Westwards

Shirakami Sanchi – a UNESCO World Heritage beech forest in Northern Japan

Juniko – one of the Twelve Lakes

„Oh yes, that is very blue!“ - „Oh, look - how blue it is!,“ shout the Japanese tourists, looking in awe at the Aoike. Aoike means Blue Pond, and the water is indeed very clear and blue against the backdrop of the fresh green beech trees of the Shirakami Sanchi Forest. In the Japanese summer, the clear ponds of Juniko (“12 ponds”) emit a pleasant atmosphere of coolness. The “12 ponds” are one of the most accessible and most visited areas within the huge expanse of Shirakami Sanchi Forest– which has, for its ancient beech trees, been designated as a UNESCO Natural World Heritage since 1993.

Actually we have toyed with the idea of visiting the Shirakami Sanchi Forest for quite a while, but have never been quite able to figure out what there is to see and to do. Even in Japan, and reading Japanese, the available information on the world heritage area seemed vague: There are several visitor centres and several hiking trails, none of them easible accessible by public transport.

On the Dakedaira Trail

So this time we rented a car for three days in Akita (Northern Japan) and equipped with some brochures from the Akita tourist information set out for the nearest visitor centre in Fujisato. In the brochures it was difficult even to locate the UNESCO World Heritage core zone because they had been printed in Akita prefecture and they just cut off most of the beech forest area in the neighbouring prefecture of Aomori.

When we arrive in the mountain village of Fujisato we are surprised by the numerous signs welcoming us to to the “UNESCO World Heritage”. In the Visitor Centre, we get about a dozen more leaflets (but most of them similarly elusive) – and the ranger informs us for the first time that all roads around the core zone are closed this year: Going to the Aomori side of the park would require an enormous detour. He suggests a hiking trail in the vicinity, about 40 minutes by car to the starting point.

Dakedaira Trail

In the Akita Tourist information we were also warned of bears, but apparently none of the staff had ever actually been to Shirakami Sanchi. “Bears? Well, if you are afraid, you could camp right here at the river,” the ranger suggests slightly surprised.

Shirakami Sanchi – the mountainous region of the white gods, according to the name – is the last remaining expanse of primeval beech forest, which covered much of Northeast Asia in prehistoric times. The core zone of the World Heritage protection area is off-limits to all visitors and can only be entered with a special permit, no trails and facilities may be built there. But even for the buffer zone there are restrictions, so the activities in the park consist of only a handful of – mostly rather short – trails that start from parking areas outside the buffer zone and lead into the beech forest. Some are real mountain hiking paths, others have been prepared for groups with barrier-free slopes and information panels.

Dakedaira Trail

We walk around the strolling paths at Dakedaira and part of the hiking path to a nearby mountain, Fujisato Komagadake, which crosses a few flowery meadows. The beech trees with their bright green are indeed unusual for Japan, and different from Europe they are accompanied by a thick undergrowth of sasa bamboo-grass. At our campsite at Kurumidaira, up in the mountains and very lonely, no bears and free, the forest creates a very powerful and tranquil atmosphere.

Kurumidai Camp Site

The next day we go along the coastal road halfway round the mountain area and make a stop at Futatsumori to do a 90 minute hike (plus almost one hour by car each way on a winding mountain road from the coast) that leads to the edge of the core protection zone – again beautiful forest and good views.

View from the Futatsumori trail

By contrast, our next destination Juniko (the twelve ponds) is closer by the sea and an almost hourly bus goes up to the lakes, from where you can hike into the buffer zone. Most visitors stay at the blue Aoike, though, and don’t venture further into the wild beech forest. On the forest trails, we only meet a number of bird watchers with huge cameras – and birds. Not surprisingly for such a huge, fiercely protected area, Shirakami Sanchi boasts a high biodiversity and numerous rare bird species.

As with all World Natural Heritage Sites, there’s the dilemma of protecting nature by preventing human intervention, and promoting the abundant nature as a tourist destination. There is no easy solution to this conflict, and not every UNESCO World Heritage site is a perfect (or even particularly worthwhile) destination for tourists – the forests of Shirakami Sanchi, as far as you can visit them, are certainly beautiful, but for hiking and outdoor exploits there are better opportunities in Japan.

Sasa bamboo on the Futatsumori trail

Similar Beech Forests in Europe have also become UNESCO World Heritage sites and are easier to access, such as the Beech Forest in Serrahn near Neustrelitz, where you can go on a guided walk with a ranger.

What are your experiences in visiting UNESCO natural sites?

Should you visit the Shirakami Sanchi beech forests in Japan?

