The route connects Japan's main island of Honshu to the island of Shikoku, from Onomichi to Imabari, with six smaller islands in between! The overall route is about 60 Km.
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| image from: http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3478.html |
Our trip covered the first three islands: Mukaishima, Innoshima and Ikuchijima. The journey began with getting up super early for a 6.30am train from Hiroshima to Onomichi...
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| The early morning view from my balcony. |
Just outside of Onomichi station is the port for the first ferry that takes you across to Mukaishima. There are no pedestrian/ bicycles bridges that cross here, but the ferry is only 110 yen for an adult with a bike. The bike rental place is also right by the train station, very easy to find. Renting cost 2000 yen, 1000 of which is a deposit you get back when/ if you return your bike.
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| View from Onomichi Station as the sun is still rising. |
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| The ferry heading to Mukaishima. |
The cycling route is very difficult to get lost on, since you just have to follow blue lines on the road the whole way! It is a beautiful journey, taking you through small towns, woodland, and by breathtaking ocean/ mountain views!
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| House on stilts- eek! |
The steep, winding pathways leading up to the main bridges that connect each island are the hardest part of the journey, particularly if you are a novice cyclist like me! But the views from the top are fantastic, and the descent on the other side is SO MUCH FUN!
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| Entrance to the first bridge- you cycle below the main road. |
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| The second bridge, where you ride on top! |
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| absolutely stunning! |
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| CHEESE! |
Along the road we came across some of the locals...
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| Someone looks happy. |
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| That'll scare more than just birds... |
And fruits that look like monsters!
One of the main reasons we only did half of the complete route was because we wanted to stop and fully enjoy the scenery and local tourist sites.
One place we visited was Kosan-ji Temple on Ikuchijima Island, which consists of many different style buildings replicating those found across Japan such as Kyoto. It was beautiful, and since it was a Monday it was reasonably quiet.
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| Beautifully detailed entrance to the Temple grounds. |
Just behind Kosan- ji is the 'Tower of Light' by Hiroshima artist Kazuto Kuetani. This great white marble structure is only accessible through the temple grounds and, in my opinion, was really bizarre!
I wonder why...
Maybe it was all the inexplicable faces...
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| giant nut cracker?? |
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| I conquered it! |
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| yeah... |
We also found this little guy!
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| Time for a patdown? |
Our trip finished at Setoda Port, where we were able to catch a small ferry with our bikes back to Onomichi. By now the sun was setting and we were tired and aching!
I name this blog post part 1, because I definitely intend to do the second half of the route at some point in the future- possibly next spring when the cherry blossoms start coming out! I feel that for me personally, doing the route in two halves was right because it meant extra time for stopping and enjoying the sights.
I highly recommend Shimanami Kaido to anyone visiting the area, but avoid it during the peak of summer and on holidays! We went just as autumn is arriving and we still burnt and holidays are guaranteed to be packed with people. For us it was so quiet and peaceful.... aaaah bliss.
See you next time!
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