Post Work 40 km Loop

I was introduced to this ride by a coworker shortly after arriving in Iwakuni and it is the most frequent course I travel.  At 40 km the it's a good distance to be able to fit in after work and for three quarters of the year I can be back home before dark.  The ride starts with a few kilometers of city traffic but quickly turns into back roads with light to no traffic.  The first 17 km are flat and follow Route 135 along the river.  This gives you a good opportunity to warm up before hitting the one climb which is about 6 km in length and rises from sea level to 400 m.  The downhill back  into town has a bit more traffic but the road is in good condition and depending on your ability you can stay ahead of the traffic.  The ride finishes off taking the backroad from Shin-Iwakuni to the Kintai bridge.  This ride is enjoyable if you want to sit up in the saddle and take it easy after a stressful day at work or if your looking to work on your cycling conditioning you can put your head down and ride the flat section at speed and blow your legs out on the climb.  I've seen wild boar and monkeys on this ride over the years and the road has been washed out and covered by mudslides but it was quickly repaired.

Mudslide that occurred after heavy rains in 2014.  The road was cleared within a couple of months and it was easy enough to portage across.

Today's ride the trees were changing colors in the hills.

Unfortunately the sun is not staying up long enough to make it through the ride before it gets too dark these days.

This little shrine marks the start of the climb, good chance to stop and say a little prayer before the suffering starts.

Veteran's Day tour of Yamaguchi, Day 3

Final day of the long weekend and I was not ready for the trip to end.  As nice as it is to use the weekends for short tours it inspires me to want to be on the road longer.  Can't wait for the next trip.

Day 3 was overland from the Japan Sea back to the Seto Inland Sea.  I've been wanting to ride route 315 since it's one of the most direct roads from coast to coast.  It was a great road with very little traffic, surface was in good condition and the scenery was stunning.  There is a fair bit of climbing as you leave the coast, in the first 20km you gain about 400m of elevation.  Overall distance for the day was 137km.

Sunrise from the campground looking east, the temperatures were rather warm for this time of year with the overnight low at 12 C.  

First order of business for the day was to address my now completely flat front tire.  After a thorough inspection of the tire I could not find anything sticking through that would have created the leak, it appeared as though it was a valve stem leak. It's always a little troubling to put a fresh tube in a tire when you can't positively identify the source of the failure, especially this far from home.  But glad to report I made it back without incident, however I will be carrying two tubes with me from now on.  Generally I only carry one spare and a patch kit but the additional tube will give me a little more peace of mind.

Entrance to the ECO Village campground.

Protected bay between the village of Susa and the campground.  There was quite a bit of activity on the water even before sunrise, I guess the wanted to take advantage of the calm warm weather this late into autumn.

Once I climbed off the coast and cleared the first mountain ridge I found myself cycling across some rolling hills with small farms interspersed.  It was perfect weather for cycling but the lack of cold nights meant that the trees weren't very colorful this year.

A dilapitated farm home, for Pearl.

Still another 30km to home but it was good to see the city limit sign.  From here into town was all downhill.

Veteran's Day Tour of Yamaguchi Day 2

12 November 2016

Day 2 of the long weekend was focused on reaching the Japan Sea on the western side of Yamaguchi prefecture.  I haven't spent any time in this area and was really interested in  riding along the seaside.  I wanted to make it out to the islands to the west but just didn't have time this trip.  Guess it's good to not reach all your goals the first go around, keeps you coming back for more.

Day 2 were all new roads for me crossing western Yamaguchi prefecture.  Distance 154 km.

After passing through Mine city I took route 435 to Kottoi village.  The road skirted around a golf course, this bridge was strictly for golf carts, seemed an awful lot of trouble to go to in order not to build a cart path through the rice paddy.  But I guess it's also an indication of priorities.

