November 26 2011

November 26- After recovering from overeating on Thanksgiving, Saturday dawned a somewhat almost sunny day. Exploration day! (if you listen carefully in the background is the whine: "but when is it going to be MY turn to choose what to do?" I told her the next rainy weekend was her pick....if it fit my needs. Now, listen more, can you hear the eyes rolling?) We have heard of the Kuji Cliffs. After the last cliff adventure, we thought this would be great!

So, down the East coast of Japan we went. Made our way to the actual coast in Hachinohe, and right away another great day started!

We stopped at a little pull out (just up the road from the actual observatory) and found a path down to the ocean. Climbing out croppings and looking for tidal pools and hidden treasures are one of the best things!
As Shane was helping Andi negotiate the rocks, I realized the shoes that were on her feet....really crocs? Never mind the sneakers that I know are in the car....But she did fine.


Down the road....all of about 200meters was the observatory. I loved listening to Andi. Immediately the imagination kicked in. This must be some ancient outpost, watched over by the Samurai. The steps hand carved for easy access. (the steps were really made of concrete and no more than 20 years old....but the story she got going....)
A map to give you an idea of where we are. Though keep in mind, we are on the East coast of Japan, headed South, the map makes it look like we looking northward....
Andi at the observatory. Just seeing her look out over the ocean like this makes me happy. She is still very afraid of the ocean and potential tsunami's, so her going down to the seaside and climbing up observation decks is a big deal!

Looking down the coast from the observatory. There is a nice pathway that leads to our next stop....but being on a slight agenda, we drove down the road, all of about a kilometer.
See how far! (look at the map below....not that far at all before the next stop)
But we had to check out the beach. This is one of the most popular beaches in the area. It suffered a little damage in the tsunami, but not enough that we could even pinpoint what it might be.

There was a overlook area here as well. Andi went on down to the beach. If you look at the photo below very carefully, in the middle of the rock is a purple dot....that would be our child, off exploring. (oh, but this time she had on her sneakers...)




I think climbing about on those rocks is one of the funnest things to do! It's like a puzzle to see if you can get to a certain point, and keep an eye on the waves at the same time! (though we do try hard to not be the people you see on the news....you know the ones)

We finally made it to the city of Kuji. But let me clarify...this is Kuji, Iwate Prefecture. There is another Kuji that is close to Fukushima....not that one!

But as you can see, some how we are inland, not out on the cliffs.

On the bright side, we did find a city park to roam around in.

I love these benches!

I had to look at the statue closely....they are cuddling a little bunny rabbit.
Views of the city of Kuji.

Above: The wavy building with the cone in front of it is Amber Hall (thank goodness for English road signs)

http://jet.wikia.com/wiki/Kuji

We didn't go in...just admired from afar.

I love that at a lot of the temples is the above sign. I think I should like to have one in my yard someday...

The temple dogs were dressed with festive scarves.
The Kuji Harbor. At first glance you don't really notice the damage. But if you look closer, there were many floating cranes out there. The "jacks" that are usually stacked so neatly are all in a jumble. There is an impressive 14 foot high seawall surrounding the harbor, it appeared to work well, as there seemed to be little damage to the houses. The processing areas inside the wall though seemed heavily damaged.
Along the wall are tile mosaics. The above representing the Ama diving for sea urchins.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuji,_Iwate

Now, one of the most disconcerting things about driving in some of the coastal areas are the warning signs! But, I'd rather know to pay close attention than to be caught completely off guard!

On the way home, noticed a skinny house! Loved the color and design....just a little to thin for my taste.
Dr. Drive....

Oh, my favorite sign of the day is below. I saw it as we were headed down the coast, and on the way back up....is it wine, or some kind of elixir? What is "natural DNA collagen?
Oh, what? Are you waiting to see pictures of the Kuji cliffs? Yeah, so am I! Remember those stunning city views of Kuji....umm, yeah, just a little of course there. We went inland somehow (roadsigns do not say East, West, North, South). We were able to sort of see where we wanted to end up, but to far away for a good camera shot. Daylight is in short supply at this time of year. And since it is winter, we prefer to try to get home before pitch black sets in and all the roads freeze. It had been a dry day with just a few raindrops, but hilly roads aren't as fun when you aren't familiar with them! We are hoping for one more sunny weekend, with a direct drive to Kuji...no side stops (with no side stops, it's really not that bad of a drive) so that we can find those cliffs! (of course the stiff breezes blowing off the ocean will make it so much more pleasant.....)

Hotokegaura

(the above map of Aomori Prefecture will be a great reference to figure out what on earth I'm talking about! When I talk about the "hatchet" I am referring to that area that looks, well, like a hatchet. The "neck" is that thin stretch of land. When we started out we went from Misawa, North by North East to Noheji, which is just at the southern end of the Western side of the "neck". Continued North to Mutsu on the western edge. Confused? Good!)
November 12 2011 - ADVENTURE DAY!!!! This was such an exciting trip! Shane had suggested leaving at around 6 or 7 am.....I thought that far to early, we left around 9. This will become something to remember later in the day. As always, our now traditional stop at some random Lawson's. It is fall and the steam rolls known as "man" (pronounced "mon") are in full swing. Tasty steamed rolls with stuff stuffed inside. My favorite this year are the pizza variety (zesty sauce and I think hamburger meat) but they come with curry, or a variety of meat. Anyway, Shane came across the "Pink Pepsi". I do wonder if these things appear in the states? Not to bad, but not something I could drink a whole bottle of.
The map above shows our goal for the day. We followed the "neck of the hatchet" on the western coast line to Mutsu. (where the swans are) Then west along the coast to the south western tip of the hatchet. (those are warthogs on the map) North on the blue road. Hotokegaura is midway there where the pathways for the ferries meet up together. The plan was to stop there, then go further up to the Northwestern point city of Oma and see the light house, then down the northern coast line, to the eastern side of the "neck" and back to Misawa. That was the theory.....
So, off we go. The day was just beautiful. Fall day, sunshine, just a hint of "crisp" in the air.
We've taken this portion of the road before. Thought it about time I got a picture of the Crematory sign. Remember, this area is Buddhist, so seeing a sign for the local crematory really shouldn't be that big of a surprise. Though, this is really the only sign I've ever seen in this area pointing the way. But this one might be an old one, and of great importance in the area.
Stopped for a break. Really, this was like our second or third stop, and we haven't even gotten to Mutsu yet. But we've stopped at this location before and have never noticed the statue. That might be because the last time we stopped it was Christmas day and snow was blowing off the ocean and pelting our skin. (last Christmas when we went to Wakinosawa, which we will have to go by on this trip) Not sure who the statue is of, but she is of the sea.

