Meet Our Guides at Adventure Hokkaido

We caught with our guides last summer while guiding groups at various locations in Hokkaido. Hear their stories about why they love Hokkaido and check out the beautiful landscapes that our lucky team gets to work in!

Kazu’s transcript

Hi, I’m Kazu, your guide from Adventure Hokkaido. Welcome to Akan–Mashu National Park in Hokkaido. You can see “Atosanupri”, or Mt Iouzan, over there, it’s a sulfur mountain. I’m looking forward to seeing and hiking with you here in Hokkaido. See you soon!

Tobaji’s transcript

Hi, my name is Koichi Toba, and I am a guide at Adventure Hokkaido. We are here on Rishiri Island. You should visit here when you come to Hokkaido.

Dai’s transcript

Hello, my name is Daisuke Kondo. Everyone calls me Dai. I’m originally from Tokyo but I’ve been living in Hokkaido for the last 20 years. I worked as a rafting guide in the past, but now my main activity now is a cycling guide.

Firstly, of course, I enjoy the activities that people actually come here to enjoy. So by guiding them, I can actually share the enjoyment together, that’s my biggest passion for being a guide. You see, I’m originally from Tokyo. It was so crowded when I was growing up. So obviously the big nature like this is what I love about Hokkaido.

Where we started, Lake Toya, is only like 2 hours drive from Sapporo. Sapporo is the fifth biggest city in Japan. Only 2 hours drive, we can get to a place like here in the middle of nature. It’s very easy to access.

If you’ve never been to Japan, and if you come to Hokkaido, you will be really surprised with the nature. I believe it’s very different from what people would imagine Japan is. Also, any season, Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter; every season has different faces. I highly recommend visiting Hokkaido.

Yuka’s transcript

Hello, I’m Yuka, a hiking guide at Adventure Hokkaido. I’m here now at Mt Asahidake, the highest peak of Hokkaido. I’m living in Furano, close to the Daisetsuzan National Park. Originally I was born and raised in Saitama, near Tokyo.

Hokkaido has majestic nature and I would like to introduce it to you. Please come to see and enjoy the great nature of Hokkaido. I’m looking forward to seeing you.

Yasu’s transcript

Hello, my name is Yasuhito. Everyone calls me Yasu. I was born and raised in Furano in the center of Hokkaido, and that’s where I still live. Throughout the year, I work as a hiking guide, mainly in the Daisetsuzan National Park.

I became a guide 17 years ago because I wanted everyone to know about the wonderful nature of Hokkaido. My favorite field is the Daisetsuzan. What is special about the Daisetsuzan is the great nature that cannot be seen anywhere else in Japan. Hokkaido cannot be enjoyed all at once, so please visit here many times and experience many things.

Ken’s transcript

My name is Ken. My real name is Kenichi Kawamura, but everyone calls me Ken. I’m a cycling guide and have been guiding for almost 18 years, it’s been a while. I love cycling.

I actually spent almost two years in total in Hawaii, and I enjoyed every outdoor sport there. Surfing, windsurfing, hiking, mountain biking, and of course cycling. Sometimes I helped my friends doing tours there, so that was the start of my career as a cycling guide. I was so inspired by the beautiful nature there. When I came back to Japan, I found Japan was the same as Hawaii in terms of the beautiful nature. I’ve been enjoying it since then.

If you come to Japan and travel around, once you have enough of visiting shrines and temples, it’s time to come to Hokkaido. Hokkaido has a lot of nature and is the least populated place in Japan. I can find myself nowhere in nature. I can be just by myself in nature, like here by a beautiful lake with no one else here. That’s a beautiful thing about Hokkaido.

Richard’s transcript

Hi, my name is Richard, and I’m a guide at Adventure Hokkaido. I’m from England and came to Hokkaido in 2014, originally to ski and I’ve been a ski guide here as well. After that, I realized that the mountains and the landscapes are just as impressive in summer as in winter, so I found myself sticking around all year round. Outside of Hokkaido, I also spent time in the mountains in Canada and worked as a ski patroller in the mountains of New Zealand.

My favorite place in Hokkaido has to be the Daisetsuzan mountain range. The sheer scale of the mountains and the volcanic terrain is really special. Even though the mountains are big, it’s really easy to get up close to them with ropeways and roads. Even if you are not a super-strong hiker, you can enjoy the incredible scenery and the alpine plants really easily.

If you are planning a trip to Japan, Hokkaido has a unique history. It is somewhere you can experience both Japanese history and Japanese culture and a natural landscape that is unique anywhere in the world as well as in Japan. It really gives you the best of both worlds – delicious foods, incredible culture, as well as beautiful unspoiled landscapes. Hokkaido is a unique place definitely worth including in your trip.

Ayu’s transcript

Konnichiwa, Hi guys, I’m Ayu, a cycling guide at Adventure Hokkaido. Right now, we are at the Biei Blue Pond at the foot of the Daisetsuzan mountains. The untouched nature makes Hokkaido great for cycling. Hopefully we can go for a ride together soon.

Gen’s transcript

Hi, I’m Gen, a guide at Adventure Hokkaido. I’m here in Shiretoko right now. Shiretoko is a national park and a World Natural Heritage Site. It is a small peninsula but has rich nature, many wildlife, and people are living together. If you come to Shiretoko, I’m your guide. I’m looking forward to seeing you here in Shiretoko.

I used to work for Shiretoko Nature Foundation and for its bear management project. We have many bear sightings in Shiretoko. When people see a bear, they call our Foundation, it’s like an emergency call for a bear sighting. So then we must go there and see the bear. So sometimes ten times per week, sometimes five times a day, that can happen here.

Living in Shiretoko is wonderful. First, the food is perfect. There are not many shops and not many people living here but it’s a small community where people are good friends. They sometimes give me fresh potatoes. The other day I got fish, salmon. They are much more delicious than what can get from a supermarket.

When I was living in Tokyo, to get to nature I needed to drive one or two hours from the city center. But now I’m living in Shiretoko if I drive two hours I can be in the centre of a World Natural Heritage Site. I can enjoy the silence, the wilderness, and the feeling “I’m alive”.