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1. Bikepacking

August 2024
  • Sebastian Uj
A 26-day adventure by Sebastian Read more
  • Sebastian Uj

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  • Japan Japan
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Backpacking, Bicycle, Camping, Solo travel
  • 873kilometers traveled
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  • 24footprints
  • 26days
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  • Sebastian UjTraveler1. Bikepacking

    10. Day Niigata 30km

    August 13, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 26 °C

    Woke up on the Tatami in the Yakitori place. Hangovered.
    Went to the city of Niigata, fathered stamps, wrote my diary in a special fancy Café and went to chill a bit at the sea.

    So I went from the south coast to the north coast.

    Akira San invited me to come to a little party at the Yakitori Place in the afternoon. New faces who I didn't know but to my surprise, they knew me. We chatted, drank and ate Sashimi, ramen and various other delicious stuff.

    For the evening I got a ticket for a Football match: Albirex Niigata vs. Miyazaki. The home team Niigata won 3:1. Great experience. One of the guys from the Yakitori place drove me to the stadium with my bicycle. On the way back I drove myself back.

    The party in the Yakitori continued with great japanese Rock'n'Roll music, beer and Sake.

    They let me sleep again in the Tatami :)

    ¥¥¥ Total around 6000¥
    Sasanadango 400¥, coffee table 1750¥, triangle cake 300¥, minerals 200¥、533¥ Fam Chicken, Deu Bier 2500¥, Cola Eis 500¥    Read more

  • Sebastian UjTraveler1. Bikepacking

    11. Day Niigata -> Sado Island 30km

    August 13, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 28 °C

    Woke up on Tatami again. Packed my stuff while listening to the album Tiny Bubbles from The Southern Allstars. Great experience to wake up alone in the Yakitori place and get some time for myself.

    Around 9-10 am I left for the harbour of Niigata. Got fresh grilled fish and a coffee float (iced coffee with ice cream on top).
    After that I went to the ferry station. Next stop: Island Sado, just north of Niigata.

    Since I couldn't fold or disassemble my bike, I needed to board the ferry with the car and motorbike drivers. Felt kinda special, since I was the only one travelling with a bicycle.

    While waiting for the ferry, I got to talk to Fuka San, who's also travelling to Sado but with his huge fully equipped Honda motorcycle.

    Fuka works in Kanagawa and travels to all the places in Japan on his motorbike in his free time.

    When we arrived on Sado, we were looking for a good place but strangely, really everything was closed, except the supermarket and a Yakitori Stand in front of it. We went for beers and Yakitori.

    After the farewell from Fuka San, I heard a strange sound from the back of my bike. I checked. Two spokes broke. One ripped out of the rim, the other just broke out of the hub.
    A really kind japanese couple saw me struggle and asked if they could help. I already thought about a plan and wanted to go first to a post office to send back some unused and unnecessary stuff. Get some weight off the back tyre. The japanese guy helped to put my bike in the car and we drove off to a post office, where he tried to ask for help in some bicycle stores.

    I could repair one of the spokes and continued with less weight. Around 5-6 kg.

    It was already late and on the way to the top of mount Donden it became dark.

    After getting from the sea at 0 meters to around 800 meters, I was exhausted as hell. But, the few from the mountain top were worth it. Also the sky was clear and since it's just a small island, I could see the Milky Way and a lot of stars.

    While arriving at the top of Mt. Donden, I met a group of japanese taking pictures and chatted with them for a while. Also we took a picture together.

    Right at the sign at the top I put up my tent.

    ¥¥¥ Total around 8400¥
    Diary Coffee 130¥, 650¥ Fish, 560¥ coffee float, konbini 454¥, ferry 5160¥, shrimp chips 200¥, hako und Versand 1500¥    Read more

  • Sebastian UjTraveler1. Bikepacking

    12. Day Sado Island 30km

    August 14, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 27 °C

    Waking up in the middle of the fog, so no view from the mountain top. Packed my stuff and went for the downhill ride... I felt, that my breaks were a bit off and in just that moment they stopped working. Haha, Timing. So I needed to push my bike for the sharpest part of the downhill part. In the end I could fix one of the breaks and continue.

    After driving at the sea with a great view of the sea, sunflowers and bays, I arrived at the World Heritage site of Sado Islands Gold mines. Sado had the second biggest Gold deposit after Bolivia. Really interesting!

