Kurbatov Cape Lighthouse

The Kurbatov Cape lighthouse stands at the northernmost point of Shumshu Island — and therefore of the entire Kuril chain — on the First Kuril Strait, at the western edge of the Sea of Okhotsk. Administratively the cape belongs to the Severo-Kurilsk municipal district of Sakhalin Oblast.

The lighthouse and the cape

The lighthouse tower is octagonal, built of reinforced concrete, painted red, and 10 meters tall. The light itself sits 48.35 meters above sea level, 500 to 650 meters from the shoreline. Three unnamed rocks lie in the strait right next to the cape.

History

Before 1945 the cape carried its Japanese name, Kokutan. It received its current name in 1946-1947, after Major Alexander Nikolaevich Kurbatov. Construction of the present lighthouse began in 1954, carried out by military unit 42847, and it was put into operation on November 26, 1956. In 1968 the original lens was replaced with an EMN-500 light-optical apparatus, and in 1991 a KRM-300 radio beacon was installed.

Legends and accounts

According to one version, the cape was named after a Soviet soldier who showed bravery in the battles for the liberation of the Kuril Islands in August 1945. By local accounts, the coast between Cape Kurbatov and Cape Pochtaryov was the scene of one of the fiercest clashes of the Kuril landing operation. Nearby lie the graves of Heroes of the Soviet Union Nikolai Vilkov and Pyotr Ilyichyov, who died in those battles.

Getting there and the lighthouse today

The lighthouse is maintained by the Hydrographic Service of the Pacific Fleet and remains operational. The cape itself holds the uninhabited settlement of Kurbatovo. There is no regular land route to the cape: the only way in is by sea, first to Shumshu Island and then along the coast to the lighthouse, with people and cargo delivered exclusively by water transport. The sea crossing to Shumshu Island takes about a day, covering roughly 30 kilometers one way.

What lies nearby

Cape Kurbatov is the northernmost point not only of Shumshu but of the entire Kuril chain. Across the First Kuril Strait, on Kamchatka, lies Cape Lopatka — the nearest major landmark to the lighthouse.