For much of its history, Chirpoy Island was part of Japan—until 1952, when the country surrendered all claims to it to Russia. Not that either country has left much of a mark on this uninhabited island. The draw of the island is not any manmade wonders, but natural ones. Orcas and Steller sea lions swim in the waters off its coast, while guillemots, kittiwakes, and puffins are common here—in fact that Ainu name for the island translates as “the place of many small birds.”

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