Mount Iwate, Stratovolcano in Hachimantai, Japan
Mount Iwate is a 2,038-metre stratovolcano complex in Iwate Prefecture, made of the older Nishi-Iwate volcano, which collapsed into an oval caldera, and the younger Higashi-Iwate cone whose rim forms the summit. The caldera holds a 0.5-kilometre crater partly filled by Lake Onawashiro.
The volcano erupted in 1732 and produced a lava flow known as Yakebashiri. This flow was later recognized as a Natural Monument and marks the most recent major activity.
This peak is known locally as Nanbu Fuji because its cone resembles the country's most famous summit. People in the surrounding towns use it as a landmark and call it one of their hometown mountains.
Several hiking trails run through Towada-Hachimantai National Park to the summit and connect the towns of Hachimantai, Takizawa, and Shizukuishi. Routes vary in difficulty and offer different starting points for climbers with different levels of experience.
The Nishi-Iwate caldera holds two crater lakes, not one: the small, almost circular Lake Okama and Lake Onawashiro, whose southeastern part is the crater itself and whose water spills westward. The caldera's origin is unknown; it measures 2.5 km east-west. Stone Buddhas ring the summit rim.
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