No expert, but these three birds all were well seen on the VENT Japan in Winter tour, superbly led by Kaz Shinoda. He is a teacher turned professional bird guide, just a massive asset to help understand and appreciate the nuances of Japanese culture as well as the natural resources.
https://ventbird.com/content/124/KazShinoda/38
The tour this winter is Jan 10-30th, 2020.
Note that the fish owls are seen from the inside of a classic ryokan, the Yoroushi Daichi Onsen, a wonderful Japanese style inn where the owls (and later their young) come to feed on the fish in the garden pool. We also had Pied Kingfisher, Black Woodpecker and Solitary Snipe from the dining room windows, although the proprietor noted that this was the first time in his long tenure that Black Woodpecker had been seen there.
The Cranes are best seen very early from the bridge over the Setsuri River in Tsurui, as they stay in the river overnight, to stay safe from foxes. The cranes fly out early, making a very popular photography target. Usually there is easily a million dollars worth of gear on the bridge, trained on the oncoming birds.
Note the easy way to enjoy the cranes is to visit the Akan Kokusai Tsuru International Crane Center, which has open meadows where the Cranes can and do dance, while awaiting their fish snacks. The trees around are littered with White Tailed Sea Eagles, always alert for a free meal.
Stellers Sea Eagles will also be there, but are best seen in Rausu, in the Shiretoko peninsula. Again, free meals dominate, the local fishermen dump their bycatch on the lake ice and the eagles flock for the eats.
Do note that it snows a lot in Hokkaido, so even the Japanese road service is sometimes overwhelmed. That said, the roads are superb, the services very good and the birding just unique.
Highly recommended.
