Now that I was back by the sea where the road was mostly flat, I was ready to start cycling proper distances again. Hurrying the journey, I suppose, but being able to mark off a good chunk of the map after a long day of riding brings its own satisfaction. It was a about 230km to Niigata, consider to mark the end of the Tohoku region and the end of this leg of north Honshu for me. I could make it on two days, and I had heard that Fuya, which was about 130km away was a good place to camp.

The road was pleasantly flat most of the time. I followed route 7, but deviated where I could in order to avoid the traffic and get a better view.

Sakata was my halfway point, but I got a bit losses navigating through it. It was only about 20 minute, but nevertheless frustrating, especially when you want to put in a good distance that day.

The coast became a lot more wild after Sakata, more jagged and rocky shores than beaches and some impressive sea stacks to boot. There was also this small cave right by the road.

I saw a sign for an onsen when I arrived at Fuya so went for a refreshing bath before heading to the campground. I set my tent up right on the beach, along with numerous other campers who had flocked here for the school summer holidays. I was the only one who hadn’t driven there, however, and this gave me a very self congratulatory sense of satisfaction.