Gordon: Despite its industrialization and massive cities, Japan still has a rich diversity of vegetation harbouring a lot of wildlife. Some of the animals we regularly spot include carp, egrets, herons and cormorants. Some days I have also seen literally hundreds of turtles in ponds and slow moving rivers. They are mostly red sliders, some as large as dinner plates. Despite their slow-witted reputation ...
Ruth: I saw a t-shirt at a temple that simply said “Life is Henro,” and I am beginning to agree. It’s hard not to compare our experiences on the various Camino routes with the Shikoku 88 temple Henro. Visiting Japan, even without doing the Henro, is so different. For me, one of the things I appreciate so much about this route is that the Henro ...
Gordon: Last night we spent the night at Minshuku Okada, located between Temples 65 and 66. The proprietor, Akira Okada, is in many respects a very interesting fellow. To begin with, he is 91 years old, though like many Japanese he looks much younger. He was constantly in motion in the garden and the house. Among other activities, he prepared an excellent dinner for six ...
Ruth: I knew in advance that most of the 350 meter climb up to Temple 65 occurred in the last few steep kilometres. I taped my knees, loaded up on more sugary treats than normal, and started the day full of confidence. After stopping at a lovely henro hut for second breakfast with Gord, I headed for the temple. Although the route was marked and ...
Gordon: We are spending two nights at a business ryokan near Temple 62. This has permitted us to enjoy an unladen day doing a return trip to Temple 60. Visiting this temple involves a henro-korogashi (pilgrim falls down) climb to 750 metres. Like many mountain temples, number 60 is set in a mature cedar forest. It also has a large area planted with rhododendrons, which ...
Ruth: There are relatively few foreigners on the Shikoku pilgrimage route, so we tend to spend our time with the Japanese that we meet. As the lovely temples begin to blur together, what stands out more for me each day are the wonderful interactions we have with locals. When we were planning our trip to Japan I told Gord that I definitely would not be ...
Ruth: There are moments everyday when I am struck by just how different Japan is from any other country I have visited. It goes beyond their resistance to global trends like chairs and beds, and the interesting coexistence of modernity and ancient traditions. Take this cute little creature, the tanuki. Do not be fooled by the monks garb and big innocent eyes, as I was. ...
Ruth: There is usually at least one point in every trip where I have to thank my Pocket Earth app for finding me yet another magical alternate route to cycle. This morning, after climbing up to a pass at 720 meters I needed to make a descent that would rejoin the walking route in the valley below. The link was made on this lovely steep ...
Gordon: Near the end of a long but beautiful walk / ride we reached Temple 44 yesterday. This means that we have now visited half of the 88 Temples on the pilgrimage. We also passed the halfway mark in the length of our visit to Japan a couple of days ago. Given that we have now covered 745 of the 1200 kms of the pilgrimage ...
Ruth: It’s not that I don’t like ryokans (traditional Japanese inns), but we have stayed in so many lately that I have been wanting a bit of a change. In addition, we keep passing perfect camping spots. Camping in Japan is quite a treat if you manage to find the right spot. Sometimes they are not at the right distance and you just have to ...