As I got closer to the coast the hills got a little less steep but the wind started picking up.  Was actually a little demoralizing to see the wind turbines in the distance because of the visual representation of the headwinds to come.  I leap frogged these two cyclist a few times coming out of Mine city,  I could never quite stay on their wheel after they passed me.  They were out for a Saturday fitness ride and I was loaded down with gear.

Made it to the Japan Sea at Kottoi port.  The water was quite calm in the bay and the wind wasn't nearly as strong as I had expected.  At this point I jumped on route 191 and followed it the rest of the day till I reached my destination at the town of Susa and the ECO Village campground.

While stopped at a Lawson's (convenience store) to refuel, I caught the local train passing by.  It didn't look too full but I imagine it's quite a pleasant trip up and down the coast.

Little hamlet nestled in the small river delta and small bay formed by the hills as they pushed into the sea, it was a beautiful day for riding the eastern coast.

Quick stop in Hagi to enjoy my favorite guilty pleasure (although I really don't feel guilty...gave that up years ago).

Just after dinner stop my front wheel was feeling a little soft, I only had another 20km to go and the sun was setting so I pumped it up rather than changing the tube and hoped to make wait till I made the campground to swap it out.  The small island had a Torii gate and small shrine, it was easily visible from the road but this picture isn't quite clear enough given the fading evening light.

An interesting little train station on the coast route, most looked very similar to this one which leads me to think this train line may not be in service much longer since the station's aren't getting much care.  The declining rural population and availability of low cost automobiles means the trains just aren't the lifeline they once were to rural Japan.

Made it to the ECO Village Campground after dark, the office closed at 5 p.m. so I found myself a spot to pitch the tent.  There was only one other family tent camping.  In addition to tent sites this campground has a number of cabins.  After setting up my tent and eating a little more food I went off in search of what facilities were available and as luck would have  it there was a coin shower.  Unfortunately I didn't think this through very well because I only had two 100 yen coins.  The shower gives you about 3 minutes per 100 yen which turned out to be more than enough time.

Veteran's Day Tour of Yamaguchi Day 1

11 November 2016


I've taken the opportunity over the last few years to use the long weekend to explore some of the country out my back door here in Yamaguchi prefecture.  Although I've discovered many of the routes within a hundred kilometer radius of Iwakuni once you get beyond that point it seems the options of finding new and interesting roads are endless.

Day 1 consisted of mostly familiar roads from Iwakuni to a campground just north of the Akiyoshidai karst plateau, distance 149 km.

Luckily the rain passed through the night before and I ended up having clear weather all three days of the trip.

The first flash of fall colors was this golden ginkgo tree 

Passing through the mountains of southwest Japan in early November can be hit and miss for fall colors, but seems there's always something that makes you stop for a closer look.  These contrasting maple and ginkgo trees over the torii made me pull over for a peak at the shrine.

In addition to exploring new roads my ulterior motive was to visit the brewery and restaurant, St. Remy de Provence a few kilometers south of Yamaguchi city.  The restaurant is modeled after a German chalet and they make their own sausage and brew a variety of unique (for Japan) beers.

When you have mug of stout and fresh baked pizza with local sausage to look forward to it makes the kilometers go by quickly.  I toyed with the idea of buying a couple of bottles to carry with me for the next two days but ultimately decided I really didn't need the extra weight.  I'll be back.

After my late lunch I had another 50 km to go and ended up riding into the campground after dark.  I did make it in before the onsen closed.  The campground at Akiyoshidai has a few cabins and many tent sites.  If  you're hiking or biking in the spots are 1000 yen ~ $10 (US) per night and if you want to soak in the bathes (and I don't know why you wouldn't) it another 400 yen.  The bath closes at 8 p.m.

Sharing My Rides in Japan

This blog is my hope to share some of the amazing cycling experiences I have while traveling around Japan.  I've had the great opportunity to live in Japan on and off since 1993 and cycling has been core to the way I've experienced the country.  The pace of bike travel matches well with the Japan countryside and has allowed me to interact with the people and landscape in a manner that has enriched my life beyond measure.