Erimo, Hokkaidō

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**Erimo**
**えりも町**
Erimo's location in Hokkaidō (Hidaka), Japan.
Location
Country	Japan
Region	Hokkaidō
Prefecture	Hokkaidō (Hidaka)
District	Horoizumi
Physical characteristics
Area	283.93 km² (109.63 sq mi)
Population (as of May 2008)
Total	5,693
Density	20.5 /km² (53 /sq mi)
Location	42°4′N, 143°9′E
Symbols
Tree	(エリモシャクナゲ, erimo-shakunage^?)
Flower	Rhododendron kaempferi (エゾヤマツツジ, ezo-yama-tsutsuji^?)
Erimo Government Office
Address	〒058-0292 206 Jihon-chō, Erimo-chō, Horoizumi-gun, Hokkaidō
Phone number	01466-2-2111
Official website: Town of Erimo

Erimo (えりも町, Erimo-chō^?) is a town located in Horoizumi District, Hidaka, Hokkaidō, Japan.

Erimo is famous for its strong winds, kelp (konbu), and its scenic cape, Cape Erimo erimo-misaki. The cape was made famous by an Enka song. It is supposed to be a romantic place to visit. The cape hosts a population of Kurile seals, as well as a museum dedicated to wind (kaze-no-yakata). Winds in Erimo are strong enough that in addition to two windmills on the cape, Erimo Elementary School (built in 2000) is completely powered by electricity generated by its own windmill. This is a popular location in Hokkaidō to view the first sunrise of the year, and hundreds of people from all over Japan brave the strong cold wind to watch.

While the main industry is fishing (salmon and squid in particular) Erimo's most famous harvest is kelp which is harvested by most of the native residents during the summer months. The kelp is sold in Japan as Hidaka konbu, and Erimo has a museum in the main part of town dedicated to kelp and fishery.

The Hidaka Mountains come right down to the ocean at Erimo. For that reason the road north to Hiroo had to be carved out of the rock. The road is known as the Golden Road (黄金道路, Ōgon-dōro^?), because it cost so much to build. In March of 2006, due to steady population decline, Erimo's two Junior High Schools along this road were closed, and students began busing into the main Junior High in the center of town.