A monster climb and a blood sucking leech

May 8, 2023

Izumi to Minshuku Garappaso

The day has come to enact our plan to ride across Kyushu from the South China Sea to the Philippine Sea. We are on a mission to get to Miyazaki, take the ferry to Kobe and get Barry’s motor functioning reliably.The rain has finally stopped, but the wind has stayed with us. Initially it was a cross wind but as we continue it becomes a tailwind. An auspicious start.

Our goal today is to make the climb to Isa, visit the Sogi Falls and then carry on for as long as we can ride.

The first 19 Km from our hotel was what we had anticipated with a rolling start of 6 Km then 13 Km of relentless uphill. Once we reached the top, we took a breather and the descent was straight down. What a blast!

Looking from our hotel room to a view of the day ahead. The Bartletts are coming…should be fun.

Our wonderful room with room to move around or even swing a cat (not literally…it is just an expression).

Oh yes, the hills are waiting for us. So beautiful and covered with the lush foliage we connect with the beauty of Kyushu. As the map suggests, as soon as we leave the city of Izumi, the climb will begin.

Barry, carrying his bike’s broken fender from the crash,while towing his trike from the garage. We are both crossing our fingers that he has a motor working for the day ahead.

Our hotel rents bikes and they happily provide you with a car’s parking space in the parking garage.. When we arrived, we were charmed by the gracious way an employee escorted us and directed us to our spot. This meticulously dressed fellow seemed unbothered by our sweaty dishevelled appearance and treated us like we had just rolled up in our luxury car. Have I said recently how much we love it here?

Meet Mickey the resident turtle who lives in the lobby. I’ll admit I have little experience with turtles but Mickey’s curiosity and recognition when we would go over to wish him good morning…“konichiwa” affirmed his connection.

A pretty bush by a house that caught my eye.

We almost made it out of Izumi without stopping, but….

…who can resist a yummy cold latte unsweetened and a bun with dark sesame seeds and red bean paste. We rationalize that it is fuel for the ride.

I have neglected to introduce my riding buddy…I call her Wilkie, short for the phenomenal female Canadian hockey player, Hayley Wickenheiser, and I call my trike Elsie. We have many conversations throughout the day.

In leaving town, we have been making short climbs in the city of Izumi. Now we get the fun of going down. The problem with that is that we will need to reclimb what we have just enjoyed. But isn’t the scenery beautiful. The swath of lime green is bamboo forest.

Cranes are a significant presence in Izumi. They migrate from Siberia to this town in the winter. Roughly 10,000 gather in one field. To ensure their return, the city of Izumi provides a ton of grain everyday for them to feed and encourage them to return to this spot. Here there is a Crane Museum and about 10 Km out of town is an observatory. Would love to see this someday.

Carp wind sails are a common sight here and help us to gauge the wind’s direction.

We are beginning to climb and the roar of the river is with us.

The weather is perfect for riding and enjoying these views. When we left the hotel, no motor for Barry. However as we began our climb, his motor magically started and stayed with him until we reached the top. The spirits of something positive are with us.

What a wonderful sight to be near the top of the tree line. It has been a tough endurance test for us with 19 km of steady climbing with 12 of it being more challenging. Leslie, it is true….”we can do hard things!”

It is most unusual for Barry to ride on ahead of me. He is certainly capable of outpacing me, but he believes that we should enjoy the ride together. Today, however, he is going ahead to hopefully keep the motor going. Sadly at the top, his motor stopped working and that was it for the day.

I must have been a sad sight riding on my own at a steady slow pace. Suddenly a white van stopped in front of me and this young woman came running calling to me. She gave me a cold bottle of green tea to help me on my climb. Wow, her enthusiasm helped me kick it up a notch. She also stopped where Barry was waiting for me, a few minutes ahead and he also was the recipient of her generosity. Thank you to this kind stranger.

We were both very winded and our legs are feeling it from this epic climb, but happy to see beyond the trees.

And then we went downhill for the same distance all in one go. No flat areas or ups and downs….just down. It was exhilarating.

Uh oh, it just got interesting….

We stopped at a Family Mart for lunch. Barry had been complaining about a bite on his foot, mosquito perhaps. Well he took off his sandal and there was a leech feasting on his foot.

The challenge was getting the bleeding to stop from his two wounds as Barry takes strong blood thinners, but we got there. A woman was serving herself coffee and I think we freaked her out a bit.

The leech has enjoyed his last meal…Barry exacted his revenge on this guy.

Loved this poster in the men’s bathroom.

Barry’s lunch. Their salads are really good with tasty dressings.

One of Family Mart’s specialties is egg salad. It is yummy. This one’s for you Judith, my sister who loves egg salad too. The coleslaw with corn on top was very good.

As we were leaving Family Mart, this customer joined me on Barry’s trike. I think he liked it. What a character. The fellow behind me is the Manager and unbeknownst to me, he gave us a bag full of bottles of ice cold green tea and some sweets. Thank you so much.

The Manager and the staff of The Family Mart came out with the woman’s little boy to check out our trikes. She seemed like a natural and clearly would have enjoyed a ride…but she is a busy working woman and a mom as well.

I was showing the woman and her son different features of the trike and it was the bell that intrigued the son most of all. In Canada, it is custom to use your bike bell to warn people you are approaching, but in Japan this is something you should never do. When her son started ringing the bell, she covered her ears and was visibly upset by the shrill sound. Now I understand.