A couple of weekends ago, when we took the trip to Osorezan (Hell) and went up to the observatory. (remember, we couldn't see a thing as it was so packed in with clouds) From this point of view, that is one big observatory! (it didn't seem all that big in the cloud cover, but from below on a clear day....WOW!) Nope, we didn't do a side trip back up there. Day light is short here....oh, that comes back into play with what time we left.....

Above: Seaside village.

Below: Ok, we are past Mutsu, heading west (towards the lower tip of the hatchet) Those mountains we see are across the bay. (look back at the beginning picture of Aomori Prefecture...so we are looking across the bay/ocean towards Aomori) I hope this all makes sense!

We got to Wakinosawa (the Southwest corner of the hatchet) Saw the steps leading up to this temple. Of course we had to stop and look, as the colors of the building are what caught our eye. We've never seen one with colors. Usually the wood is stained a natural color. The path way of golden leaves was incredible.
Now we start the trek into the mountains. Up we go!

Can always tell when you're near the top....there's an observatory! Still, perfectly clear!

And, what goes up.....must come down!

Not sure what the name of this formation is. It's not part of Hotokegaura, as far as I know, as it is inland a bit. It did remind of us of Devil's Tower though.
Bridge end caps could become my new past time. I love it when they are themed with what is within the area. Though, this high in the mountains we didn't see many seagulls...not till down by the water...

Oh, did I forget to mention this is the area of snow monkeys?! (remember last years trip to Wakinosawa the ones we saw were in captivity....they really do run wild in the area!)

The big question, is can you find the one above?


We arrived at the parking area for Hotokegaura. Always nice to start out with a big warning sign! I figure though that there is usually enough people in the area that they shouldn't be around.
From the car is a gently sloping trail, between a quarter mile and half a mile long. This lulls you into a nice false sense of security. "I can do this, piece of cake". Then comes what we termed as the "resting hut". A covered area with benches and a nice view....should've known.

Then we started down the steps. Back and forth they went. Though as a break some weren't steps but gently sloping ramps. (I liked those!)

Oh, how many steps? Well, we counted on the way up. And counted how many steps we took on the ramp ways as well. From bottom to the resting area I got 550. Andi came up with 476. But she's young and was taking two steps at a time. (I swear her legs are made out of rubber) Andi counted from bottom all the way back to the car, a total of 1057 of her steps (including the trail before the stairs)
But at the bottom, what views we had!

http://www.travel-around-japan.com/k21-09-hotokegaura.html

Lots of tidal pools to poke around in. For awhile I wondered if they weren't going to fall in, they were leaning over so far!




The area is set up really nice. There are piers built to take you out over the water. The tour boats tie up there, so the water is fairly deep. And oh so blue! There was a bit of trash around (but the coastline of Japan just seems to collect it) But the reflections of the water, and the white, white sand just made for an amazing blue!


We noticed that the Japanese were walking along in the tidal pools, picking up critters (putting them back, but yippee! hands on!). So, when in Rome...I mean Japan, we do as the locals!
Above: Queen of the World!
The formations reminded Shane and I a lot of what is seen down around Zion and Bryce and such....just minus the redrock.

She really isn't standing that far away from me....just the formations make her seem so tiny!




The hike back up the path was not as fun. Well, it wasn't to bad. The weather was just right, had it been hot, it would've been torture! I had to laugh, as I was leaning against a tree catching my breath (asthma and 550 steps just don't combine well) and these Japanese business come by in their suits, not even breaking a sweat. And they were all older than me!
Now, did I mention that the days in Japan get very short! (we don't do the whole clock thing....the amount of sunlight is still the same regardless of what you do to your clock) Anyway, once we recovered, we got back in the car, drove a whopping 2 kilometers and found the observation deck. It just seems so small....and that was a long way we climbed down!


More monkeys! For the most part, they run as soon as they hear a car. This one seemed a tad overweight and not as inclined to scamper. We saw quiet a few, but as soon as they see the camera come up, they take off. Or hear the window roll down a little...they are definitely wild!
I think this might be the fishing village of Sai. Not sure. But who can resist that sunset?!
Sigh, it must be getting late? No, it's only 4 in the afternoon, and we aren't even halfway done with our trip! We had hoped, however briefly, that we might have gotten to Oma, the Northwestern point of the hatchet, and taken pictures of the light house. But alas, it was completely dark when we got there. I mean completely dark. The rest of our drive back down was dark, dark, dark. There aren't a lot of streetlights in this area. Even in the villages, dark. The moon was full but hiding behind the clouds a lot.

Hopefully next weekend will be nice. We'd like to go back, running in the opposite direction, and see what we didn't see. Shane will have his way this time, and we'll leave at 6 am. This will leave us more time for those fun impromptu stops. Andi votes to go back to the cliffs. They were something else. We'll have to see if the weather holds out for us!