Murozumi to Heta (by van): we started the day with a 40km van ride up the coast to the start of our ride. When we arrived, we walked to a 7-11 to pick up onigiri for lunch while Paul and Rei setup the bikes.
foggy morning view across Murozumi Bay |
hotel balconies and town roofs |
Birds of Japan: on a wire in front of a nice roof |
IIRC, someone managed to phone-translate this tale of a samurai and a boar, but it wasn't me |
green hillside in front of houses |
last lighthouse view, best lighthouse view |
green hillside near Murozumi |
Dana chilling in front of the hotel |
hitting the road |
earlier, Paul knocked David's bike off the roof of the van with help from this tree |
exterior spiral staircase with moderate rust |
OK!! ([washing large items is...], but i like the sentiment in general) |
dropping Catherine off at Hikari Station so she can skip the ride and spend the day in Yamaguchi |
public art and/or benches |
road with trees and plants |
anti-erosion tarp on a hillside |
TIL: Uniqlo is a Japanese company and its logo is a stylized katakana spelling of its name |
what |
this photo is bad, but demonstrates that it is indeed an escalator entrance shaped like a hippo with a rainbow mouth, just like you assumed |
rooftops with industrial towers behind |
a glimpse of a windmill on a hilltop |
houses and roofs |
bonus substation |
Gina, climbing the ramp to cross the highway to buy onigiri |
the group, on the bridge across the highway to buy onigiri |
after acquiring onigiri, we will bike off into the west |
stream next to the bridge |
Heta to Yamaguchi (by bike, 43km): this ride was a bit challenging because of the 700m of climbing, but it was great. We climbed and descended through a gorgeous bamboo forest, with lots of fiddleheads, streams, and waterfalls. The second half of the ride was all downhill or flat, and took us through a pretty valley, and then a riverside bike path into suburban Yamaguchi.
off we go into the west, as advertised |
house with attractive roof, and stairs down to the water |
this roof is blue also |
Gina observing, Dana underway, solar panels lamenting the rain |
Tom and Gina underway |
rocks in the water |
leaving the highway |
switchback in the woods, with mirror |
Gina, being followed by a mysterious van |
much purple, very flowers |
fog, trees, marshmallow hay bales |
Cats of Japan: friends with excitable tails |
today's ride was extremely green |
switchback with many trees |
David, Tom, and Paul, conferring |
Gina, rounding a tree-lined curve |
if you lived here, you would know a lot about trees |
riders, nearly consumed by shrubbery |
Gina, riding off into the woods past terraced fields |
Hofu City limits, also the peak of our first climb |
now entering enormous bamboo forest |
there's so much bamboo here |
now entering enormous coniferous forest |
seriously, the bamboo was five minutes ago; this is a confusing time |
now we are in an open field with houses and many types of trees |
now mountains are reflected in a river |
this landscape is not unattractive |
anti-avalanche wall |
David, ready for lunch |
surface of water with fish shadows |
Rei, showing us an edible plant; i think it's yomogi (Japanese mugwort) |
my bike, at a stream crossing |
Gina, emerging from trees |
someone has ...left their umbrella in this tree? |
a stream in the woods |
many ferns |
fiddleheads! |
they're everywhere (as are the ferns) |
Yamaguchi City limits |
the road continues into the trees |
Gina, at the top of the second climb |
plants drying on poles |
we take a break after the second descent |
nice roofs, though |
winding road leading into weather |
Sarah underway |
the group, underway |
the group, crossing a field |
fields, buildings, mountains |
stream, fields, buildings |
several kinds of trees |
approximately here, i saw a tanuki! it vanished long before i could get a photo |
house with flooded field |
a row of flowering bushes |
plowed fields and mountains |
greenhouse next to plowed fields |
manhole covers of Yamaguchi: lanterns |
these schoolchildren approached us, asking if we were Americans and spoke English |
they were very excited when we said we were |
bike path by the canal into Yamaguchi |
bike safety warning with cartoon rabbit |
view from our hotel window in Yamaguchi |
our hotel room in day mode |
around Yamaguchi (on foot): i was hoping to find some art, so after a quick onsen break, we wandered around the town. All of the galleries we found were a bust in one way or another, but the area of Yamaguchi by the hotel was extremely charming, full of footbaths and fox art, and we had a nice walk, followed by another banquet-style dinner.
mailbox with ears, outside our hotel |
long exterior spiral staircase |
maneki-neko with fish |
parking garage with a turntable for cars |
Yamaguchi stone foxes |
advertising for Yamaguchi tourist sites: the Rurikoji temple pagoda, and the St. Francis Xavier Memorial Church |
Catherine went to see the Joeji temple garden while we were biking, but we only saw this ad |
manhole covers of Yamaguchi: cats with masks |
fox-themed playground equipment |
stone foxes guarding a footbath |
Catherine checks out the footbath. It is not warm |
stone fox holding a turtle and a rabbit |
the vines are winning |
an EV at its home |
sleeping fox statue |
walking down a residential alley |
temple in Yamaguchi |
manhole covers of Yamaguchi: people and lanterns |
small canals in residential areas |
manhole covers of Yamaguchi: fox vs train |
the first art gallery we tried: closed |
the most purple flower |
small citruses |
city surrounded by mountains |
sculptures in the window at Gallery Oasis |
information about artists at the third gallery we tried |
flower-lined path next to a canal |
houses by the canal |
cats of Japan: enjoying a fan |
canal full of tall grasses |
an owl door curtain |
a clothing pop-up |
manhole covers of Yamaguchi: fox family |
wooden statue near the hotel |
manhole covers of Yamaguchi: canal, boat, and bridge |
footbath next door to the hotel |
warning that the footbath water is warm (it wasn't, actually) |
twilight view from our hotel room |
dinner time: here we go! |
preview of coming soup |
vegetarians get Yamaguchi specialty green soba on a hot tile |
shrimp tail and sashimi; also notice that the chopstick rest is a rabbit |
the soup which was foretold, and hints of a new soup |
more hints: an attractive blue bowl, and what is this drink? |
it's hirezake, hot sake with blowfish fin (i didn't order it on purpose, and it was fine) |
the orange and green dish is revealed to be an egg custard |
the blue dish is revealed to be a meat soup |
a miso soup, and seafood rice |
the tempura course enters the arena |
dessert (not a soup!) |