If you have limited time in Japan you probably need not bother visiting this remote part of Japan, especially if you are from a country where you have abundant forests and green nature. Even if you are into hiking, there are much better options in Japan. On the other hand, if you are looking for a few relaxing days with some easy walking in a non-alpine environment, you might enjoy the area. Just don’t expect to learn much about the ecosystem and such in the Visitor Centres.

How to get there

Fujisato side (Visitor Center): By car – even if you get a slow train and bus combination to Fujisato itself you are still far from the hiking trails and even the UNESCO buffer zone. To reach the trails and the wonderful Kurumidaira Campsite you need a car.

Hiking Trail to Futatsumori: Access to the parking lot at the start of the trail is only by car.

Juniko (12 Lakes): About 8 buses per day from Juniko station on JR Gono Line along the Aomori / Akita Coast.

Nagoya – an underrated destination on the tourist trail

“More pickles? - Do you want more pickles?” The staff in the Yamamotoya restaurant near Nagoya Station‘s Shinkansen exit prowl the room offering second helpings of pickled vegetables, rice and tea. Yamamotoya is popular with Japanese travellers passing through Nagoya for its salty miso-boiled noodle dishes and the generous portions – the shop even has a small storage room to accommodate luggage. And the Nagoya locals also flock to the restaurant chain with its numerous shops dotting the city, to share a meal with colleagues or to meet friends.

Nagoyans like hearty food and good deals. And they also like the convenience of cafés and restaurants they already know at every street corner. They like their sweets really sweet and the savoury food really salty, or spicy. They like kitsch and practical, modern but not avant-garde, they like horoscopes and chiromancy. Nagoya is rather like inaka (backcountry) turned metropolis, and in our opinion it is a very convenient city for travellers, too.

Nagoya is Japan's fourth-largest city, situated right between Tokyo and Kyoto, but certainly not on the tourist trail. Admittedly the local sights might not be up to a comparison with Kyoto, but the huge rebuilt Japanese castle, the private art collection of a 250-year-long ruling family, the headquarters of one of the largest automobile companies in the world, around a dozen technology museums, many kilometres of underground shopping malls, an enormous aquarium… offer enough to pass time in the city.

And Nagoya does have a good selection of accommodation. Especially in the lower price segment behind the main station, the choice is yours: From men-only sauna and capsule hotels to tiny single rooms costing less than 2500 ¥, to proper business hotels at rates you don't get elsewhere in Japan. Add to that the big portions in the restaurants, the propensity for special deals in all kinds of shops, many-storied second-hand brand-name department stores, the abundance of "ticket shops" that sell not only train tickets but all kinds of tickets and gift cards at a discounted rate – and you have a very reasonably-priced base to explore the surroundings. Apart from the normal, real life in Nagoya itself – something most travellers want to see and experience but rarely do in all those cute and touristy places where everyone else is either a tourist or in the tourist business – there's a number of serious attractions nearby.

Ise Jingu

Every 20 years, the goddess moves house to a neighbouring Shrine, exactly like her previous home. The old one gets torn down, and specialised craftsmen immediately begin to build a new one so that it will be ready by the time she moves again. Ise Jingu is Japan's most important pilgrimage centre: it is where Amaterasu, the Sun Goddess, resides. The enormous wooded shrine precincts are located on the Kii Peninsula about 80 km south of Nagoya.

On a day trip to offer Amaterasu your respect, you can also include Mikimoto Pearl Island in Toba or coastal scenery and aquariums.

Inuyama

The cute little castle on a hill in Inuyama is one of the best-preserved mediaeval castles in Japan – it is a national treasure, but not as crowded as the larger castles such as Himeji and Matsumoto. In the very navigable town below, nicely restored old houses line the streets, and particularly young Japanese like to come here for an outing. Dozens of shops and restaurants offer different types of kushi (skewers): sweet or salty, with rice balls, fruits, meat and whatever you can imagine. Walking around tasting different kushi is rather fun. There's also a major open-air museum nearby, Meiji Mura, which displays houses from that experimental and innovative period at the end of the 19^th century when modern Western styles got suddenly mixed with very traditional ones.

Toyota factory

Toyota has a dozen automobile factories in the vicinity of Nagoya (most of them in a town called, well, Toyota) – and you can take a guided tour of the car assembly line in one of them. For about an hour, you get to see how they screw together all the parts on a huge conveyor belt and try to make this ever more efficient. Strictly no photos, though, and a reservation is required.

Hiking the Nakasendo trail

The Kiso valley is in a mountainous region to the Northeast of Nagoya. It's cold enough that people gather around open hearths in the houses and that they celebrate the spring festivals a month later then elsewhere. But in the Edo period one of the major trade routes passed here, the Nakasendo, or "path in the middle of the mountains", and the villages were reasonably prosperous. The villages of Tsumago and Magome have resisted over-modernisation, and restored the old streetscapes. You can visit the former official guesthouses for VIP travellers, and best of all, walk on the old mountain path through forests and rice paddies.

