I had covered about three quarters of Noto island in a circuit the day before. The last part of the ride was a real pleasure, the road gently changed elevation as it followed the uneven coast. This was enhanced by the gentle morning climate, before it had gotten too hot or too windy. Overall a great morning on Notojima. Over the second, more northerly bridge that connected to the island to the mainland and then following the more secluded coast road to the path that would take me across to the western side of the island and down to Kanazawa.

fishing skiffs off the coast of Notojima

first glimpse of and then crossing the north bridge

the mainland coast road and fishing villages it passed through

Or so I hoped. So blissfully lost I was in the serenity of the morning I became annoyingly lost in the tangle of roads that would traverse the peninsula.

There was one specific route I wanted to take that avoided most of the mountains, but I was unable to find it. After 30 minutes of map consultation and back tracking I found the turn I had missed, on the right track again.

Kanazawa was closer than I thought, I had imagined I wouldn’t arrive until the day after. I had made my booking for then, so crouched by the side of the road next to a mobile phone retailer I found a wifi connection and the number of a hostel that should have space at such short notice. Booking made, I sped on to Kanazawa.

The road to Kanazawa was flat and somewhat uninteresting. Historically, this region produced the most rice in all Japan so it was natural that it was rice I saw for miles and miles.

the road to Kanazawa. You can just about make the city out on the horizon, look for the thin,tall skyscraper

Like all cities, getting into Kanazawa by bike was difficult. Following signs would bring be tantalisingly close only to merge to the motorway where bikes are forbidden. After much muddling, however, I made it.

The time between city stops seems to be shorter, only natural as I approach the dense centre of Honshu where the majority of cities(worth stopping at) are located.