Day 7 – Yawatahama to Shimanto Town Bikepacking Japan.
Yeah. How many lost and miles get today? After a certain amount of miles you get access to the lounge. The Lawson Lounge. The Lawson Lounge. Welcome to the Lawson Lounge. We got a mince meat cutlet. Got a Japan’s oldest brand, Saporro. And this is Karen Blue. This is the official beer of Drink Strong Japan. This one right here. This one evaporated, man. Like I just opened it and it’s empty. Century Hotel in Yamata. Oh, we got McDonald’s across the street. So, that’s probably where we’re going to hit up for breakfast. It’s another day. It’s an overcast day. You know, I was just thinking about it this morning. I was kind of sad cuz we’re running out of days. Our uh our days are numbered. Guy uh actually told me to bring my bike up here because I didn’t have any more room downstairs. So, that’s kind of fun. Got to have a sleepover with my bike. But, uh this is how the sausage gets made here, ladies and gentlemen. I never get tired of Japanese TV. It’s It’s something. Let’s do this. Morning. We’re shaking the cobwebs off here at McDonald’s. Probably the nicest McDonald’s in Japan. Look at that. We’re in uh Yawat Hama. Yawatama. There’s our hotel. It’s a pretty cool port town that people like to get really drunk at that we noticed last night. We had a good good experience at sushi. It’s cool. It’s very uh it’s very portish. It’s got a an underbelly to it, which I like. Check out time from the Century Hotel. Okay. Horrible sound. Horrible sound. [Music] We are headed to the train station. The Wata Hama train station. It’s just kind of easy. We’re in Yata Wama on. And I’m not going to say a mistake were made, but we didn’t really pay attention to the details as well as we should. We just assumed the trains would be more frequent, but they’re not here. So, we’re trying to train to the Shimanto River. And it’s 11:30 and we still have 60K to go. I think we’re going to get to the start of our ride at 3:00 p.m. So, hopefully we not in the dark. So, we get to the train at 3:00 p.m. Ride 60K. It’s beautiful here, though. So, I haven’t really seen much of the island, but once we get on the train, we should get a lay of the land. We got to ride the N pen man train. Here we go again. So far, this island has been a logistical nightmare between fairies, trains, and hotels. I mean, could we have been better planners? Yes. Hey, baseball fans, you recognize that guy? That’s like where we were the other day. I swear to God. Wow. Show Otani must be a cyclist. Anyway, it’s been a logistical challenge. I’m optimistic. I want to get riding, but right now it’s just a whole lot of [ __ ] All right. Well, I’ve been fortunate enough uh living in Japan, I rode a lot of trains. I rode the Shinkansen a lot. I’ve ridden uh express trains, local trains, but I’ve never driven a train in a train like this. Look, that’s our train. It’s just a single. It’s basically an F350 on a track. Sounds like Yeah, it basically sounds like it. Is this safe? Where the Where are we going? We’re going down a windy ass track for 2 hours in a diesel one car train. I hope it has brakes. I hope it has air conditioning. Ooh. I hope it doesn’t smell like diesel inside. Kind of feel like it look like it’s like me getting an old tractor right now. That’s kind of It sounds like an old tractor. Anyway, they said we can put our stuff on early, so we’re going to do that. There it is. Shanto River. It is 10 out of 10. Beautiful here. Uh it’s been a lot of logistics to get here, but I’m optimistic it’s all going to be worth it. This river looks incredible, and we’re just going to follow this river. for the most part for the next 3 days. Pretty excited about this. It’s a wild river, which is rare. I don’t I guess that means they don’t dam it. There’s not concrete all over it. It’s just beautiful. I’ve seen so many swimming holes already. Oh, I can’t wait. Oh, there’s a guy down there doing tankara long pole fishing with no reel. He just has a net in front of him. Look at this. I’m pretty excited, you guys. Another guy doing tanker. Well, we made it safe and sound to Toawa to Kawwa. [Music] All right, that’s about the extent of my Japanese understanding. Nice guy. Oh, we