Okamoto Pier

Okamoto PierHaraokaMt. Fujiwooden piersunset

Chiba · Minamiboso

35.0477°N, 139.8402°E

A wooden pier about 160 metres long, built in 1921 to land fish and out of that use since 1961, running straight out from a small beach on the western shore of the Boso peninsula. Across the bay, on a clear day, is Mt. Fuji. That is the whole thing: bare timber posts and planks going out over the water, and a volcano behind them.

Wooden sea piers of this age barely exist in Japan any more, and this one photographs the way it does because nothing has been added to it — no railings on much of its length, no lighting, no signage. In May and August the setting sun lines up with the summit and produces Diamond Fuji, which is when the beach fills with tripods. The rest of the year it is a residential seafront with a pier on it and almost nobody about.

Essential Information

Opening Hours

Open access | No lighting after dark

Closed: Open year-round

Entrance Fee

Free | Small free car parks nearby

Best Season

December–February for the clearest Mt. Fuji | May and August for Diamond Fuji

Visit Duration

45–60 minutes

Getting There

Access Information

Haraoka, Tomiura-cho, Minamiboso. Car recommended. Free to visit. There are two small free parking areas nearby, both of which fill around sunset; the Michi-no-Eki Tomiura Biwa Club car park is the reliable alternative. Diamond Fuji, when the sun sets on the summit, occurs around May and August.

Insider Guide

Premium

**Sunset, and the pier faces west.** The whole reason to come is the sun going down over the bay behind the timber. Arrive an hour before to get a position. **Diamond Fuji is May and August.** Twice a year the setting sun sits on the summit. Those evenings the beach is full; check the local tourism calendar for exact dates. **Parking fills at sunset.** Two small free areas nearby, and they go. The roadside station at Tomiura is a short drive and always has space. **It is an old working structure.** Built in 1921, no railings along much of it, and wet timber. Watch your footing and do not treat it as a promenade. **Winter for the clearest Fuji.** Cold dry air from December to February gives the sharpest view across the bay; summer haze often removes the mountain entirely.

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