Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
placement above its sister isle to the south. It's usually called Uéchi-jima (
うえち じま
) or
simply Uéchi, but sometimes you'll hear or see Kamiji-jima (
かみちじま
) or just Kamiji.
It is oblong in shape, about 1.5 miles (2.5 kilometers) in length and around 2,620 feet (800
meters) wide. It's completely flat. Uechi's area is three-quarters of a square mile (1.76 square
kilometers) and its circumference is 3.75 miles (6 kilometers). The island has a landing pier
on the central western side and this is where the few residents live. There used to be more,
but the population has declined dramatically over the past 20 years.
An aerial view of flat, oblong Kamijijima. It has a landing pier in the center of its western side.
SHIMOJIJIMA
(
下地島
; Shimoji-jima). This islet's Kanji translates, rather logically, as “Under”
or “Below” Land Island, again with reference to its sister isle to the north. It is uninhabited.
It is round, with an approximate diameter of 1 mile (1.5 kilometers). Its land area is half a
square mile (1.58 square kilometers) and it has a coastline circumference of 3 miles (5 kilo-
meters). It was farmed with sugar cane until it was abandoned a few years ago. Its land is still
privately owned but it's questionable whether it ever will become inhabited again.
8
HATOMAJIMA
鳩間島
About 24 miles (38 kilometers) northwest of Ishigaki Port, or some 12 miles (20 kilometers)
also to the northwest, beyond Kohama and Kayama islets, lies this tiny place, Hatomajima
(
鳩間島
; Hato-ma-jima). It is approximately 3 miles (5 kilometers) due north of the center of
Iriomote. The island is more or less an oval, very small, about 1.25 miles (2 kilometers) long
at its greatest length and not quite three-quarters of a mile (1 kilometer) wide at its greatest
width. Its surface area is just under half of a square mile (1 square kilometer) and its coastline
is 2.25 miles (4 kilometers) long.
There is a commercial ferry service to the island but it is much less frequent than the ser-
vice to, for example, Taketomi or Kohama. Scheduled ferries vary seasonally, with at least one
round trip per day all year round and up to two or three per day during the summer. Depend-
ing on the time of year, some of the ferry services may consist of a mail boat making a stop
on Iriomote along the way. Direct travel time one way from Ishigaki Port is two hours.
