Cape Ashizuri

Cape Ashizuri
足摺岬
Cape Ashizuri Lighthouse above the cape
Cape Ashizuri
Location of Cape Ashizuri on Shikoku
Cape Ashizuri
Cape Ashizuri (Japan)
Coordinates: 32°43′26″N 133°01′13″E / 32.723829°N 133.020337°E / 32.723829; 133.020337
LocationTosashimizu, Kōchi Prefecture, Japan

Cape Ashizuri (足摺岬, Ashizuri-misaki) is a headland at the southernmost tip of the Japanese island of Shikoku, in the city of Tosashimizu, Kōchi Prefecture. The promontory extends into the Pacific Ocean and is situated within Ashizuri-Uwakai National Park. Above the cape is Cape Ashizuri Lighthouse, which started operating in 1914, and two observatories, while a short distance inland stand Kongōfuku-ji, the thirty-eighth temple on the Shikoku Pilgrimage, and a bronze statue of Nakahama Manjirō, who was born nearby. Due to coastal erosion, there are a number of caves around the cape, including Hakusan Cave, said to be the largest granite cave in the country and a Prefectural Natural Monument.