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Our guide
Lake Yamanaka, “the lake in the mountains”, in the village of Yamanakako near Mount Fuji, is the largest of the Fuji Five Lakes by area and the highest, its surface 980.5 m above sea level — the third-highest lake in Japan. It is also the shallowest of the five, no more than 13.5 m deep. It was formed by lava flows from an ancient eruption of Fuji, and it is the only one of the five with a natural outflow, draining into the Sagami River.
Carp, dace and smelt were introduced in the Meiji period, though early attempts with sockeye salmon failed; more recently, introduced black bass and bluegill have increasingly pushed out native species.
We have not checked a public-transport route, so plan the journey on the map and look for local information before you go.
Written by japan-spots.com (2026-09-22) from the sources credited on this page. Distances are straight lines between map positions.
Photos
Photos from Wikimedia Commons, each under its own licence — see credits
- 相模川（桂川）の山中湖流出口（1） — 散歩 · Public domain · source · resized
- 富士登山 - panoramio (11) — comachiangel · CC BY 3.0 · source · resized
- Mount Fuji and Lake Yamanaka — Alpsdake · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source · resized
- 01 Fujisan from Yamanakako 2004-2-7 — Alpsdake · Public domain · source · resized
- Lake Yamanaka re-sized — JetLiner. · CC BY-SA 3.0 · source · resized
- SunsetAtYamanakakoDSC02609 — Devchonka · Attribution · source · resized
- Lake Yamanaka 01 — Σ64 · CC BY 3.0 · source · resized
What this place is
Lake Yamanaka (山中湖, Yamanaka-ko, 'Lake in the Mountains') is located in the village of Yamanakako in Yamanashi Prefecture near Mount Fuji, Japan. Lake Yamanaka is the largest of the Fuji Five Lakes in surface area and the highest in elevation. It is the third highest lake in Japan, with a mean surface altitude of 980.5 metres (3,217 ft). It is also the shallowest of the Fuji Five Lakes, with a maximum water depth of 13.5 metres (44 ft). It was formed by lava flows from an ancient eruption of Mount Fuji. It is drained by the Sagami River and is the only one of the Fuji Five Lakes to have a natural outflow. Carp, dace and smelt were introduced to the lake in the Meiji period, although early efforts to introduce sockeye salmon were not successful. In more recent years, introduced exotics such as black bass and bluegill have increasingly displaced native species.
Background text from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
What to expect at this type of place: Lakes & falls
Getting there
We do not have step-by-step transit directions for this spot yet. Open the location on Google Maps for routes from where you are staying.
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