Month: May 2018

Today I am heading towards the mighty central range of Hokkaido. I have more than 80 Km to cover and have no clue about the topo of the ride. I was fearing a tough and challenging ride. 

The ride started with a climb and I was wondering oh boy it’s going to be a long day. Actually thankfully it wasn’t. It was perhaps the best day of riding by far. I was gifted with a tremendously long and fast downhill after that and actually did around 50KM in super speed. Arrived in Ashoro at around 11am and stopped at what I suspect to be the biggest Michi-No-Eki or Roadside Station. Since there is free wifi and power points I decided to stay for an hour to charge up. 

The weather was superb the whole day and it showered slightly but stopped in minutes. At noon time it was full sun and full summer temperatures. The last 30 Km or so was harder and was hot. I arrived the campsite slighty after 2pm set up tent and went to town to shop for groceries. 

The sunset was gorgeous at the campsite and I enjoyed it while cooking dinner. My gas ran out so I wasn’t able to cook the rest of the meal which I intended to keep for tomorrow. Went to town to search for gas but all gas station closes after 7pm. Oh well I guess I have to do it tomorrow then. As I went bed I hear in the distance in what sounded like fireworks. It went on for most of the night but not loud or annoying. I wonder what festival it was. 

Tomorrow I suspect would be my hardest ride. Hoping I am wrong. 

Woke up to drizzle which stopped for awhile to allow me to quickly make some coffee and quick bite of breakfast. The sky remained cloudy and gloomy the whole day. My plan was to ride to Tomamu to see the sea of clouds. It practically rain ( light by Malaysian standard) the whole day. Not a speck of sunshine. However the scenery was fantastic no matter. 

I took a break for lunch at a place called Shimukappu Village. There are not a whole lot of towns or shops in between my route so I thought I better stop to lunch and buy supplies. At lunch I meet 2 cycle tourer from France. I chatted with them and asked them where they were heading. It seems like they are heading the opposite direction.  I did however get some info on the road ahead and decided to follow their route and head towards Kanayama lake instead. It appears that there are 2 campsites available there. Tomomu did not have campsite and I would probably have to wild camp or stay at a hotel. 

It rained pretty much all the way and it was heavier and heavier as I approach Kanayama lake. Luckily for me it stopped a few minutes after I arrived. Thankfully so. I managed to cook a quick dinner have a couple of cups of wine and tucked in the night. Tomorrow I plan to continue to head east towards Shimizu.