Aoiike, Blue Pond, Biei, Shirogane Onsen, Kamikawa (Ishikari) District, Hokkaido, Japan

The Blue Pond (青い池, Aoiike) outside the hot spring town of Shirogane Onsen is named after is deep blue color which it owes to natural minerals dissolved in the water. Not promoted as a tourist spot until recent years, the pond is part of an erosion control system that was built to prevent damage to Biei in case of an eruption by nearby Mount Tokachidake.
Besides a free parking lot, the pond has not seen much touristic development. It takes visitors 5-10 minutes to walk through the forest to the pond. Around the pond there is not much to do other than to enjoy the scenery, which also includes some concrete structures of the erosion control system.