered by the Freepass. At Hakone-machi the reconstructed Tokaido checkpoint shows how the shogunate controlled movement along the road, with a museum of the documents travellers had to carry.

## Highlights

Sit on the open upper deck facing north for the Fuji view; it is on the right side going from Moto-Hakone. The best chance of seeing the mountain is the first crossing of a winter morning. The old cedar avenue along the shore is a twenty-minute walk and the quietest part of Hakone.