bike boxes

July 27th, 2007
If you ever visit bicycle chat rooms or online forums. A question that comes up again and again is, 'where can I get a bike box?' Although I agree that it can be a hassle. There are some obvious logistical problems with riding to the airport and then needing a big box. But really, its just cardboard. Cardboard is not that hard to come by. With Ayaka's help we transformed my bike into a flight-worthy cardboard horse.
Thus I rode off toward Taiwan and into the sunset.

Back to Nakashibetsu

Nakashibetsu, July 26th, 2007

It was an early morning after yesterdays festivities but we were in the canoe by 6. In all my independent travels, I'd forgotten how nice it is to have a guide sometimes. They know where all the cool spots were along the river. Deer tracks, lobsters and heron, wild watercress, and they know how to steer a canoe! Not to mention I got al my questions answered. All those fields of purple flowers? White potatoes. And all those fields of white flowers? Red potatoes.

I got a late start but it was an easy overcast ride back to my friends in Nakashibetsu. I took my time stopping at anything interesting along the way. Including several temples. I don't quite understand the temples here. Apart from that one festival in Nakshibetsu I've never seen anyone at a temple. Maybe because they are always closed. You would think in two weeks I would have seen more than one that was open.

I also passed a bonsai farm but the elfin trees were guarded by some loud and ferocious looking dogs. So I kept on riding. Back at Yoko, Ayaka and Shigeo's house we had DIY sushi for dinner!

Kicking back in Lake Kusharo

Lake Kusharo, July 25th, 2007

Today the sun was shining and I was in no hurry, so I rented a canoe and went out on the lake. I cant steer a canoe to save my life. I paddle left, it goes right. I paddle right, it goes left. Left, right, left, right. I wiggled my way across the clear foresty green water. Near my paddle you could see trout, or maybe it was bass sipping the air here and there trying to catch bugs(?) Further from camp small clusters of patient bubbles rising and spilling their sweaty sulfur scent into the air. I parked the canoe and skinny dipped in behind the warm pink and grey rocks. That aft. I rode into Teshikaga to amuse myself at the local supermarket. Supermarkets are always good entertainment even if you cant read the labels. Or maybe especially if you cant read the labels. I have to say Im very impressed with the variety of kit kats here. They come in every flavor, cantaloupe, banana, peach, cherry, kiwi, green tea...

That evening I befriended some local canoe guides who run tours on a nearby river. I was more than happy to accept their invitation to stay at their home as a large group of boyscouts have set up camp next to me. One of the girls spoke English. We got along great. they gave me soybean beer, I taught them the chicken dance. Which I had previously thought to be a global phenomenon…

Back to Lake Kusharo

Lake Kusharo, July 24th, 2007
I have to admit cold and the winds and the hills have gotten the best of me. And being absurdly unprepared and having grossly underestimated the mileage around Hokkaido (turns out the ruler function on Google Earth doesn’t translate well when it comes down to real road distances) I’ve booked a flight to Chitose from Nakashibetsu. This way I can take a rest day on my route, try and dry out and stop for 'meron icea-creamu' as often as I like and not have to worry about missing my flight back to Taiwan. After all I am on vacation.

So armed with time to account for more of the same bad weather, I was greeted with sun all the way through the Biratori pass back to Lake Kusharo. In the valley by the lake I saw a sign in English for a cafe. It was run by a cheerful Philippina who recommended a hamburger. We talked about my trip. " You must be very strong, you must drink lots of milk!" she said. I ended up ordering the fried chicken which she also recommended as delicious.

That evening I braved the mosquitoes and took a dip in the corner of the lake where some geothermic miracle was heating the water. Then slept like a baby.

Abashiri

Abashiri, July 22-23rd, 2007

Next stop on my itinerary of Hokkaido highlights was Abashiri. It was an easy ride on the sidewalk along the coastal road to the ‘Alcatraz of Japan.’ The self-disciplined traffic in Japan makes me wonder if I’m still in Asia. There is a specially designated sidewalk just for bicycles! Which seems absurd when cars won’t even turn left on red (traffic patterns are reversed) on empty rural roads. Today I was feeling rebellious and rode on the roads shoulder, until a road worker waived me onto the sidewalk.

Abashiri is famous for its inhospitable and desolate weather, which makes it a perfectly bleak place for hardened criminals. And tourists. They have recreated a whole second prison complete with life size models of prisoners and a functioning cafeteria where you can eat prison meals. I spent all day there.

Only fitting after my day at the prison should I be 'locked up' in my tent due to a severe thunderstorm.

Shiritoko Native and Visitors

Shiretoko!

Shiretoko National Park, July 21st, 2007

This whole trip to Hokkaido was contrived out of some fantastic reviews I heard about Shiretoko National Park. It’s described as "an outstanding example of the interaction of marine and terrestrial ecosystems as well as extraordinary ecosystem productivity" and "globally important for threatened seabirds and migratory birds, and a number of salmonid species." Can you go wrong!?! Yes, it’s true. I'm a sucker for any UNESCO world heritage site.

Imagine my delight when I woke this morning to the ! Extraordinary salmonid species here I come! As I was getting ready to set off, a group of (motorcycle) ‘riders’ also staying at the ‘rider house’ invited me to go up to the park with them.

As it turns out for most of the park you can’t enter with your own vehicles. We parked the Harleys at the gift shop and got on the park bus. The bears by the side of the road made me glad (for once) that I wasn’t on my bike. They track them and some of the trails were closed but we did trek up this waterfall, which is fed by a hot spring and snowmelt and not by the rain. Well, at least not today. It was nothing less than extraordinary!