Chirippu Cape

East of Iturup, the Pacific washes the southern Kuril Islands. Ainu from Iturup travelled along the island chain as far as Kamchatka to trade, carrying goods that could later be exchanged at Matsumae in Hokkaidō. In the eighteenth century, Iturup and Rasshua hunters also sought sea otters around the islands, as Russian expansion brought new competition to the region.