Foot massage/torture in the park
Our new drunken friend
Park camping.
Up and over to Hagi
Typical country houses
Convenience in every layby
Traditional merchant’s home in Hagi old town
Beach side camping in Hagi
Adela and Kris from Poland
Sushi, glorious sushi!
Route 187 towards Iwakumi
Refreshing river swim
Riverside picnic
There are dozens of very tame dears on Miyajima
The path up Mount Missen
Figurine on Mount Missen
Peace sign on Miyajima
Great Torii, Myajima
Great Torii, Myajima
Shrine
Itsukushima Shrine
Great Torii, Miyajima
A tree that survived the bomb
Oyster farm, Etijima
Kure naval port
Ondocho ferry
Blue lines and bridges
Ferry to
Innoshima Bridge
Shimanami Kaido – One of the finest places to ride in Japan
Luxury bus shelter
View from the ferry to Iwagi
Yoshiumicho Fusuma Bridge
Cycle path up onto Yoshiumicho Fusuma Bridge
Yoshiumicho Fusuma Bridge across to Shikoku
Our hosts in Imibari: Tsuneto, Akiko, Fumitso. Jeffrey and Linda from France were also staying having found them through Air B&B
A suitable house name
Shikoku Pilgrim
Soggy moggy
Aojima – Otherwise known as Cat Island
Temple cat
Feeding frenzy
Playtime on cat island
There are Tsunami escape routes along the entire coast. These signs tell you how far above sea level you are.
Tunnels aplenty. This was one just for bikes.
Misty coast road on Shikoku
Near Yawatahma, Shikoku
Coast road south from Yawatahama
Fruit collecting trolley
Keep Japan tidy, if you can
This guy was riding his scooter from Tokyo to Kyushu, only marginally faster than us.
Samurai statues
Terraced tea plantation
Even the road signs bow in apology when there are roadworks
Iya (Hidden) Valley
Peeing boy, Iya Valley
Vine bridge (with steel cables underneath)
Doll cyclist
Village of the dolls, Iya Valley
Village of the dolls, Iya Valley
Village of the dolls, Iya Valley
Vine bridge (with steel cables underneath)
Kirsty braves the Wild Monkey cable car
A well earned picnic spot at the head of the Iya Valley
Making roadworks more fun
At the home of the big S
Sakai Bicycle Museum. The Eddy Mercx belonged to a Texan called Lance. Whatever happened to him?
Into Osaka
Dōtonbori, Osaka
Preparing the Takiyaki
Preparing the Tokoyaki
Piping hot Takoyaki
Standing bar
Sumo paintings
Tiny Osaka houses
Audrey, our host in Osaka
Shinsekai, Osaka
The Great Buddha
Climbing through the pillar in The Great Buddha Hall, Nara
Great Buddha Hall, Nara
Basin for washing with holy water, with guardian dragon
Not climbing through the pillar in The Great Buddha Hall, Nara
A big bell, Nara
Deer ambush in Nara
Bright green macha tea, our beverage of choice at the moment
Fushimi Inari Shrine, Kyoto
Hand-deccorated, fox shaped good luck charms
Ancient history and modern convenience in Japan
Kizomizu Temple. People used to believe that if you jumped off the balcony and survived your wish would come true.
5 storied Pagodo, Kyoto
Crowds in Kyoto
Kimonos in Kyoto
Lake Biwa
Robotic salesman
Hills behind Lake Biwa
Illusive fish
Fishermen in the river
Shiragawa
Shiragawa
Log cabin accomodation
通行止め! (Road closed)
A perfect bike to ride up a mountain…..
Into the Japanese Alps
Komikotchi
Hiking up the mountain
Kamokotchi
Kamikotchi
Up at the snow line
Crossing a dam on the way to Matsumoto
Matsumoto castle
Long descents through the rain and the tunnels
We’re now on the Japanese Romantic Road
Wooden channels help cool the water before it goes to the onsens
Public onsen
Jizō statue in colourful bib
Hot river in
Hot foot bath in Kusatsu
Ski slopes in the summer
A perfect camping spot (if only it wasn’t private land)
Ryūzu Falls
On our way down from the pass at Higashiogawa
Guardians at the entrance to Nikko Temples
Nikko Toshu Gu
Monkeys on the sacred stable
Crying dragon on a temple ceiling
Shinkyō Bridge, Nikko
Cedar avenue of Nikko
Tokyo Sky Tree
Oak Hostel Cabin – Capsule Hotel
Capsule hotel
Shinjuku, Tokyo
Shinjuku, Tokyo
Shinjuku, Tokyo
Shinjuku, Tokyo
Cutting ice, Tsukiji Fish Market
Tsukiji Fish Market
Tsukiji
Oysters in Tsukiji
Tuna, Tsukiji
Camping in central Yokohama
Looking out from Hayama
Hayama
A happy meal, Kamakura
Zen garden, Engaku Ji, Kamakura
Zeniarai Benzaiten Ugafuku Shrine, Kamakura where you can literally wash money in the hope that it will then multiply
Hayama with Fuji-San behind
Shinuya pedestrian crossing, the busiest in the worlds with up to 600 people stepping out when the lights turn
Tokyo tag
Pimped fixie, Cat Street, Tokyo
Harris tweed perches
http://www.riderzcafe.com/, Tokyo
Cycling busker with portable xylophones, Yoyogi Park, Tokyo
Tokyo Rockerbilly, Yoyogi Park
Tokyo Rockerbillys, Yoyogi Park
Tokyo Rockerbilly, Yoyogi Park
Thank you very much
Partez oars
Partez oarsfolk
Kirsty in the 2 seat of a quad
Partez use the impressive facilities of Mitsubishi Rowing Club
Toda rowing lake, Tokyo
Miki
Hayama, the perfect rest stop
And they’re off!
The Tokyo Oval Cycle Track
Winner on the podium but with the crowd stood on numbers waiting for the raffle to be drawn
Riders getting loaded in the start gates
Studying the form
Final sprint
Studying the form
The winning bike, but not the winning rider
The punters placing their bets
…pedalling
Mark, who also happens to be one of the fastest triathletes in the east
Well presented tuna throat if a bit lacking in quantity for greedy cyclists
Kirsty and Muk reunuited
Most of our fellow passengers had opted for motors rather than pedal power
This boat travels at our kind of speed
Hokkaido has plenty of furry residents
This might not be a real bear
Hokkaido farmland
Reassuringly expensive melons
Roomy, warm and with only a few dozen visitors in the night making use of the en suite facilities
Our accommodation for a night in Umabari
Twisting through the forest
Lavender fields at Nakafuano
Fields of wheat
The road out of Asahikawa
Ice cream at the summit of the Pass
Japanese Fox
Japan is the world leader in building tunnels
The road down from the Mikuni Pass
Maybe some surprises in the woods today
Off road towards Otoke Lake
Wild flwoers at
Hokkaido barns
looking across to the Shiretoku Peninsula
Horses near Tofutsu Lake
Hokkaido cheese bun, with a handy map printed on top
Rising up the Shirituku Peninsula
The Oshinkoshin Fall, one of Japan’s top 10 waterfalls
Swimming in the Sea of Othosk, if I’d kept going I’d have reached Siberia
Looking back along the peninsula
In the distance is Russian owned
Summit of the Shirituku Pass
The descent from the Shirituku Pass
Bear (Bare) Onsen
A hot spring that is too hot!