Did this post make you curious about Nagoya? Would you like to include the city on your Japan itinerary? Or have you been to Nagoya? Let us know in the comments!

Iriomote: Japan’s wildest island – Okinawa series

Riding a car on Iriomote Island is a weird experience: it takes nearly two hours to follow the one and only road from one end to the other around half the circumference of the island. There are two traffic lights, one at the strategic crossing to the island's main harbour, the other one, push-button style, in front of a school. The universal speed limit of 40 km per hour overland, and 30 km per hour in settlements, allows you to observe the landscape while driving.

Occasionally we see some goats or birds – once even the rare Kanmuri-washi (Crested Serpent Eagle) – but the most consistent sight is the image of a kind of spotted cat. The cat is depicted on signboards and traffic signs. Sometimes we see cat statues guarding bridges, sitting in public rest areas or in people's gardens. Are the inhabitants of Iriomote fanatic cat lovers?

No, the traffic signs warn to watch out for the Iriomote Yamaneko, an endemic wildcat that has only been discovered in 1965. The endangered wildcat has the size of a normal house cat and lives in the wild interior of Iriomote, but goes hunting for small animals in the fields near the coast. There, it has to cross the island street and cars are the No 1 enemy of the remaining 100 Yamaneko cats. A “Yamaneko Emergency Service” operates 24 hours to provide a veterinarian immediately to any injured wildcat...

As the Iriomote Yamaneko is very shy and hunts mostly at night, it is very unlikely that you will see one during your visit. In fact, the chances of meeting an Iriomote native seems only slightly higher; almost every person we ask is originally from Tokyo, Osaka or Kobe.

No wonder: Until WWII, Iriomote was a Malaria-infested wilderness where nobody wanted to live. Iriomote island is the biggest island of the Yaeyama group in the South of Japan, but still only 2300 people live there permanently. 90% of Iriomote are covered with dense rainforest and mangroves. Over the last years, tourism has much increased, although the visitors are still predominantly Japanese. They come to the wild Southern island for trekking, kayaking and diving, and quite recently, canyoning.

Masses of water thunder down next to us, adding to the intermittent rain, but never mind, we have come here by kayak and a short hike and are wet anyway. With a height of more than 50 m the Pinai-sâra is the highest waterfall of Okinawa prefecture. We had seen photos of the waterfall in summer, a thin white thread in the green jungle mountains, but now at the end of February and after heavy rainfalls, the name, which means “beard waterfall” in the local language, seems more appropriate – it looks like a thick Santa Claus beard.

The Pinai-sâra kayaking and trekking tour is the most popular option for outdoor fans on Iriomote, but there are several other trekking tours and shorter hikes, like the 45 minute trek to the Mariudo waterfall. You get to the starting point by cruise ship on the Urauchi river, which is lined with mangroves.

More to the South, water buffalo carts bring visitors to the small island of Yubujima, where they can relax in a butterfly garden or with a coffee in the cafeteria. But one of the best things to do on Iriomote, as on all the Okinawan Islands is relaxing at one of the dream beaches. The most famous one is Hoshisuna Beach with excellent snorkelling right from the beach, but during our recent visit we found the charming small Mimikri Beach on the Cape Unarizaki.

But whatever your plans for Iriomote – bring a little time!

Transport

The speed boat from Ishigaki to Iriomote takes 40 mintues and costs 2360 Yen return. To get around the island you can take the public bus four times a day (day ticket 1030 Yen) or rent a car (around 5000 Yen for 24 hours).

Accommodation

Accommodation is usually paid per person and starts at around 3000 Yen pp, while the posher hotels cost 10 000 Yen and more. The cheapest Minshuku might be the Yamaneko Minshuku in Ohara at 2000 Yen pp. There are three campsites on the island (400–1000 Yen pp per night). Only one of them, the Haimida camp site, operates year round.

 

The tour to the Pinai-sâra Waterfall and our ferry ticket in 2017 were sponsored by Hirata Kanko.

We visited Iriomote as part of our work writing German-language travel guide books for Japan, namely the Stefan Loose Japan and the Baedeker Japan. For our research we have been on Iriomote three times since 2009.

We are writing this series about the Okinawan Islands because we personally think it is one of the most beautiful and interesting parts of the world and not high enough on most peoples wish list (yet?). Would you like to go to Iriomote?

Hiking Mt Teide for sunrise – on Spain's highest mountain

At 5 am, several alarms beep and jingle and shafts of light tremble through the room, until finally someone turns on the ceiling light. The air in the large dormitory is smelly, but the Refugio Altavista is the only accommodation near the peak of Mt Teide, Spain's highest mountain. Almost everyone sleeping here is going to climb the peak in the early morning hours – except perhaps for a few who may have been up there yesterday.

