Tsugaru Strait, Maritime strait between Honshu and Hokkaido, Japan.
The Tsugaru Strait is a waterway between Hokkaido and Honshu in Japan that links the Sea of Japan with the Pacific Ocean. At its narrowest point it measures roughly 20 kilometers across and reaches depths of up to 200 meters below the surface.
In September 1954 the ferry Toya Maru sank during a typhoon in the waterway and caused over 1,100 deaths. This event led to the construction of the Seikan Tunnel, which opened in 1988 and links both islands beneath the seabed.
Residents on both islands view the strait as a dividing line between two different natural zones that host their own animal populations. Fishermen regularly head out to work the cold and nutrient-rich currents that meet here and create good fishing grounds.
The Seikan Tunnel runs beneath the waterway and allows train travel between both islands in roughly 50 minutes. Those who want to see the water surface can take a ferry that requires several hours for the crossing and offers views of the open sea.
Japan maintains only a three nautical mile territorial zone in this waterway, allowing foreign military vessels to pass freely through the middle channel. This arrangement differs from the usual twelve nautical mile zone around Japanese coasts.
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