The happy crew of The family Mart were happy to have their photo taken. I hope they were able to understand our google translated messages and see the photos.

Sogi Falls are billed as the Niagara Falls of Japan. The beauty and power of these falls are magnificent. Unlike Niagara Falls in Canada, which has become Uber commercialized, here they have created a beautiful park for walking and picnics, you can walk (or ride) for some distance and there is no charge and no commercialism.

We know little about this place but it sure looked interesting. However, we have read that due to Kyushu’s hot humid summers and cold winters, herbs grow in profusion here, so it makes sense that one can process the herbs they have collected here. This herb place and a restaurant were the only commercial areas. It has been left natural as nature intended.

These falls are known across Japan for their beauty and size. With a width of 210 metres and a height of 12 metres and with many smaller falls, they are impressive. The Karachi River and its tributaries transform into Sogi Falls. This powerful water funnels into a power dam downriver and harnesses this energy.

From some angles this large rock resembled a skull or something from the show, Lost. Very striking.

This bridge traverses the wild raging river below.

On our way along the Dyke of the Sendai River. Starting to think we need to find a spot to set up our tent or a Minshuku would fit the bill, especially if they have an onsen.

This green character is a beloved mascot and protector of this area. We will see him in many forms today.

Dinner tonight is grilled fish, soup, rice, chicken in a sauce, kimchi…so tasty.

The dining room where will have dinner and breakfast. Budget Inns like thisMinshuku always include the 2 meals in the price.

The onsen Mary Ellen will be using which she shared with some local women who come here every day. Cost for entry is $2 but free for us. After the hard ride my knees and Barry’s back were “screaming” and we both agree that the onsen with its therapeutic waters soothes our weary limbs. We have read that the hot springs in this area are highly rated in Japan.

We decided not to go into Isa as it is a bit off the route and we wanted to get to Sogi Falls. In our map the falls were described as the Niagara Falls of Japan. Being Canadians, we had to see that.
However, first things first. We saw a Family Mart in the distance. We need hot coffee and some lunch. But before we ate, Barry said he had a bite on his foot that was bothering him. He took off his sandal and it was not a mosquito bite, but a leech who was having quite a meal of his blood. The leech certainly chose his victim well as Barry is on a powerful blood thinner. Anyway Barry was able to remove the leech but then we had the task of getting the bleeding to stop. The little guy had taken two bites out of him. Yikes.

As usual our lunch was really good. The fellow who is the Manager of this Family Martand his staff took an interest in what we were doing and then our trikes. We spent some time chatting with the aid of Google Translate and some time later, we bid them farewell. The Manager kindly gave us a bag of cold drinks and some sweets for our journey. Very thoughtful. Thank you so much.

It was just that kind of day. Earlier as I was struggling on a particularly steep section when we were climbing up from Izumi, a white van stopped in front of me..a woman jumped out and ran back to me with a bottle of cold green iced tea. She also stopped and gave Barry a bottle as well…he was waiting for me in the shade up ahead..

Sogi Falls: The grounds are beautiful and worth the visit but the real star is the magnificent raw beauty of the falls with their wild energy. The sound is deafening and there is much to see.There are smaller waterfalls popping up among the rocks. It is a force of nature.

In this area we are loving that the landscape has finally flattened out. After the exertion needed for the beginning of todays ride, we felt energized and carefree riding around the countryside.

The route is now following the Sendai River and we are riding on a dyke with a beautiful view of the countryside. We are getting tired so decided to head to the road and find a place to stay. We stopped at the first of Japanese Inn we saw…it is described as a Budget Japanese Inn but it is situated by the water, there is an onsen in the lower level we can use and we will have dinner and breakfast here.
Dinner was delicious..grilled seafood, soup, rice, a chicken dish that was yummy, bamboo shoots, veggies…..then a visit to the onsen, Barry in the mens and I with the women. It was a funny experience as the women who shared my onsen were curious and wanted to chat. They spoke in Japanese, I replied in English, none of us understood each other…but somehow it worked.

A friend wrote to me and shared a thought that I heartily agree with regarding the synchronicity of life…often the best laid plans cannot be realized and allowing yourself to take what comes and enjoy it, make life (and travelling) so much better and easier.

To say it has been a fabulous day is an understatement. Life is good for the Bartletts in Japan.

Today's ride: 50 km (31 miles)
Total: 427 km (265 miles)

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Steve Miller/GrampiesDodie here: well darn that the motor stopped at the top of the hill. We were hoping it would have fixed itself. This is exactly the behaviour of Steve's bike in England. We finally decided it was the controller that had died, and had a new one express shipped from the company in China to our friend in Paris. After a brutal month of riding with no assist we finally got it installed and things improved from then on.
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1 year ago

Barry BartlettHi Dodie
Yes, we have a Bafang on our tandem and we have replaced a number of controllers. We think the Bafang can't handle a loaded tandem. But no matter the reason it is sure a pain not to have a reliable system especially since he’s hauling a bigger battery. Should be on the ferry to,Kobe in the next few days…wish us luck..and thanks for,your thoughts.
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1 year ago

Susan JamesI just love your open attitude towards problems and new foods. You are such an inspiration.
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1 year ago