At 3718 m, Mt Teide is not only Spain's highest mountain but also a UNESCO World Natural Heritage site and the centre of a protected national park. There's a cable car leading up to about 3500 m, but the number of daily visitors to the peak is strictly limited in order to protect the crater area from mass tourism in the face of its easy accessibility.

When we tried to apply for the necessary permit a couple of weeks before our visit to the Canary Island of Tenerife, all slots were already booked. Presumably by tour operators who reserve them well in advance, we found out later. The only other option to climb the peak is staying at the Refugio Altavista: so as to be able to pass the control point before it is manned at 9 am, in which case you don't need a permit (the gate is always open).

In the evening, the around 50 people staying in the hut had already discussed the options: Most were planning to reach the summit for sunrise, just before 8 am. In the darkness and thin air, we were advised to start 2 hours earlier to make it to the top in time.

At 5.20 am, most hikers have already left, nervous not to miss the sunrise. When we get our backpacks from the now-empty dormitory, a wiry shadow hops towards the door, turns off the light and hisses "I can't sleeeeeep! Close the doooor!" Only a few seconds later, when we have already left the room again, we realize that he didn't wear any underpants …

Anything before 6 am is too cold and unpleasant to be on a winter mountain – it is pitch-dark and several degrees below zero, with an icy wind blowing over the rocks. In spite of walking rather fast and upwards – it's 500 altitude meters from the hut to the peak, after all – our hands and feet are freezing when we reach the summit, and we are glad that we didn't leave too early: The horizon is already orange, and we only have to shiver for another 10 minutes or so before the sun goes up, sending Mt Teide's own shadow in the clouds behind us.

 

Stray lumps of lava on the slopes are called the "eggs of Mt Teide"

A few more glances at the panoramic view below us, and we hurry back down to the mountain hut, have some breakfast shielded from the cold wind, and descend to the 2000 m plateau where we can have more coffee, cheese sandwiches and cake before we finally catch a bus back into civilization.

 

Is Mt Teide worth climbing?

As it is Spain's highest mountain and not difficult to climb the main counter-argument may be the logistic difficulty of getting a permit. The hiking path, like on any volcano, lacks diversity, but it's easy to hike and the view from the top is impressive. Personally we can't really confirm that climbing the peak especially for sunrise is worth it, though.

How to climb the peak of Mt Teide

In order to walk up from the surrounding plateau, you should be reasonably fit and have proper Alpine hiking equipment (high boots, sticks, layers of clothing). Technically, however, Mt Teide is not difficult, and no mountaineering experience is necessary. Considering the thin air, it is important to drink a lot and not to walk too fast. Taking an Aspirin may help the blood to circulate.

There one a single bus connection per day to the starting point of the hike from Los Christianos in the south, and one from Puerto de la Cruz in the north.
In winter you might encounter some snow, but even then hiking to the top should be possible. When we hiked in the middle of December there was no snow at all, but a few days later the peak was covered with some snow.

Using the ropeway makes the access to the peak even easier, but obviously it also reduces the achievement.

Have you been on top of Mt Teide? How was your experience?

Fly high – or hike – like an eagle on the Adlerweg (Eagle Trail) in Tyrol

“The trail is not easy: After passing ladders and iron clamps, you finally have to draw yourself up a rock face to stand upon a narrow ridge”. That's anyway what Natascha remembers having read about the "Klamml Steig" (ravine track) in the Eagle Trail booklet detailing our trekking tour through the Kaiser Mountains. Being in the mountains for three days, we do have some luggage and it is quite foggy today – so she's nervous.

There are stairs and rocks and also a few iron clamps and occasionally the path is quite steep. Only when we climb some particularly high rock steps, and stand on a small trail with meadows falling off to the side, we realize that this must already have been the difficult part!

From here we can see the Grutten Hut, from where a broad path leads further around the mountain.

The "Wilde Kaiser" Mountain (lit. “wilde emperor mountain”) doesn't relate to one of those Habsburg emperors of which the Austrians – and the Tyroleans for that matter – had quite a few.

The term denotes a mountain massif between Kufstein and Kitzbühel, somewhat removed from the main Alpine ridges. Its highest peak is Ellmauer Halt, at 2344 m not particularly high for this area. Nevertheless, the rocky peaks are impressive as they form a band of almost pathless spikes, where the only way to cross the mountain ridge is on a via ferrata.

The Tyrolean Adlerweg (Eagle Trail) is a long-distance trail covering the whole of Tyrol, forming the shape of an eagle on the map. It leads through some of the most spectacular mountain areas of the Alpine region, but always stays on trails that can be walked (rather than climbed). Thus, our route leads not over the Kaiser Mountains, but around them, always just below the rocky walls.

