Cape Muroto (室戸岬, Muroto-misaki) is a headland at the southeastern tip of the Japanese island of Shikoku, in the city of Muroto, Kōchi Prefecture. Extending into the Pacific Ocean[1] and situated in Muroto UNESCO Global Geopark[2][3] within Muroto-Anan Kaigan Quasi-National Park,[1] the cape has been designated a Place of Scenic Beauty[4] and the local vegetation a Natural Monument,[5] while the Sound of the Waves at Cape Muroto and Mikurodo Cave is among the 100 Soundscapes of Japan.[6]
Cape Muroto
室戸岬 | |
|---|---|
 View from Kanjōgahama (灌頂ヶ浜) at the cape | |
  Cape Muroto Location of Cape Muroto on Shikoku  Cape Muroto Cape Muroto (Japan) | |
| Coordinates: 33°15′12″N 134°10′39″E / 33.253301°N 134.177494°E | |
| Location | Muroto, Kōchi Prefecture, Japan |
Cultural features
editOn the summit overlooking the cape is Hotsumisaki-ji, the twenty-fourth temple on the Shikoku Pilgrimage,[1] as well as Cape Muroto Lighthouse, which started operating in 1899,[7] and a statue of Nakaoka Shintarō.[8]
Geology
editDue to the subduction of the Philippine Sea Plate beneath the Eurasian Plate in the Nankai Trough, some 140 kilometres (87 mi) off the cape, the land around the cape is being uplifted at a rate of 1 metre (3 ft 3 in) to 2 metres (6 ft 7 in) per millennium, at the top end of the world's uplift rates.[2]
Fauna
editBirds observed in the vicinity of the cape include the osprey and blue rock thrush.[9] Marine life in the waters offshore includes the Japanese amberjack, Japanese anchovy, Japanese barramundi, Japanese jack mackerel, Japanese mackerel, Japanese pilchard, Pacific mackerel, Blackfin seabass, three-line grunt, and spear squid.[9]
Access
edit- Kochi Tobu Kotsu
- Tokushima Bus
- Asa Seaside Railway (1 return on only holidays)
- For Awa-Kainan Station (extends to this station via Asato Line)
See also
edit
- List of Places of Scenic Beauty of Japan (Kōchi)
- List of Natural Monuments of Japan (Kōchi)
- Muroto Typhoon, Second Muroto Typhoon
- Cape Ashizuri
- Kūkai
- The Asatō Line, which uses dual-mode vehicles to reach Cape Muroto
- Dual-mode vehicle (the Asatō Line is said to be the first line in the world to use this technology)
References
edit- ^ a b c 室戸阿南海岸国定公園の概要と見所 [Outline and Highlights of Muroto-Anan Kaigan Quasi-National Park] (in Japanese). Kōchi Prefecture. Retrieved 17 April 2021.
- ^ a b "Muroto UNESCO Global Geopark". UNESCO. Retrieved 17 April 2021.
- ^ "Geopark Map". Muroto UNESCO Global Geopark. Retrieved 17 April 2021.
- ^ 室戸岬 [Cape Muroto] (in Japanese). Agency for Cultural Affairs. Retrieved 17 April 2021.
- ^ 室戸岬亜熱帯性樹林及海岸植物群落 [Cape Muroto Subtropical Forest and Coastal Plant Communities] (in Japanese). Agency for Cultural Affairs. Retrieved 17 April 2021.
- ^ 残したい"日本の音風景100選"パンフレット [Remaining 100 Soundscape of Japan (Pamphlet)] (in Japanese). Ministry of the Environment. Retrieved 17 April 2021.
- ^ 室戸岬灯台 [Cape Muroto Lighthouse] (in Japanese). Muroto City. Retrieved 17 April 2021.
- ^ 室戸岬周辺観光マップ [Sightseeing Map Around Cape Muroto] (in Japanese). Muroto City. Retrieved 17 April 2021.
- ^ a b 沿岸域 13804 室戸岬周辺 [Coastal Area 13804 Cape Muroto Environs] (in Japanese). Ministry of the Environment. Retrieved 17 April 2021.