made it. And it is. Wow. Really nice. Beautiful. Wow. That’s it. If we wanted to leave, that was the last train out of town for a couple days. Maybe it took a lot to get here. The nice thing is it’s really cool here. Hey. Uh, no. Really cool. It’s not any different. Feels more humid. It’s so hot. I think cuz we’re inland. We’re off the coast. It’s like So what happened? They basically drove for an hour and a half through crazy mountains and then more mountains more mountains and beautiful scenic valleys and then they dropped us off in the middle of nowhere. There’s not even a station here. They all kind of laughed at us, waited for us to unload all our [ __ ] and uh left us and not another train for days. We got to get out here. Be a pedal pilot. Yeah, we’re out here. Left to our own devices and our skill and wit. My wrinkle bag is trashed. Yeah, it was a hard day. And we apparently we don’t know how to schedule trains, but stay tuned for some epic scenery. Look at that river. Just starting our ride at three. This might be one of the more scenic hurdles I’ve ever used. Everything’s beautiful here. We finally get to start riding new Shikoku after uh much delay, but it’s beautiful. I mean, it doesn’t disappoint this place. But now we’re time strapped for today to get to our hotel. But we got 52 km to do in like 2 and 1/2 hours or something. So, we got to make some time. More than anything, I just want to go jump in that river. That’s what I really want to do, but it’s not in the cards right now. Maybe later. See? Um, it’s not any cooler in Shikoku in the inland. Even though we’ve come up a bit, I think in elevation, it’s definitely not any cooler and it’s definitely not any less humid. We’re off. First pedals turned on the new island. Bit of a chore to get here. It’s 3:30. We’re just starting and we have 46K to go. I think I mentioned this, but I think it usually gets dark around 6:00. We’re a little more south, so maybe we earlier. I don’t know. We’re also more east. Who knows? But we’re going to try and get there before dark cuz we want to see the beauty. It’s very This is the least populated island in Japan. Some of the nicest, quietest, beautiful roads you’ll see. We’re following the Shimanto River. Shimanto, [Music] take it in. Soak that up. That’s why we came here. Those views. You know, I’m going to tell you something, Tim. Yesterday I was spraying all that fabric scent [ __ ] on my sandals cuz they smell so bad. That was a mistake. They just feel slimy now. Oh, that was a bad idea. Tell you later, Brian. Yeah. Yeah. Well, they really stink. Echo. The first kanji I ever learned in Japan was for mushroom sake. It’s not even that much. Is it cash or Oh, it’s service. It’s close. Oh, look at all the can. They’re all like exploding. Oh no. This hasn’t been in service in a long. Oh no. Really unfortunate. It’s out of service. I think the government cracked down on these cuz there’s underage drinking. Look at that can. It’s going to explode. We’re sad. Nice and cool in here. Echo, you guys are looking good today. Looking good. Looking good. Got to show those young guys up every once in a while, you know, keep them in check. Let them know who the big dog is. Echo. Time for today’s haiku. Team Drinkstrong debates. Temple detours or cold beer. 7Eleven wins. Echo. Ooh, it’s a good echo coming this way. This is like our 10th or 12th 10th or 12th tunnel. I don’t know. There’s a lot. Don’t mind. It means we don’t have to go over the mountain, right? We’re going to get off this main road. Although it’s not busy, but we’re going to get off of it pretty soon so that we can take even more scenic routes, older roads. They’re right along the river. These are the beer vending machines that time forgot right here. I don’t think they’re working anymore. Well, we saw them. We saw them in Tokyo. Needed ID, right? You needed ID. I can only imagine what this place would be like in the fall with all the colors. It would be It would be like nothing you’ve ever seen. There’s already so many colors, so much to see. We are really getting spoiled right now. The reps from Rhino Walk are meeting us here. Um, they want to thank us for using their products. They say since we started