We pass mountain pastures and alpine huts serving freshly made cheese and milk, a beautiful clear lake, and finally on the third day float down into the little town of Kufstein in a cute old-fashioned chairlift, the Kaiserlift. And we are planning to come back for more next year!

Altogether we hiked from St Johann to Kufstein in three days, but you could walk on for another 30 etappes, thus covering some of the best mountain areas in Tyrol.

On the way to the starting point we pass a sign to the Gmail chapel – of course much older than the internet!

Day 1: St. Johann – Gaudeamus Hut, 17 km, 1000 m up.
Day 2: Gaudeamus Hut – Lake Hintersteiner, 14 km, 700 m up, 1000m down. We stayed in an Inn in the nearby village of Scheffau; there is a gratis Shuttle to / from the Lake.
Day 3: Lake Hintersteiner – Kaiserlift (chairlift), 13 km, 900 m up. We arrived at the chairlift around 1 pm.

You can contact us for GPS tracks (obviously only for the first three days).

Have you been on the Eagle Trail or got interested in hiking it?

The 88 Temple Pilgrimage of Shikoku

The first blog post we did in 2006 as a sort of technical test was a report about the „88-Temple-Pilgrimage“ (in Japanese 四国八十八箇所, shikoku hachijū hakkasho ) - a pilgrims' path on the Japanese island of Shikoku. The following text is a revamped version of this original first blog post with more pictures!

“We are now at Temple Nr. 45 of the 88-temple pilgrimage, the Iwayaji-Temple. The main hall is up the stairs, the Kobo Daishi hall is on the left side. Be sure to be back at the bus down in the parking lot in 20 minutes,” the guide urges her group of about 20 Buddhist pilgrims clad in the traditional white pilgrim’s garb from head to toe. It is ten past seven in the morning, and we watch them hurry through the temple grounds, busily lighting candles and incense, offering their name cards (inscribed with their name and a wish) and rattling breathlessly through the Heart Sutra in front of the main hall and the Kobo Daishi hall.

Meanwhile, their bus driver hauls two huge bags up to the temple office. They contain the group’s pilgrim’s books and traditional scrolls, all to be stamped and signed with a beautiful calligraphy at the price of 300 Yen (around 2,50 €) each.

After 20 minutes the group leaves on time. This was their first temple for today and there are still eight to go until five in the afternoon, when most temples close. With this tight schedule the tour groups cover all 88 temples in 11 days. But we take it slowly by walking and watch the bus pilgrims come and go.

The 88-temple pilgrimage was established in the 9th century by the Buddhist saint Kobo Daishi, who was born on Shikoku at the site of today’s temple Nr. 75, Zentsūji temple, as the son of the local ruler. A widely travelled monk and founder of the Shingon School of Buddhism, he brought not only religious impulses, but also modern engineering and agricultural innovations from China, where he went as a scholar or exchange student, back to Japan. The followers of Shingon Buddhism believe that completing the pilgrimage and being buried with the pilgrim’s book will bring them closer to paradise.

Today most pilgrims do the 1440 km tour by bus, car or taxi. But as there have been a number of documentary programmes as well as a feature film, “Road 88” by Nakamura Genji, walking or cycling has become increasingly popular. Not all pilgrims are deeply into Buddhism, as an elderly man in full pilgrim's gear explains. “I’m not really that religious. This is the fourth time I’m walking – it’s good for my health.” On the other hand we also met Imakawa-san, who was on his 121st round (80 times by car and 21 times by bicycle). “The pilgrimage gives me mental power,” he said, moving his hand dramatically into the sky. “If I concentrate, I can move those dark clouds.” At least it did not rain that afternoon.

The bicycle is also the transport mode of choice for an unlikely group of pilgrims: the homeless. A growing number of long-term pilgrims just keep circling the island. From No. 88 they continue on to No. 1 and start all over again. For them it is a socially acceptable form of being out-of-society, and they prefer the pilgrim’s life to the blue tarp tent in a public park in Tokyo. One of them, a mid-forties cyclist in blue training slacks and a white singlet muses: “Sometimes I think I should return to a normal life and look for work, but the Buddha protects me well. And, you see, Kobo Daishi is so kind to me…” and he proudly shows us the Buddha sticker on the tail-light of his heavily laden bicycle.

We walked the Shikoku Pilgrimage in six legs over a period of 7 years, the final one, temple No.44 to temple No.88, in April 2006. Our initial reason to start the pilgrimage was the possibility of experiencing a rural part of Japan while hiking. Over time we became more and more enchanted with the land and the people of Shikoku, an island full of greenhouses and rice paddies, old hunchbacked Japanese working in the fields and quirky culinary delights such as eggplant soft ice cream and hand-made noodles.

