I first visited the small town of Wajima (輪島) on the Noto Peninsula (能登半島) while on a bike packing trip back in 2015. Protruding out into the Sea of Japan on the Hokuriku coast (北陸), the Noto Peninsula is one of my favourite places in Japan, and one that has been regularly visited since that first trip.
This month we went hiking first up Mt. Byobu (屏風山), followed a few weeks later by the last family camp we’ll do for a while because of the heat along the Tsukechi River (付知川), and an early morning hike up Mt. Futatsumori (二つ森山) that was supposed to be gentle but ended up being ruthless – steep, slippery, and humid – but worth it for the view at the top.
read more Camping and Hiking: Mt. Byobu, Tsukechi River, and Mt. Futatsumori
Magome (馬籠) and Tsumago (妻籠) — possibly the two most popular villages on the Nakasendō (中山道). My first visit was way back in 2000 if memory serves me well and I’ve been back on numerous occasions ever since.
There has always been a part of me that relishes the knowledge that more than likely I was the only one out there on a road bike that day. Even now as the weekend downpour shows no sign of letting up part of me wants to be outside.
Photo above – A brief glimpse of the Mt. Shiomi area in the Minami Alps. As I mentioned in a
Back in 2003 I had a tiny company car and no idea where to ride my mountain bike as I
read more Hiking: Nakatsu River & Kuroizawa Trail ・中津川 & 黒井沢登山道
Stress and difficulty can knock us down. Sitting at our computers, we are overwhelmed with information, with emails, with one thing after another. Should we just sit there and absorb it? Should we sit there with the sickness and let it fester? No. Should we get up and throw ourselves into some other project – […]
I’ve been cycling ever since I was a kid. When I moved to Japan permanently way back in 2001 I
This is going out there as an outdoor adventure. Midnight, deep in Gifu, fire, samurai, tradition. Godo-cho, Gifu.
I was heading for the the Itoshiro valley again on the border between Gifu and Fukui prefectures (more here) to
