Shiretoko in end September?

Hi there,
I want to ask, is it worth visiting Shiretoko in end Sep? Purpose is to relax and see autumn leaves. Saw that it is UNESCO heritage site, but its location is very far from other places such as Asahikawa, Biei, Furano or Obihiro.

In that direction of Hokkaido there are also the beautiful lakes, like Lake Akan and Lake Mashū, etc. I really enjoyed that part of Hokkaido last winter.

I went at the very beginning of October 2 years ago, and while there was a lot of color, it still wasn't peak season for the colors. Of course, even autumn color is dependent on weather so it changes a little year-to-year, but talking with people who live in that area, it was closer to mid-October usually than early. Still, there were some very nice colors, especially up at the pass from Utoro to Rausu!

We will be in Hokkaido till Oct 10, so it seems it is better to visit a bit later. Is this area inconvenient to access without a car?

I am still considering if I should go to Shiretoko via Asahikawa and Sounkyo or via Obihiro. We will probably do a loop of Asahikawa- Sounkyo-Abashiri-Shiretoko-Obihiro-Furano-Biei-Asahikawa before going to Sapporo. Any advice if it is better to loop this way or the other way round?

The latter half of Sept is autumn foliage season in the mt area of Daisetsuzan National Park. From Sounkyo there is special shuttle bus service going to the 2 popular koyo sites of Ginsendai and Daisetsu Kogen Onsen, so it would be better to go there during the early part of your trip. But in Sounkyo itself the season is best during early Oct which means it is best to leave it until the latter half of your trip! Which to go for really depends on your own personally preference.

If autumn colour is a major objective consider devoting some time south of Sapporo. Early to mid Oct is a very good time for koyo in Jozankei, Houheikyou Dam, Niseko, Shikotsu-ko and Noboribetsu.

So it seems the best is to go to Daisetsuzan area in the first half of my trip, and south of Sapporo in the second half of the trip. The risk here is if autumn leaf is to come later this year, I may miss all of them altogether. Will it be "safer" to go south first then north? Autumn viewing would be great, but enjoying Hokkaido, the food and relaxing are also important for us.

Any recommendation where to stay in Shiretoko?

Dunno what your budget is, but this hotel is REALLY nice: http://www.shiretoko.co.jp/en/

I checked the website, and it seems it costs about 140,000 yen for 2pax, 3 nights. That is very costly. Any cheaper alternatives? Sea view will be great, if possible.

I'm planning to stay in Shiretoko some days in sept/oct. After a lot of research, I ended up on this hotel:

http://www.hotel-grantia.co.jp/shiretoko/

It's right outide the train and bus station, if you consider public transportation. Prices are affordable.

Iruka hotel was also considered ( which is close to sea, apparently), but you need a car to move freely. Same goes for many of the youth hostels in the area.