A 2.5-hour drive from Misawa Air Base will take you to Cape Oma in the Shimokita Peninsula, the northernmost point of Honshu with a scenic landscape of blue ocean of the Tsugaru Strait and white silhouette of Hokkaido.

When I got to the cape, I found a stone monument marking this spot as the northernmost point of Japan’s mainland. Overlooking the coast is another interesting set of sculptures: one of a bluefin tuna, modeled after a 970-pound tuna caught in 1994; and the other, a wave fist seemingly attempting to catch the tuna with a pole and line.  

Ona itself is a quiet fishing town with a small square surrounded by calm, deep blue ocean. It is known for its incredible (and very expensive) bluefin tuna catch. In 2018, a single 612-pound bluefin tuna was auctioned at Tokyo’s Toyosu Fish Market for 333,600,000 yen ($2.2 million).

Don’t have that type of money? Don’t worry! There are restaurants around the cape offering quality bluefin tuna for reasonable prices. Sakanagui no Daimanzoku, less than a five-minute walk from the sculpture, is a cozy restaurant where you can enjoy bluefin tuna sashimi (raw fish) sets ranging from 3,000 – 5,000 yen ($20 – 33).

The area is only about 17.5 kilometers from Hokkaido and on the other side of the Tsugaru Strait, I was able to clearly make out some of Hakodate’s landmarks in the distance.

Nearby is Gankakeiwa (wishing rocks), two 100-meter-tall rocks that seem to be embracing. Locals have worshipped both the Otoko-iwa (male rock) and the Onna-iwa (female rock) as gods of matchmaking for hundreds of years, according to a signboard in Gankake Koen (park).

Cape Oma

• Location: 17-1 Omadaira, Oma, Oma Town, Shimokita-gun, Aomori Prefecture

• URL (Oma Tourism Association)

• Tel: 0175-37-2233 (Oma Tourism Association)

Gankakeiwa (wishing rocks)

• Location: Yagoshi, Sai, Sai Village, Shimokita-gun, Aomori Prefecture

• URL

• Tel: 0175-38-4515 (Sai Tourism Association)

• Look at Oma’s tuna restaurant, Sakanagui-no-daimanzoku at https://japan.stripes.com/food-drink/tuna-aomori-japan.html

Misawa Air Base

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