Hokkaido is Japan’s northern-most island and largest prefecture. Far, far away from the madding crowds of more southern climes, Hokkaido lives up to it’s frontier roots. Wild forests, long, wide open roads. Capes and offshore islands that feel like the end of the world. Almost half of the year, Hokkaido slips into a beautiful, deep winter slumber (with its own joys). During the summer months, from around the end of May till the beginning of November, the island becomes a mecca for cycle tourists wanting to get off the beaten track in Japan.