    For this time I teamed up again with Fuka San, who I met on the Ferry. After the Gold mines we were looking for a dinner place but strangely, everything was closed except a Café, where we went for Omu Rice and coffee.

    In the evening we found a Hotel, which offers Day entry Onsen. From the hot spring we could see the sea and the sun set. Beautiful!

    Fuka San and I got some snacks and drinks at the next convenience store and sat down at the coast, where we were watching the stars, listening to the waves and talking about life.

    ¥¥¥ Total around 4300¥
    Sado Souvenir 690¥, Café 580¥、Sado Kinzan 1500¥, Café 1300¥, Onsen 500¥    Read more

  • Sebastian UjTraveler1. Bikepacking

    13. Day Sado Island -> Joetsu 50km

    August 15, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 29 °C

    Had breakfast with Fuka San and greeted him farewell. Will meet again for sure in Kanagawa!

    Next, I headed for the main city of Sado on Island Sado. Since my brakes were a bit faulty, I couldn't go through the mountains and just went along the sea. In Sado I went to a bicycle shop in 2. Generation, where the super kind old owner helped me to fix my brakes for free.

    The heat was unbearable but there was the main Matsuri(festival) coming that weekend when I was there. I wasn't really in the mood and rather felt running away from the sun. And my faulty back wheel was also stressing me. I hoped to get to a proper sport bicycle repair shop in Honshu (main Japan). So I went around Sado, to the south and took the next Ferry to Joetsu.

    The atmosphere in the evening on a ferry is really special. Sunset. Getting from Island to bigger Island. Beautiful!

    I just went for some snacks at the next Konbini and put up my tent at the beach where teenagers were playing around with fireworks. Yej!

    ¥¥¥ Total around 9000¥
    Lawson Brekki 400¥, waschen und co 1400¥, Udon 1100¥, Sweat 180¥, Fähre Naoetsu 5500¥, Naoetsu 7-11 600¥    Read more

  • Sebastian UjTraveler1. Bikepacking

    14. Day Joetsu -> Hakuba 85km

    August 16, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 23 °C

    Worst morning so far. Felt drained. At 6 am the sun was up and the heat was already unbearable. I just felt I had to keep going. So first I just aimed for Kanazawa. Then after around 30 km along the coast, at Itoigawa, I decided to head back to Tokyo to repair my bike there and wait for autumn. And also leave the sea and go through the mountains. I realized that around 600 m above sea level, it got cool at night, around 23 degrees. During the day it was also warm, around 30-35 degrees. But there were some cooler breezes.

    After around 85 km I reached Hakuba. A beautiful little town in the mountains. It had strong European Alp-vibes. Since the japanese prefer the cold, there wasn't much tourism going on in summer. I went to a day time Onsen with a view on a nearby mountain and regained some energy. Slept close to a river and was relieved that it cooled down to around 23 degress.

    ¥¥¥ Total around 3400¥
    711¥ Brekki, Supa 1216¥, coffee break 729¥, Onsen 600¥, Milk Tea 150¥    Read more

  • Sebastian UjTraveler1. Bikepacking

    15. Day Hakuba -> Nagano 60km

    August 17, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 31 °C

    My mood was so much better this morning. In the mountains I feel more at home and well than at a 35 degree beach. I checked for a Café to write my daily diary and just found one place that should open up around 9 am at Hakuba Station. Around 9 am no one was there, chairs on the tables, no lights... It's horrible in July - August. Many Restaurants and Cafés should be open regarding Google Maps but they weren't. After a little search I found a Crepe place which should be open from 6 am! I was relieved, it was open! The owner was actually just open here and there because it was before the grand opening. We had a nice chat, I could charge my electronics and my craving for coffee and finish my daily diary article.

    On the way to Nagano I stopped in Kinasa at aN Oyaki place. Oyaki are vegetable filled dumplings. At first I ordered just 3 types but I needed to order more cause they were oishii af (very delicious).

    Arriving in Nagano I checked in Moritomizu Backpackers Hostel to get some rest. It's harder than I thought in the heat.

    There wasn't much time to chill, since I bought a ticket for another football match. Nagano vs. Miyazaki. Nagano won 3:1. Great atmosphere in the stadium.

