Today's ride started off with a bang, I was riding down a 6% gradient hill in the pedestrian/cyclist section and had a split second to choose between riding into a big kerb or trying to merge into the car lane, where trucks were also descending. I picked the kerb and landed fine, but the impact … Continue reading Japan Day 13: Riding Imabari to Marugame

Today's ride was awesome! The Shimanami Kaido Bridges connect seven islands and have excellent cycle paths throughout the whole course. Since it was the weekend before Golden Week (a week long public holiday in Japan), there were loads of people taking advantage of the great ride and pleasant weather. I saw road cyclists, tourers, casuals … Continue reading Japan Day 12: Riding Onomichi to Imabari via Shimanamo Kaido Bridges

Today's ride was split into two parts, first I rode to Tadanoumi Port to catch the ferry to Okunoshima (Rabbit) Island, then I rode the rest of the way to Onomichi. I underestimated the climbing part in the beginning, it was a 10% gradient on an absurdly narrow road shoulder, so I had to walk … Continue reading Japan Day 11: Riding Hiroshima to Onomichi

Day 08 It was raining today, so I picked indoor activities instead, but I still cycled around since it's the easiest way to see different sites. The Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum was really interesting, it contained three parts: the impact of the bombing in 1945, the recovery period afterwards and the stories of the victims … Continue reading Japan Day 08-10: Exploring Hiroshima

Today's ride was brutal, I prepped myself for 8-10 hours of riding and headed to the 24 hour store nice and early to buy supplies. The first 10km to Nichihara was really steep, but I didn't see a sign for the town, so I checked my phone and realised I cycled in the wrong direction. … Continue reading Japan Day 07: Riding Tsuwano to Hiroshima 

While this ride was half the distance of the last two rides, it was pretty much uphill the entire time, but surprisingly enjoyable. Even though I’m not a strong climber (yet), I was able to handle the mostly gentle gradients, then use the downhills to cool off. The mountains were fantastic to admire and during … Continue reading Japan Day 06: Riding Hagi to Tsuwano

Heading out of Kitakyushu was quite easy, since there was hardly any traffic, about 5km in, I came to Kanmonkyo Bridge, where an 680m long underwater tunnel was built for pedestrians and cyclists. It costs 20 yen ($0.25 AUD) for bikes to use the tunnel, then the next 30km were pretty uneventful. As I headed … Continue reading Japan Day 05: Riding Kitakyushu to Hagi

Leaving the city was a bit slow, stopping and starting at each intersection, but once I hit the highways it was fine, aside from that blunder when I went in the wrong direction and had to retrace my steps. The 495 Route went along the coast, where I saw some beaches and windsurfers, but the … Continue reading Japan Day 04: Riding Fukuoka City to Kitakyushu

I have planned a two month trip through Japan, starting with Fukuoka and ending in Tokyo, broken up into five parts: Fukuoka to Hiroshima Hiroshima to Osaka Osaka to start of Japanese Alps Japanese Alps End of Japanese Alps to Tokyo I’m not sure if I can take on the Alps, but plan B is … Continue reading Japan Day 01-03: Fukuoka City