Cycling Japan – days 27 to 30 – Amaharashi to Takaoka

Day 27 – Amaharashi to Takaoka
Distance: 12.4km
Ascent / descent: 73m / 58m
Weather: sunny and hot
Accommodation: Super Hotel Takaoka Ekiminami, ¥4,980

I set my alarm for 4:30am to get up for the sunrise and when I peeked out of the tent, the sky was glowing orange. I quickly got up and walked to the pier for a better view. The view of the Tateyama mountain range in the background was the best that I’d had so far and I loved seeing the snow-capped peaks.

Fishing at sunrise in Amaharashi, Toyama

The Tateyama mountain range seen from Amaharashi at sunrise in Toyama Prefecture

Sunrise as seen from Amaharashi in Toyama Prefecture

I booked a business hotel in Takaoka to have a day off, so knowing it was only a short ride away and I wouldn’t be able to check in until 3pm, I went back to the tent and had a lazy morning.

Campsite rules

Sunrise tent selfie

I eventually left, and stopped shortly after at the the newly opened and very smart-looking Amaharashi Michi-no-eki. When it opened at 9am I was able to buy some breakfast and a coffee, then sit on the bench outside enjoying the stunning scenery of the Amaharashi coast quasi national park.

Breakfast at Amaharashi Michi-no-eki – the white whole fried shrimp on the RHS are a specialty of the region (everything else from L-R is salmon, egg, fried chicken and meatballs)

‘Meiwa’ rock island with the Tateyama mountain range in the background, Amaharashi Coast Quasi-national Park

Just an hour later and I was in Takaoka dropping off my bags at the hotel. All my batteries were dead so I sat in the foyer and recharged everything while chatting to the very friendly staff who let me enter the room as soon as it was cleaned, thanks! Today’s a day of admin. I need to try and find warmer sleeping clothes / a sleep sheet, take my bike to get checked at the nearby Cycle Base Asahi, resupply with food, clean my mouldy water bottle (I didn’t realise it was mouldy and I was drinking out of it today – I’ll save you from having to see the photo but my bottle was alive!) And then just chill out and figure out which direction I should cycle now – into the mountains or follow the coast?