    ¥¥¥ Total around 11.000¥
    Lawson Brekki 305¥、おやき870¥+570¥、560¥ Nagano Waffle Amaske, Nagano Match 2100¥, eat drink 800¥, Eis 324¥, Hostel 6600¥    Read more

  • Sebastian UjTraveler1. Bikepacking

    16.-17. Day Nagano 20 km

    August 18, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 28 °C

    Nagano is a big recommendation. Nice city, with a lot of temples. Olympic city in the past. Great food and great cafes. Special recommendation is Neko Machi Eki, which is a ghibli Studio theme cafe. They offer pizza and Burgers. Not so japanese but the interior is really worth it!

    Since it was still waaaay too hot, I jumped from Café to Café and visited the Art Museum of Nagano prefecture. Really interesting and beautiful art! There is even an exhibition of a japanese artist who fell in love with the mountains in Nagano and also went to paint to middle/north Europe, Germany and Denmark. It was a weird special feeling I got when I was enjoying the art of a japanese artist who painted pictures of my home country. He probably got the same fascination with northern Europe like I got with Japan.

    In the evening I got to know the people in the Hostel and we had fun times chatting while exchanging travel experiences.

    ¥¥¥ 16. Day Total around 10.000¥
    Yuki Cafe 500¥, Souvenir 440¥, Kongenyawatyaiso-gorou gewürze 1248¥, 180¥ Oyaki Museum 1900¥, Cream Soda 500¥、手ぬぐい1800¥, Neko Machi Eki 2900¥, Abendessen 1100¥

    ¥¥¥ 17. Day Total around 7500¥
    pancakes 1020¥, Sobahachi 1500¥, 7-11 190¥, Waiting 700¥, waiting cafe 2100¥, Snacks Stift 1000¥, Abendessen 1500¥    Read more

  • Sebastian UjTraveler1. Bikepacking

    18. Day Nagano -> Matsumoto 75km

    August 20, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 31 °C

    Travel around 40 km from Nagano to Matsumoto. First to the Wasabi Farm. They offered various foods with wasabi. Also Wasabi ice cream, which is a mix of basic vanilla soft ice cream, wasabi ice cream and some real wasabi. It's spicy and sweet! I loved it!

    Since Wasabi roots can't be in the sun all the time, they need to be covered, so you can't see them actually. Still interesting.

    Went to a public bath in Matsumoto and camped close to a river in the city. No one cared.

    I also found out about a football cup match in Kofu. Con: it's 105 km away...
    I just bought the ticket and hoped I'll wake up early.

    ¥¥¥ Total around 4100¥
    Breakfast 400¥, Wasabi Farm 1700¥, Sento 500¥, Minerals 400¥, Hangout Café 1100¥    Read more

  • Sebastian UjTraveler1. Bikepacking

    19. Day Matsumoto -> Suwa -> Kofu 105km

    August 21, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 26 °C

    Started my day with the beautiful castle of Matsumoto. Sadly I needed to depart as early as possible cause I had my longest trip ahead of me. 105 km.

    I met this nice japanese who draws is own postcards from which he gave me one as a gift.

    After Matsumoto I climbed the mountains to reach Lake Suwa, the lake which was the inspiration for the movie Your Name.

    I reached Kofu on time and even had enough time to enter a public bath to cool down and relax some. Packed my stuff, entered the building and got refused cause of tattoos. The first time it happened and I was devastated.

    So I just went to a public toilet and washed myself there.

    The match between Kofu and Kashima Antlers was great. Kashima won 2:1 in the end.    Read more

  • Sebastian UjTraveler1. Bikepacking

    20. Day Kofu -> Lake Kouji Fuji

    August 22, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 25 °C

    The night was way to hot and I couldn't sleep properly. I slept next to a river with a gravel road close by. The Local are also avoiding the heat during the day, so they go for runs in the night. I got woken up by every runner on the gravel.

    Kinda exhausted with some sleep I planned to have a chill day in Kofu.

    Went for the castle ruins, Cafés, pancakes, ramen. Also went for Donki to get some stuff.

    In the early afternoon I started my trip over the mountains to the lakes of Mt. Fuji.

    I chose a pass over the mountains, which was half way completely gravel. Not the best circumstances for my faulty brakes and my broken wheel.

    In the end everything worked out. Yokatta.

    At arrival at Lake Kouji, I undressed myself and jumped into the lake. The lake was warmer than the air temperature. It started to rain and I even felt a bit cold for the first time since long.

    ¥¥¥ Total around 14.000¥
    7-11 Breakfast 400¥, Cafe 1000¥, Café 1500¥ best Pancake at Dan's, Donki 3500¥, Fuji Hostel 8300¥    Read more

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