At first we felt a bit like impostors. Not being Buddhist, we didn’t participate in the religious rites. Eventually we started reading the Heart Sutra in Japanese aloud like the other pilgrims did. Chanting to (foreign) gods felt strange and daring at first, but with some practice, reciting the Sutra made us slow down from the continuous movement of the pilgrimage and let us appreciate the silence and grace of the temples. At temple No. 81, Shiramine temple, we even bought one of the conical pilgrim’s hats to reach our goal, No 88, in style.

“Congratulations! You must be exhausted,” a fellow pilgrim greeted us warmly when we finally arrived at Okubo temple: Nr. 88. He handed us some sweets and his camera. “Could you please take a photo of me in front of the main hall?” And after that we asked him to take the obligatory finalist picture of ourselves!

Practicalities

There are good maps and guides in Japanese available; a good English companion book is “A Henro Pilgrimage Guide to the 88 Tempels of Shikoku Island Japan” by Bishop Tiasen Miyata (a Shingon monk from California). Along the way you can stay in hotels, private pensions (minshukus) or temples. Sometimes there is free accommodation for pilgrims in  huts or sheds (maps usually indicate these places, you have to bring your own sleeping bag).

We carried a tent and a stove and just camped out in the wild, sometimes close to the temples, a few times within the temple grounds. The people of Shikoku are used to pilgrims and believe that helping the pilgrims also brings merit onto themselves. Quite often we got food from them and occasionally were offered accommodation.

The walking is mostly through fields and along smaller paths, but there are some unpleasant parts along roads with heavy traffic and through tunnels. A few stretches (before No 12 for example) are quite hilly, but altogether for anyone of average fitness it should be possible to hike the whole pilgrimage. If you only have limited time the first 12 temples make a nice hike for just a few days.

Transport

The start and endpoint of the pilgrimage are near the city of Tokushima, which has an airport and is otherwise easily reached by bus or ferry from other parts of Japan. The closest international airport is Kansai Airport near Osaka. Throughout Shikoku you can travel by (infrequent) buses.

Bears and other animals in the Shiretoko National Park on Hokkaido

"You will need long rubber boots for the walk to Lake Rausu: it's quite muddy there. Also it would be safer to go accompanied by a ranger because of possible encounters with bears …"

The original plan was to hike to Lake Rausu and then do a boat trip on the Pacific side of Shiretoko Hanto, Japan's north-eastern tip which has been declared a UNESCO World Natural Heritage site in 2004 for its unrivalled nature and wildlife. The eastern side of the peninsula borders the Pacific, the northern one the Sea of Okhotsk, which is the southernmost place to see drift ice in winter due to the currents, island chains and the inflow of fresh water from the Amur River. With lower levels of salinity, the water freezes easier than elsewhere. It's not winter yet, however, and we want to see whales and dolphins which can frequently be sighted on the Pacific side, next to the Southern Kurile island of Kunashiri which is occupied by Russia.

It is perfect autumn weather with brilliant sunshine but the cruise company calls to tell us that the afternoon boat trip is cancelled due to an approaching typhoon, so we have to switch to the morning whale cruise. It's a small boat whose captain is used to spotting the whales, judging from the zigzag and circles he is performing in the semi-open sea between the coast of Rausu and Kunashiri Island. He seems to be commenting on his course as well; the old loudspeaker on deck is spluttering something even the Japanese passengers don't understand. Sometimes we hear "left" or "right" and then everyone is straining their eyes in that direction. Some animals briefly jump out of the water – small whales perhaps? Or dolphins? The shutter clicks from a dozen cameras usually come the instant when they have just disappeared again. Ok, they might have been closer to the boat, or larger, but the boat ride in itself is nice enough, and after all that's the point about a nature cruise, or a Natural Heritage site: The whales just live there, they are not trained to perform their jumps at the convenience of tourist shutters.

Part of the hiking path around the Five Lakes of Shiretoko is bear-proof on a high electrified walkway

In the afternoon, we opt for the scenic walking tour around the Five Lakes of Shiretoko, on the other side of the Peninsula, an area known as a popular roaming ground for wild brown bears. Those bears are found all over Hokkaido (as well as Honshu, Japan's largest island), but on Shiretoko they are especially numerous and, since they are protected here, less afraid of humans. Which is why visitors get a special briefing before they start on the short trail around the lakes:

1. 

