Cable TV Kawaguchiko

Cable TV Kawaguchiko is a local cable operator in Fujikawaguchiko, the town on the northern shore of Lake Kawaguchi, at the foot of Mount Fuji. Along with its television service it streams the mountain live, free, on YouTube.

The view it offers is the classic one: Fuji rising behind the lake, with the cone reflected in the water on calm mornings and the snow line moving up and down the slopes through the year. It is also a practical camera. Anyone planning to photograph Fuji can check whether the mountain is out of the cloud before driving up from Tokyo, a two-hour trip that often ends in front of a grey wall.

Local operators like this one run a good share of Japan's volcano streams, and their cameras tend to be well placed, well maintained and kept running for years.