The ride this morning was not so pleasant. I had to pass through the urban conglomeration of three cities around the bay before the Noto peninsula. The less busy road was very indirect through the sprawl and I could, even by looking at the map, that I would get lost easily.

Staying with the busier road made the ride more straightforward but it was not enjoyable. Dusty, hot and noisy I was glad when I could leave it after about 60km and join the road that would lead to the Noto peninsula.

Ate lunch in a ramen place by the side of the road. The chef liked the sound of my journey and gave me a nice present of an energy drink before leaving.

The peninsula was worth the rough ride in the morning though. Quiet roads lined with fishing villages. I even passed a temple that had been built into a cave.

Just before arriving at my campground for the night I passed a harbour with some nice winnings on the wall that I assume the fisherman had painted.

The campsite I set my tent up

The beach/park I moved my tent to after the campsite owner wanted me to pay 2000yen

Feeling good after the big feed and good company the night before, I set off from Kashiwazaki in high spirits. The weather was set to be a bit cooler than the sweltering heat the day before (although only by a few degrees) and my route promised to be both scenic and smooth.

I remained by the coast. I like cycling by the coast, the view is almost always good, the road flat enough and it’s harder to get lost!

I cycled through Joestsu, one of the bigger cities after Niigata, getting through it quickly by sticking to the main road. Not as pleasant as riding the smaller roads for sure, but in the midday heat I wanted to avoid getting lost as much as possible and the route would be scenic once again when I left the urban sprawl.

From Joestsu to Itoigawa, the next city along the coast, the entire route was a great bicycle path that had been made out of an old railway. It even reused the tunnels, which gave me some respite from the blistering sun.

The home stretch from Itiogawa left the flat shoreline behind in favour of rocky cliff face. The path rose and fell, but none of the rises were extended climbs. The drop onto the ocean was so sheer that the road itself was pretty much s tunnel attached to the rock face. The main motorway was built right out over the sea,the concrete struts holding it up plunging into the ocean. Being a bicycle though, it was forbidden to ride on this road.

It was a descent from the cliffs into Asahi where the sandy shores returned again. The campsite was free for cyclists so I treated myself to an onsen after a day of riding.

It’s always refreshing to be back on the road, even after only two days in Niigata I felt like it has been a month since I was in the saddle. Cycling out of the city was a lot easier than cycling into it. No sooner had left the last of the sprawl behind, I found myself cycling through the dunes that surround Route 402. The sun was out and the wind was calm, it was perfect.

Not long after leaving the dunes behind I saw this sign

Anyone who knows where I work back home will understand why I had to go on a detour. It was sort of an odd complex of about three small vineyards, one large vineyard with a big gift shop and cafe and fancy spa.

Perhaps the most unusual part of the whole experience was finding this small vineyard and winery run by a man who had loved his trips to Ireland so much he themed his vineyard after it. It was a bizarre experience, stepping out of the heat of the Japanese summer into a winery with The Chieftains playing.

After this not-so-short break the road continued along the coast. It passed by a host of beach that were packed with Japanese people enjoying their national holiday week. It was very hot and the roads were very busy the riding wasn’t quite as enjoyable as it had been in the morning. My path did take me through some nice old fashioned villages however.

I got to Kashiwaki and was on the hunt for a campground when I noticed a good number of tents set up on the beach at the end of the city. I set my tent up and went for a refreshing swim. The sunset here on the west coast was beautiful.

The was a building up near the end of the beach where I went in hopes of filling my water bottles. It turns out it was an impromptu bar/restaurant open during the day. Shut now in the evening it’s staff and friends were enjoying a BBQ on the deck. Katzuo, one of the chefs invited me up and I got to spend the evening eating BBQ and attempting to understand Japanese. On of the best nights I’ve had here no doubt.

The last day of the second leg of the tour. The riding on this day was by far the easiest, flat and with a comfortable tailwind pushing me along the last 100 -odd km to Niigata city.

It also had the most impressive views, especially early in the morning as the rising sun picked put the jagged sea stacks that dotted the shore next to route 345. The rocky coast fell straight into the sea, and with little flat ground by the shore there were numerous tunnels cut into the rock face.

Passing through the sprawling coastal town of Murakami was my halfway point, where the road turned back inland for a spell to cross the flat plains between sea and mountain. It wasn’t long, however, before it rejoined the coast, although a much straighter and sandier coast.

Getting into Niigata was a bit of a chore that added an extra hour or so that I had t planned on cycling. The most direct route was motorway where bicycles aren’t allowed, so I had to cycle around most of the city and then follow the road that led to the centre.

It feels good to have another leg of the tour complete. This one I took a lot slower and easier than the trip through Hokkaido, and I enjoyed it much more for it.

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.

Kakunodate was good to me. I found a really nice guest house on the first night. That evening, as I said in the last post, I ran into some English teachers. The next night I crashed at one of their places, so I got to stay in Kakunode an extra day!

Mike, an American who had been living in Kakunodate for over two years took me around the historic part of the Town, where a whole neighbourhood of Samurai houses have been preserved.

We then went back out to the lake to take a look at the other side, the shore I didn’t get to. Certainly worth the trip, the shrine and statue out there I had missed before and the weather was perfect.

That night we went out and ran into some older past pupils from the school the guys were teaching at, who I think were having a reunion or something. It was good times. I’m going to miss Kakunodate, I didn’t expect to grow so attached to a place I was only going to pass through quickly.

Alex, me and Mike up by the lake.