   Gusher behind the Rausu Visitor Center – Shiretoko is full of thermic activity
   Try not to meet with any bears. Make noise so that they will notice and avoid you!
2. If you do see a bear, don't run, don't scream, but try to move slowly backwards and away.
3. In case the bear follows or attacks you (quite possible with bear mothers if their cubs are around), your best bet is to lie on the ground and play dead. As long as it takes. Cover your head so that the prank would hit your arms first. Every year a number of people die in Japan from bear attacks.

Armed with these tips and carrying a huge "bear bell" (on sale in every tourist shop on Hokkaido), we didn't meet any bears, which was fine. A safer way to see live bears would be the boat cruise on this side of the peninsula, starting from Utoro and following the coastline: along that coast, the bears are known to stand in the mouths of rivers fishing for salmon, especially in autumn when they are fattening up for winter. That typhoon, however, did come to Hokkaido very quickly and no cruises took place for the next couple of days due to storm and high tide.

The visitor centre in Shiretoko sells tinned bear meat, "Made in Shiretoko". Does that mean the UNESCO-protected bears are sold to tourists as goulash? The ranger hesitates. Err, yes. Apparently, it's not really that there are too many bears on Shiretoko, but there's still a hunting season, and long-established hunting permits have not been withdrawn. Sure enough, the bear meat is a popular souvenir.

How to get there?

The best base for Shiretoko is the small harbour town of Utoro. From there, buses go to Rausu on the Pacific side (passing the turn-off to Lake Rausu) and to the Shiretoko Goko Visitor Center. The walk there is clearly marked and you may not step off the path.

Is it worth visiting?

Hokkaido is a different experience from the rest of Japan. The Shiretoko National Park is one of the most untouched parts of the country and hiking there is very rewarding. When we first visited in 2005 it was still possible to hike up the Kamuiwakka-no-yu, a hot spring water fall with pools on the upper end. It used to be one of Japan's ultimate hot spring destinations, but for the time being due to the danger of falling rocks you can only walk a short way up. Utoro has more regular hot spring options, too.

Affordable Swiss Alps: Isa's delicious pie charts

Total cost of travelling in Switzerland for 14 days for both of us:
932 CHF, or 66.60 CHF per day for both of us.

Travelling in Switzerland, especially right now with a very strong Swiss Franc, is not cheap, but there are ways to make it affordable.

Altogether we spent 14 days in Switzerland. Seven of them we went hiking over the mountains, the second half of our trip we stayed in the Rhone Valley and at the Lac Leman, doing day hikes and some sightseeing. For the two of us these two weeks came to less than 1000 CHF (not including access to Switzerland).

Hiking in the Alps was the main reason for us to visit Switzerland and the hiking is free (no entrance fees for National Parks) – so no expenses here.

Accommodation: As we had our own tent, we stayed on campsites most of the time (ranging from 16.40 to 31 CHF per night for two people and a tent). While hiking, we also bivouacked above the tree line three times and we stayed for free with a friend for three nights

Food: Camping also meant that we could prepare our own food. We never went out for dinner, but we indulged in cake and coffee in mountain huts or cafés. In the Rhone valley and at Lac Leman we also had some glasses of wine while walking through the vineyards.

Transport: Since we walked into the country (from France) and had a train ticket from Lausanne back to Berlin (not counted in the CHF expenses), there were only a few short distances within Switzerland that we had to cover by public transport. Even this added up to nearly 170 CHF. We also walked one stage (17 km) of the Via Francigena – a pilgrims' route along the valleys – to get from Martigny to St. Maurice. It was a pleasant day hike and the train would have been 6.80 CHF per person. Walking, even if it is only a few kilometers, instead of taking the train or bus, can save a lot of money in Switzerland.

We took a flight with Easy Jet from Berlin to Genève (136.66 €) and an “Easy Bus” to Chamonix (37.24 €); the train ticket back was 164.60 € (traveling costs for both of us).

Sightseeing: During the second part of the trip we visited four museums in Martigny, St. Maurice, Vevey and Lausanne. Their combined entrance fees would have been 116 CHF, although we got free entry with our press card. The rest of the sightseeing, such as city walks, churches, Roman ruins and hikes through the vineyards, was free.

Some other costs included fuel for the camping stove, a Swiss SIM card, and yes, we bought wine and cheese to take home (for about 100 CHF)

Summary:

Even at the current exchange rate, this was a highly enjoyable and quite reasonably priced holiday in Switzerland. If you skip the wine, the cafés, and maybe even some of the museums, you could reduce the costs even further (by up to 30%), but do consider that a buffer for cafés or staying in a mountain hut can be essential if the weather is harsher than it was this summer.

The Jungfrau-Aletsch-Bietschhorn Glacier region in Switzerland

After a few weeks hiking in Switzerland we feel like lingering there for a little longer – even if it's only on the blog - and doing another UNESCO post about the Jungfrau-Aletsch glacier we visited a few years ago.

