JAPAN – Shinmoedake in Kyushu // You Only Live Twice (1967)
What a thrilling hike: Toxic fumes steam from the air, authorities close down roads, ice clouds appear. Welcome to Blofeld’s Volcano! We had quite the hiking day.
Why Bond was here
So Ernst Stavro Blofeld (Donald Pleasance) is once again up to do some mischief. This time, he steals US and Soviet rockets, triggering a new World War. For his hijacking, Blofeld is using a massive volcano on a southern Japanese island, disguised as a mere lake. James Bond (Sean Connery) identifies the lava garage airborne, with the help of “Little Nelly” – before he infiltrates the volcano himself.
How you gonna get there
Do you like hiking? Well, now you have to. Blofeld’s volcano is Shinmoedake in the Kagoshima Prefecture on Japans southern island Kyushu. Shinmoedake is part of the Mount Kirishima volcano cluster, formed between 7,300 and 25,000 years ago.
Your best option is to come to Kagoshima, the southernmost Shinkansen hub. The city not only hosts another Bond location, but is surrounded by active volcanos. One even is consered a deity and worshiped by the locals.
From Kagoshima we drove our car up north – it is an one and a half hour drive. But also buses and a train run from Kagoshima to Kirishimajingu, a closer village. Still, from there you have to grab a taxi to run up the hill. And then it is a three to four hour hike, depending on weather and your health conditions.
Good to know
Check. The. Safety. Report. Before. You. Go. Really: Check, if you can roam the mountains. Otherwise you might be disappointed – or even in danger. When we visited the Kirishima Kinkowan National Park, the hiking area that combines all the volcanos, several mountains and hiking routes were closed, the Shinmoedake included. So we decided to walk up Mount Karakuni. From there, you can get a great view towards Shinmoedake as well as the equally beautiful Onami-ike Lake. The lake resembles Blofeld’s cover up a lot.
As we arrived at the closest parking lot, Koshikidake, another nearby volcano released toxic fumes. The yellow-greyish fog circled high in the air, giving eerie vibes to our hike. Later on, also the sun died down behind clouds, up at Mount Karakuni small snowflakes danced in the wind. What had begun as a sunny morning hike turned into an icy climbing session with more and more volcano routes getting closed around us. Still, we made it up to the impressive crater and then down again in one piece – hot chocolate waiting.
That was no easy one. But an adventurous one. The drive up the mountain plateau already felt otherwordly, with sulfurous gases steaming out of the earth alongside the upwinding serpentines. Then, along the hike, the coniferous forest changed to bush work changed to rocky paths, till we got to the crater. Our six year old daughter had to power through a very brave hike.
© 2026 Huntingbond (1,4), © 1967 Danjaq S.A. (2,3)