Izu Oshima

On a clear morning the jet foil from Takeshiba covers the 120 km in about 1 hour 45 minutes, and the flat grey top of Mt. Mihara shows long before the harbor does. The volcano is 758 m high and still active. In November 1986 lava fountains rose from the summit crater, a fissure split the outer slope above Motomachi, and on the night of November 21 every resident was ordered off the island. About 11,000 islanders and 2,000 visitors were shipped to Shimoda, Ito, Atami and Tokyo, and the islanders spent about a month away. Today you can walk across the caldera floor to the crater rim and look into the pit. East of the cone lies Ura-sabaku, a slope of black volcanic ash and scoria where almost nothing grows; Tokai Kisen calls it Japan's only desert. On the coast road between Motomachi and Habu, a road cutting shows the layers of hundreds of eruptions stacked like cake, which is why locals call it the Baumkuchen. Camellias grow wild across the island, and the Tsubaki Matsuri runs from late January into March. Sort out transport before you land: taxis do not cruise and mostly stop at night, so phone ahead, book a rental car or check the bus times.