Trip Report

Teuri/Yagishiri Cycle Tour – Day 2 – Kenbuchi to Tomamae

Posted on Apr 15, 2019
0

Posted on Apr 15, 2019

On Day Two (May 3rd 2018) of our Teuri Island and Yagishiri Island cycle tour, we were not yet on Teuri nor Yagishiri Islands. We had finally made it to the Japan Sea coast in northwestern Hokkaido, after cycling across a still very snowy Route 239. Despite the snow, however, this Route 239 across the hills towards Haboro was desolate and gorgeous. The somewhat basin-like plateau just south of Horokanai felt curiously remote. We were thoroughly rained on during this part of the trip though, so were happy to arrive for an onsen at Tomamae at the end of the day.

Today was always going to be a big day for us. We wanted to make the most of our time on the islands, so we were rushing to get from Asahikawa to the ferry terminal in Haboro as quickly as possible. So it was an early start. We were mostly packed up before 7am. It was raining as we left the campground, and the rain would follow us most of the the way up and over the hills to the coast.

The mos surprising thing for us today was the sheer amount of snow still on the ground in the hills. Even at 200m in altitude there was still at least 1m of snow sitting on the fields. Horokanai is one of the coldest areas of Hokkaido in the winter, and the spring conditions certainly showed it. The descent down to the coast was fast, but we were happy to have gloves – it was a frigid, cold, wet downhill.

Mercifully, the rain had stopped by the time we arrived at the coast. This allowed us to dry off a little along the short section of seaside riding before arriving at the campground. We’d stayed at this campground previously (story here) and knew that despite it being very exposed, the onsen hotsprings right next to the campground made up for it.

Today’s essential details

  Distance: 95km | ↗ 710m | 🚵 100% paved

Onsen: Tomamae Onsen Fuwatto (とままえ温泉ふわっと) | 500yen | 0.4km from accommodation

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Teuri/Yagishiri Cycle Tour – Day 2 – Kenbuchi to Tomamae Difficulty Rating

Category

Grade

Points

Strenuousness

Vertical Gain

D

25

Time ascending

D

0

Technicality

Altitude

D

0

Hazards

D

Navigation

D

Totals

25/100

GRADES range from A (very difficult) to D (easy). Hazards include exposure to avalanche and fall risk. More details here. Rating rubric adapted from Hokkaido Yukiyama Guidebook 北海道雪山ガイド.