The Aletsch Glacier was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage in 2001, and the protected area was extended considerably in 2007. As the longish title of the World Heritage site suggests, this is the backyard of the Jungfrau region: You get a look at the famous Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau rock massif from the Southern side instead of from the North as usual. Conveniently, this also means that you stay in sun-bathed Swiss canton of Valais with over 2000 hours of sunshine per year.

With a length of 23 km the Aletsch Glacier is the largest and longest glacier in Europe. It is not merely notable for its size, but also for the wealth of information scientists can gather here about the formation of mountains and glaciers as well as the ongoing climate change.

How to explore the Aletsch Glacier

We went on a day trip from Brig to see the Glacier. First we took the Matterhorn-Gotthard train to Betten and then the cable car up to Bettmeralp, a car-free village at 1948m altitude.

„Skiers should stick to the valley side and slide at moderate speed,“ we read on a traffic sign displayed prominently in the village. It seems that during the winter season, several ski pistes pass directly through the village. We then follow the „marmot path“ - no marmots to be seen at all – towards the peak of Bettmerhorn and from there continue along the so-called „ UNESCO heritage high trail “, an Alpine route / Via Ferrata with blue-white-blue pointers. The high trail runs above the glacier, which looks a little bit like a highway with its two middle moraines. Shortly before we reach the peak of Eggishorn we take another path that leads us back to the cable car station at Bettmeralp.

Is it worth going?

Well, of course it is. We would say that the Swiss Alps in general are always worth going. The Aletsch Glacier is indeed quite impressive for its size, but it is not the most beautiful glacier you can see in the Alps. On the other hand the mountains surrounding the glacier will leave you speechless. If you want to walk the UNESCO heritage high trail you will need some experience in Alpine environments as well as a head for heights. Rope and helmet are not necessary.

How to get there

Instead of hiking from Bettmeralp, as we did, you could take the Bettmerhorn cable car all the way up to Bettmerhorn (2874 m) from where you already have a good view on the Aletsch-Glacier. The return ticket from Betten to Bettmeralp is 19.20 CHF, the return ticket from Betten up to Bettmerhorn 39 CHF.

Hiking in the Alps from Chamonix to Nendaz: A variation on the Haute Route

Just over 100 km, but with an accumulated altitude difference of 6300 m – we spent 8 days in July and August hiking from Chamonix over the mountains to Nendaz in the Rhone valley.

The hut on the Col de Balme at 2191 m marks the border between France and Switzerland. It looks like an ancient relic from the early days of Alpinism and the caretakers are possibly just as ancient and quite grumpy. Nevertheless, they serve us a cup of hot cocoa, and we are glad for it as we have been walking up here in constant rain and fog from Argentière near Chamonix (France).

We arrived in Chamonix on a pleasant afternoon with a tent, warm clothing and a view to possibly walking all the way to Zermatt, from Mont-Blanc to the Matterhorn, on the famous Haute Route that crosses major mountain chains directly west to east. With 30 kg of luggage between the two of us, we would see how far we could get. The first day brought us to a fabulous campsite near Argentière on the end of the Chamonix valley, and the rainy second day was luckily the only one with really bad weather.

On day 3, a wonderful sunny day, we tackled the Fenêtre d'Arpette, a 2665 m high rocky pass popular with day walkers and organised international tour groups on the Tour de Mont-Blanc circuit. Our backpacks were quite heavy, but the hiking and the landscape amazing. We set up our tent in between and it took us two days to reach Champex, the so-called “Little Canada of Switzerland”.

For the next pass, the Col de Mille, we took again two days, hiking from Liddes over the mountain range to Lourtier and Champsec, with a beautiful campsite at 2100 m, overlooking the Val de Bagne valley and the resort town of Verbier on the opposite site.

Finally, we decided to turn off the direct Zermatt route and take another pass towards the Rhone Valley: Our last two days led us to Verbier and over the Croix de Coeur to Le Tzoumaz and Nendaz.

The village of Sarreyer halfway to Verbier we found actually far more charming than Verbier itself: cute renovated woodblock houses, and a similarly good location.

From Le Tzoumaz to Nendaz, we walked along a historic bisse, a water channel that the villagers took much effort to construct along the steep hillsides. Most of them dried out when new technologies made their difficult maintenance unnecessary, but the maintenance paths have recently been restored for hikers.

Practicalities

Not counting (sometimes unintended) detours, we have walked 102 km altogether, with 6300 m ascent and 5550 m decent. As we had the tent and camping stove with us, we could hike at our own pace. Wild camping is officially forbidden in Switzerland, but is tolerated in most cases above the timber line and if you set up camp/bivouac only for one night.

Contact us for GPS tracks of the hike.