Photos from Izu

We got a mediumly early start yesterday for the Izu peninsula. Though not really far from us in distance, it's usually a long drive due to traffic and other road conditions. However, we made good timing straight through to Shimoda, then around the tip and up along the West coast a little, eventually into Matsuzaki. Though we checked out some official camp-grounds, we decided to forgo sitting in a parking lot aside a bunch of other people in favour of locating an isolated spot hidden away a little. So - we didn't exactly end up on the beach, but we spent the day and night happily in the mountains with a great view of the ocean, and no disturbances to speak of. A six-pack of cold brewskies and some sausages on the grill made for a perfect evening.

This morning, after a decent pot of percolated coffee, we set out from our little hide-away in search of a fine beach on which to lie for a few hours. Being in no real hurry, however, we enjoyed a slow, scenic drive along the Magret Line (Route 136).

View from Magret Line:


Twice on the isolated road we spotted some wild monkeys also out to enjoy the fine weather.



We finally found some breakfast and a sunny, quiet beach in Matsuzaki - a very small, quaint fishing village complete with fresh fish and more fabulous views:

A sunfish - called mambo (マンボ) in Japanese - lies dead and drying outside a famous Matsuzaki fish shop.


Some views from the rocks on Matsuzaki beach:




There was even a very small hiking trail:


We eventually wound our way home via Osawa Onsen, a small region nestled in a valley near Matsuzaki and mostly known for the Osawa Onsen Hotel. We were on a mission - in search of a bath! We saw signs for the Yama no Ie Rotenburo (山の家露天風呂）（Mountain House Outdoor Bath)) - a small, unassuming little structure with all attraction of a real Japanese bath.

Yama no Ie rotenbura seen from the road - just cross that little wooden bridge:

We got a good, hot bath for 500 yen each, and then enjoyed a cold Sapporo in the tatami room. The elderly ladies waiting on us were very friendly and even offered some "service" (i.e. free) tomatoes with our beer.



The rest/waiting area of the little rotenburo was just as rustic and welcoming as the outdoor baths were:


After our little refresher, we then wound our way along "highway" 115, which, after several warning signs, became a narrow dirt road that skirted the edge of the steep mountain cliffs. Beautiful, and not much of a challenge for Brian's Mitsubishi Pajero (called the Montero in North America). We hit traffic finally when we got to Mishima city, but managed to arrive home before sunset.

Hiking Kintoki-yama

We're totally enjoying our time off. Saturday was rainy, windy and chilly, so we just relaxed and watched some TV.

The weather has been beautiful now for two days, though; so yesterday we went for a good, long bike ride just around Susono.

Today, we got a relatively early start and drove to Hakone via Gotemba (Rt. 138). Our goal was to get to the Kintoki trail-head and hike to the top of the mountain. We know all the backroads and short-cuts, so traffic was really not an issue, and we had all day to accomplish the task,
so we stopped to take pictures along the way.

These two shots are taken from an abandoned "windmill restaurant" in Gotemba, on the way to the trail.






These shots are from the summit. The hike itself was not long (only over an hour going up), but was steep in some parts and provided a good workout. When we broke through the trees at the top, we were rewarded with a marvelous view: