I spent six days riding from Nara to Hiroshima, during which I took five ferries and two trains (not including the shinkansen that got me to and from western Japan). I used a combination of Komoot (a popular route-planning app) and Google Maps to plan my routes but lacking experience in bicycle touring, I didn’t know enough to avoid my first obstacle—the Kuragari Pass.
top, I was dragging my brakes the entire time. The second obstacle came in the form of rain; I realized that I had forgotten my rain pants at home. Not wanting to cycle in wet shorts, I stopped by a Don Quijote in Osaka to grab a pair of cheap rain pants that weren’t entirely waterproof or breathable, but did its job. Then, I continued to Kobe.
After running into deer in Nara Park and passing by the Heijo Palace remains, I headed west for Osaka and Kobe—but Komoot sent me up this devil of a touge (mountain pass) that I had never heard of. It was a gorgeous route—I was surrounded by farms and coffee houses—but even with gears designed for touring and climbing, I wasn’t able to pedal a single meter. Of course, now that I’m more in shape and have a larger rear cog, I could probably manage at least half or 3/4 of the pass— but at the time, I had to swallow my pride and walk the whole thing. The descent wasn’t enjoyable either; with a 30% grade at the
I didn’t want to wait in the ridiculous queues for Kobe beef, but I found some excellent roast beef donburi at a small restaurant in downtown Kobe. My favourite part about cycling is definitely how hungry and tired I get afterward—there’s nothing like filling your stomach and getting a nice deep sleep after a long day in the saddle. And at the Asahi Sauna and Capsule Hotel I stayed at that night, I experienced the joy of taking a nice long bath after riding through the rain and the soundest sleep I’d gotten in a long time.
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