Situated on at the edge of the town of Shari on the Shiretoko Peninsula, Oronko Rock sits overlooking the harbour. In fact you even have to go through an opening in a rock to get to the Aurora Cruise, which goes to the northeasternmost point in Japan.
Oronko Rock sits very close to the town centre, giving excellent views of the town and surrounding mountains.
In fact, the views from the top of Oronko Rock is considered one of the 8 Top Views in Shiretoko. After a climb up a steep set of 170 stairs (from sea level to 60 m/200 ft), you are able to see up and down the the coast some ways.
Oronko Rock, or “a rock sitting there” in Ainu, came into being through a series of volcanic eruptions. The Shiretoko Peninsula has several active volcanoes and at some point several tens of thousands of years ago, a forceful eruption fired this rock from the top of the volcano to its current location.
It is also a nature preserve in its own right. On the top grows many native plants that were important to the Ainu. There is also a high biodiversity within a very small area.
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