Okhotsk High Sea

These waters lie in the southern Sea of Okhotsk, between Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands. In winter and spring, wind and currents carry drift ice south from the eastern shore of Sakhalin toward Hokkaido and the islands. Some ice then travels northeast along the Kurils and through their straits. The sea's cold waters support many marine mammals, while fog and changing ice conditions affect passage across it.