Japan's Northern Island of HOKKAIDO - This Norternmost Island of Japan's Main Four, is just South of our earlier mentioned Kuriles, Sakhalin, and Southeasternmost Siberia. Kamchatka is some 1,000 and More miles Further North, beyond the Kuriles. Korea is reasonably Nearby, and Northeastern China's Manchuria, -Much a Great Wild Area of it's Own!, is Not Far Off either.

They Can and Do get a Lot of Siberia's Cold!, -these Hokkaidan Neighbors. But Hokkaido Itself, while it too can get Definitely to the Cold Side!, is nevertheless Milder Enuff to generally be considered within the Cool Zone! It's Far Enuf South to be so. But Still has been Described as Having an All Round Wisconsin Climate! We All Know Wisconsin gets Cold! Hokkaido is a Midway Transition between the Cold Siberian and Asian North!, and Japan's Warmer to Subtropical Main Islands to the South! Honshu, Shikoku, Kyushu, and the Ryukyus. Hokkaido Serves as the Climatic Link and Bridge! Between the COLD and the COOL! Hokkaido is a Decidedly Cool, Sizeable Island, and Wild Area of our World!

It is rather Sprawling and Flattish!, for a Japanese Island! It's the Second Largest of Japan's 4 Major Islands. At 30,144 Square Miles, about the Size of some of our typical U.S. Northeastern States. This is out of a Total of 145,850 Square Miles for All of Japan. Most of Japan is Chock Full of Mountains!, -The Famed Japanese Alps! They're a Very Wild Outdoors Place in their Own Right!, in an Otherwise Very Populous, Developed, Non-Wild Japan! But Quite Unlike such Typical Japan!, Hokkaido's Far More Spread Out, Plateaued, and Flat with Lowlands and Plains! It's Not Totally so!, now. It Does have it's Mountains and Highlands too! But Quite Unusual for Japan, It Greatly Flattens and Spreads Out!

This can be a Boon for Survival, in Subsistence Gardening, Small Scale Agriculture! Coupled with the Good, Rich, Volcanic Soils! You may be Hampered a Bit by a somewhat Pinched Growing Season though! And you're No Longer Far Enuf North, to Get Much Benefit of Longer Summer Daylight Hours! With it's Adverse Survival Gardening Implications. Nor again, to Go Back to the Positive Side, -Do you Have the More Northerly Mid-Winter Daylight Darkness! Make Use of Hotbeds, Cold Frames, and Greenhousing and so on!

Unlike Most of the Typically Very Populous Japan, Hokkaido has Quite Few Residents or Settlers!

It is Japan's Wild Pioneering Frontier Land to it's North! (Not that the Japanese Alps to the South, Aren't Also so Very Much So!). Hokkaido does have Some Limited Development, Every Here or There! But It's Mostly a Wild, Untamed Frontierland!, of Anything But!

It Too is as Volcanic!, and Earthquake Prone!, as Anywhere in Japan! Japan as a Whole is as Volcanic and Earthquake Prone as they Come! And Hokkaido is No Exception! If Japan perhaps Doesn't Take the World Prize in this Area!, then it Strongly Vies for It!

Even if Hokkaido may be Relativly Somewhat Quieter, in the Volcanic and Tectonic Departments, Over it's Fellow Japanese Islands to the South!, -Who Knows When it may again Rumble Awake!? Volcanos and Quakes are Like That! Japan is just Too Susceptible in these Ways!, to Chance or Hazard such a "Safe Guess"!

As Anywhere Else In or Around Japan, Volcano and Earthquake Awareness and Survival Concerns!, Rank as a Front Burner Matter!, on any Total All Round Plate, of Japanese or Hokkaido Survival!

Plus No One Ever Forget!, -Tsunami Awareness and Survival too! Not in Japan!, Shud one ever Lightly Pass Off This! The Japanese Language, After All, Lends it it's Very Name! And such Tidal Waves can Originate from Far Further than Only the Japanese Home Islands! They can Cross the Entire Pacific, from as Far Away as Chile! As They Did in the 1960 Chilean Mega-Quake!, the Largest Ever Known! These Rare Very Largest Ones!, are Strong Enuff to Set the Entire Planet Ringing like a Bell! Well Aside from just That, This Sent Tsunamis Across the Entire Pacific!, Including to Japan and it's Hokkaido! Even Normal Major Cross Pacific Quakes!, Do This!

A Number of Important Survival Considerations regarding Hokkaido and Greater Japan have already been Touched Upon. So What Else is also Foremostedly Involved in General Hokkaido Survival and Rescue?

Beyond only the Great Geological Forces of Quakes, Volcanos, and Tsunamis!, the Bane of So Much concerning Japan!, -There's more Customary and Ordinary Matters of Survival as well.

These Revolve Around Forest, Mountain, Seacoast, Lakes and Streams, and Grasslands Survival.

And at least in Hokkaido's Wisconsin like Winter, -Throw in Cold Survival as well!

