Day 48: Tsuwano to Hagi

November 12, 2024

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It's time to slow our roll as we creep towards "the finish line". In retrospect, there are countless other routes we could take that would be fun. For instance, now that we're on the north coast, we could work our way around the bend. Another option would be to reach Kyushu as quickly as possible, then ride east or south of Fukuoka until it's time to pack our bags.

I continue to feel drawn to our original plan, even though we've deviated from it a few times already. Coming into the home stretch, I want to show some loyalty again. Besides, it's already paid off with two incredible days of riding. Tomorrow promises to be great as well. It has caves!

I'm getting ahead of myself. Back to this morning and our promised walk around Tsuwano. It was pretty sleepy, it being 8am on a Tuesday in November. We walked down Tonodachi Mori, with its Catholic church and historic homes.

At the end of the street lies the river, a charming bridge, a red rail bridge, and a shrine. Autumn colors are finally starting to show.

I bet there's an app that removes power lines from digital photos. Like in the U.S., they're everywhere here.

We took our time -- not one of our strong suits -- and finally returned to pack up before they kicked us out.

I suggested visiting the nearby Taikodani shrine. When we saw it perched upon the hill, we had reservations about it. Knowing that it would be a short day, we decided that we would be up to the challenge. I think we both agreed that it was worth the climb.

The theme here is cats. Cats are considered lucky. That's all I know.

It was worth coming up for the view alone

There are a thousand of these gates leading up the hillside. We walked through about twenty of them. Good enough, eh?

Back on the road, we were treated to more good low-traffic roads. It was chilly in the shade, making us realize that it's getting a bit late in the year, and that we've been pretty lucky with the weather. Must be all those cats.

We didn't stop at the first michi no eki on our route today, because it was so close to Tsuwano, but we took our time at the second and third. We lunch at the second one. There were also a few little parks along the route, making all our breaks comfortable.

There are no konbini between Tsuwano and Hagi. Instead, little trucks stop on the side of the road and offer their wares. Had we not stocked up ahead of time, those trucks would have been a godsend for us.

I had been ignoring Komoot's detours as I normally do. I came up with a new name for them: "climb-cuts". They are technically shorter, but they're not as flat as the main road. Adding that likelihood to my general distrust of the conditions on these roads, I'm usually not willing to take the risk. However, at the end of the day, I figured that the final turn off the highway would get us to our hotel quicker than taking the main road. It did, but it sure looked sketchy for a while.

Finally it opened up and straightened put, and I breathed a sigh of relief.

I knew this hotel was going to be a little bit funky. The name alone is a dead giveaway. I guess it's trying to be European. Anyway, our room has two sofas and a coffee table. The beds are up some stairs. Not exactly a loft, but same concept.

After freshening up, we explored Hagi on foot. It's not the prettiest town, but it's all right. We feel comfortable here. Today's dinner was Taiwanese food, which we ate at a normal pace as opposed to wolfing it down the way we would after a more grueling ride. Maybe I'm short-selling the effort involved. There were some decent climbs, but also remember that we're riding with considerably less weight, and it's quite liberating. We don't regret it one bit. It's helping us go out on a high note.

Today's ride: 50 km (31 miles)
Total: 2,775 km (1,723 miles)

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