they’ve sold a ton. They’re sorry about the rips. They have brand new Rhino Walk bags for all of us. Reinforced reinforced bottoms. Yeah, they look they took our advice and they It’s called the Drinkstrong model. Uh, it’s going to be coming out in time for Christmas this year. So, check our Amazon store for links. Yeah. Also, Tim, this is like Tim’s favorite, these little Suzukis. Yeah. Oh, I love it, man. I buy one. They’re They’re really neat. They look old, but they’re new. Yeah, there’s definitely a retro car vibe going on in Japan. The vehicle got like like a needle gauges. Old school. And it’s stick shift. Oh, is it? Yeah. Really? Yeah. Hey. Okay, we got 40 45 minutes to go if we can keep a good pace. We’d like not to be riding in the dark, which seems to be the norm for us. So, I got some legs right now. Everybody’s falling tight behind. I’m breaking some wind for him. Not bad trying to wind. Just making it a little easier for them pulling them up. Trying to keep a good pace. It’s uphill right now. We’re doing good. find myself lucking a lot of water around especially in these kind of rides or far between stops. I’ve never I have never sweat this much in my life. Never. Like not even close to the amount. And we’re still I mean we’re drinking and wa I just dumped it all over the place. We are drinking and drinking water like crazy and uh still only still only go pee a couple times a day. Let go. I had to take my sunglasses off. It was too steamy. They’re just steaming up. It’s It’s just too steamy out here. It’s soaked. My shirt is drenched. Roads like these. Roads like these. Looks very swimmable. We just did a nice climb. Really good gradient. Not too steep. We got a car like every 4 minutes. This is We only have 3 days here. Like we should have got here sooner. It’s too soon, but looks very good here. I could spend a month on this island alone. Yeah. Sorry, babe. Love you. [Music] Check it out. Check out our crib. We We never know what to do with sandals, but these are only for on the rocks. socks on the tatami mats. So, just FYI if you come to Japan. This place is beautiful. Let’s do a room tour. Okay. I don’t even I don’t even really know. This is This is neat. This is a really neat place. Ice machine. Microwave. It’s some things. Ice machine. Where? Right here. [Music] That’ be good for water balls. Oh, it will be good for water bottles. This is my room. 103. Smells really nice, dude. This is one of our nicer rooms. Look at this. Yeah, this is really I don’t even know what those controls do. Look at this. Okay. Oh, it’s like a little garden out there. Very nice. This is Let’s turn on the air conditioning. Let’s look at the bathroom. You always got to look at the bathroom. Oh, it’s a it’s an outdoor. This place again, spotless. Like there’s not a pubic hair sitting anywhere in this bathroom. There’s no pubic hairs to be seen. It’s a pube free bathroom. Oh, and look, this is big. Especially when you’re rolling with wool. And since I’m becoming a wool convert, it’s pretty nice. Yeah, it’s pretty nice. Okay, I’m going to show you how Japanese think a little differently than us. Let’s say you want a glass of cold water. You like ice in it. Normally, you would put it on ice. You get the ice. Then you put it to water. You get the water. Get yourself a glass of ice water. Let’s say you wanted ice water all at once in one thing. You put it in ice water shoots out the ice and the water at the same time. Tell me that’s not smart. Like tell me you’ve been living your whole life doing the ice and then water. All you really wanted was just ice water. Perfect. [Music] No, the brightness setting is not off on my camera. This is This is how the store looks on. Oh my goodness. It is so bright in here. I need sunglasses. What? Oh my goodness. Anyway, we’re getting here to get some wine, some snacks for the road tomorrow. Um, maybe some food for tomorrow. Oh, it’s cheap. Yeah, it’s cheap. Maybe I should get a basket. Oh, the whiz. Oh, thank you, Whiz. Is it cleaning or is it selling? both. I think it’s going to be
A lot of trains and delays, but we make to the Shimanto River with enough time to take in a couple hours of incredible riding before the sun sets.