You might Want to Survive, or Otherwise Stay, -either in the Interior, or Along the Coast.

Or if Caught Inland and Not Wanting to Stay, -You might Want to Work your Way to the Coast! For Better Survival Chances! And for Better Signaling, Being Located, Extrication, and Rescue!

Once Located so, then Japanese SAR and Other such Resources, being at least Good, Perhaps Very Good, -Should Soon be Well on their Way to Getting you Out of your Survival Situation! And Back Homeward!

On your Journey toward such Contact, Work also Toward Major Urban Centers!, such as Sapporo! -In Addition to the Coast. Most of these on Hokkaido are Indeed on the Coast. Though Scatteredly so! What such Urban Centers as there are! But These Population Centers are Better than just any old Section of the Wild Hokkaido Coast! Though for Rescue and Extrication, -Even That certainly Beats Inland!

As to Staying or Not in This Fine in Many Ways of a Land!, Keep in Mind that there's the Great Language Differences and Barrier! Few will Speak or Understand English! Bone Up on at least some Basic Japanese!

The Apparently Hard and Intimidating Part of their Language!, -Essentially has to Do Only with the Writing Script! "Polite Japanese", Can also be Involved as Well! Otherwise, it's Astonishinly Logical, Beautiful, Simple, and Easy! Learn that Part! And Only the Bare Bones Basics of That! -If you Don't Have the Time or Inclination for Languages! Largely to Entirely Ignore the Script! Go for the Spoken Language! You Really Don't Need to be so Afraid of Japanese! It's Far More of a Linguistic Mouse!, than an Elephant!

You Already Know a Major World Language!, and One of it's Harder to Hardest Ones!, -English! Most of you Anyway! This Deflates the Impression that One Cannot Learn a Language! Let Alone a Simple, Bare Bones version of One!

More than just Acedemic or Nice to Do!, -Some Language Awareness around this World!, -Can Come in as an Important and Useful Survival Skill and Aid! Not just for Knowing How to Basically Communicate in another Language in Itself!

But you might be Surprised at How Quickly and Helpfully Locals Warm Up to you! -When you've Shown Yourself to Have Taken the Care and Consideration!, to Have Learned at Least Something!, in Their Own native Language!

Prices Come Down!, Accurate Directions are Given! Resources are Pointed Out! Local Knowledge and Advice Flows! Lodging Becomes Cheap or Free! Not Always now! But Still Often!

So Try to Have Learned at least a Few Words, of an Area's Language! It Can Really be an Importantly Useful Survival Aid and Skill!

But Whether you Do or Not, -Ther'll Still be a Great Language Difference! Unless you Know at least a Good Bit, -You'll Still be at something of a Language Disadvantage! This may Figure into Whether you'd Want to Stay or Not.

Then again, if you're Doing Pure Wilderness Survival!, You might Rarely if Ever, *Need* to Understand or Communicate in the Language!

Also, Even More Standout!, than your Language Differences, -Will be your Personal Physical Ones! You're in All Liklihood a European or European Descended Caucasian!, The Great Assemblage of Locals! (What Again that there Are!, in Hokkaido!) ,-Are Japanese Asians / Orientals! Quite a Standout Physical Appearance Difference!, to say a Least! It Doesn't Bode too Well for Blending In!, or Trying to Keep a Low Profile! Even if you Weren't Additionally an "Object of Curiosity"! Let Alone when you Doubtless Are! This too may Enter into the Downside, of your "Do I Stay?", Assessment.

Back to Language Matters, You also can so Read Notices and Signs, and Hear What the Locals About you are Saying, -Perhaps About you!, in Their Native, On Scene, Language! That can be Important, Even Life Saving Important!

Land and Climate Wise, You may be Inclined to Stay!, as you Might in say the Falklands! Culturally, Though, -You May Not! Nothing Against the Natives, -It's Just a Matter of Language and Other Standout, Survival Bearing, of Differences! The Falklands are also Culturally on so Much More of our Own Wavelength! Hokkaido just is Not! Not saying One's Better than the Other! But Just that They are Radically Different!, from One Another!

This is Japan's COOL Northern Wilds of Hokkaido! And This is Northern Japanese Hokkaido Survival! It's Quite a Place! If you Don't Mind an Earthquake Rumble under your Feet, or Other Survival Challenges and Hardships!, -Every Once or More of a While!



FURTHER NOTE - Japan Proper, Will Not be Covered under "Earth's Wildest Places". Being it's so Predominantly being in the Populous and Developed!, as Oppossed to the World's Wild, World!

With the Brief Honorable Mention Exception concerning the Wild Japanese Alps!, already Given. My Hat Must Gladly be Off to It! And It so Gets and Deserves!, -Such Honorable Mention here! It however, is Too Far Enmeshed, in Japan's Definitely NON Wild, World!

Hokkaido, once again, is Very Different! Very Wildly Different! [color:"black"] [/color] [email]ScottRezaLogan[/email]