Solo Tour of Japan & Shimanami Kaido Event Part 3

by Brianin Aichi, Ehime, Hiroshima, Japan, Kagawa, Kanagawa, Mie, Nara, Osaka, Shizuoka, Tokushima, Wakayamaon Posted on

Day 5 - Nara to Naruto

Didn’t sleep very well due to the lights/noise/sleep talker/farter.  Woke up early and ate my conbini breakfast in the darkness of the lobby since nobody else was awake early.  Left about 0540am because today had a bit of a time constraint due to ferry schedule and it taking longer than I first thought.  Body is very tight/sore, but had to ride at a good pace and hopefully no slow downs in the city.  Was a long stretch to the last mountain pass before the ferry and at this point there wasn’t much I found interesting to take pictures/videos.

This day came as such a relief to me, mostly because it was the last day before a rest day, and also because it wasn't raining or freezing cold. Should be an easy day compared to the last one. Not a whole lot to take pictures of the first half of the day... just trying to get to the ferry over to Naruto as quick as possible. Made it to Family Mart around 1100... still on schedule.
First day I was on a bit of a time crunch due to ferry times... lots of stoplights slowing me down but still made it to the ferry building around 1pm with about 30 minutes to spare.
Ferry ticket was relatively easy to purchase. Waiting room of the main building.
Just walk right up and ask for a ticket, plus extra fee for jitensha.
The ferry waiting
Can see how many cars/trucks/buses waiting to board... it fit quite a bit
Other cyclists I happened to meet onboard. A Canadian couple who are riding from very northern part of Japan in Hokkaido to southernmost part, not including Okinawa. 10 week trip they said and they were on about week 6, averaging 70km/day... camping for the most part when they could find a place. They thought I was crazy for riding from Nara that morning but I figure it's easier for me with a lighter load and just myself to worry about. We exchanged some stories, they had more to tell obviously but I think they were the only people on the entire trip I had a conversation with.
They tell you where you can put the bikes and even provide little stoppers for it hehe
Buses no problem
Main seating area. There's also an area for people to lay down and sleep, plus a VIP area with more comfortable seats it looks like.
Bit cold to be sitting outside, and the ferry ride is not so short either.
When I'm bored I eat too hehe. I was feeling ok at this point, just super hot, funny tan lines on my face from glasses, and it was a long ferry ride to rest so that was good.
Just walking around on deck. Brings back memories every time I'm on a boat at sea again.
Top deck
Last part of the ride to Naruto hotel after the ferry was not so bad... wide sidewalks and nice coastal view
After getting off the ferry, rode another 14 miles or so to the hotel... was dark by the time I got there and just starting to rain a little again. Checked in around 535pm.
I think it's bit of a vacation/beach resort area so no food around except for hotel restaurant which was not bad and guess I could justify treating myself a little bit while staying here... bathroom was nice....
aahhhhh splurging a little on the snacks hehe. That sorbet was the BEST.

Must’ve been really anxious to get to the ferry and to my rest day… pushed through the first chunk real quick. Only stopped before the second mountain pass. First mountain pass was quick and relatively easy.. as good as hoped.

Second mountain pass was a little tougher and very hot but nice descent down towards the ferry.  Took a wrong turn towards the end and faced a lot of strong headwind.

Quick dash from the ferry to the hotel, before it got too dark.  The bridge over the last section of water was kind of dangerous, no room for cyclists…

Day 6 - Naruto Rest Day

Woohoo, rest day! Can see the beach and famous Naruto bridge from my room. No breakfast at the hotel though except for free coffee in the room and no conbini's around either.
Looking back at the hotel
Beach
Short hiking trail to the bridge area where there are several different attractions dedicated to the bridge and the whirlpools.
Otsuka Museum of Art... filled with all reproductions of world famous art... bit expensive to go inside and I was too tired to see only reproductions but apparently the largest art museum in Japan?
This short little hike probably quadrupled my fear of spiders, simply because the webs were hanging over the path the ENTIRE way... bodies bigger than quarters. I was pretty much duck walking the entire trail... good thing it was short. Knock one of those webs and those spiders are falling on your head!
Spent a good part of the day thinking about the next days ride... I'm pretty tired and beat up and burnt at this point. Weather forecast for the next day was rain again.
Finally made it to an opening to rest, no spiders here
At the top of the hill is a pretty nice lookout
Windmills far off in the distance
Some souvenir/snack shops
Entrance under the bridge to Uzu no Michi
I knew beforehand that it was offseason for the whirlpools but I made an effort to go at the best recommended time of the day anyway. Best viewing was at 1020 and made it there around 1045ish
There's different options for viewing the whirlpools... since it was a bit cold and windy and I only had shorts, I opted to just go with the bridge walk rather than the boat tours... wasn't expecting the best whirlpools either way.
I believe the words say, no jumping.
Nice views all around.
All around are some openings and glass windows to look down at the whirlpools
A couple of the sightseeing boats... notice they're pretty empty
But they do take you right through the whirlpools. If you wait long enough you'll see some smaller ones forming but no where close to being as big as the ones on google images... like watching mini hurricanes really.... ahh well... it was enough to satisfy for this trip.
Continued walking around the hill top to get more scenic spots
Had lunch as a small cafe at around 1135am with a pretty great view of the bridge near the window. Specialties here are the fish and seaweed apparently (same as hotel).
My table by the window
Souvenir shops where I bought more goodies
Sweet potato ice cream is always good
Escalator to another lookout but didn't feel like going up (¥400).. plus already got all the views I wanted on this trip
Was still hungry after the first lunch so I had another lunch hehe
The pier where one of the sightseeing boats ties up. Walking back to hotel on the main road (not walking through spiders again, that's for sure).
Some of the goodies from the day trip. Sudachi (lime looking thing) is very tasty and I liked it a lot... other local treats include sweet potatoes, sea bream fish, and seaweed. Dance style down here is pretty cool too... reminds me of Okinawa even though I haven't been there yet. Took an afternoon nap and spent most of the night debating about the ride the next day and researching trains, weighing my options.
And then dinner back at the hotel again, more local fish specialties
Hotel restaurant
Hotel gift shop

That really short, spider infested hike from my nightmares…

To be continued!

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