Hokkaido, July 28 - Aug 8, 2012

After a sleepless and foodless night on ANA flight from S'pore to Tokyo to New Chitose (Sapporo), we are waiting for a train to Minami Chitose. Another train with a non-functioning door blocks the track.

At 3pm. we are in Noboribetsu to start a combined vacation and conference trip in Japan, this time specially in Hokkaido. We have four-day Hokkaido rail passes and are planning to spend the pre-conference days visiting a couple of onsen towns in South-Western Hokkaido before moving to Sapporo for CogSci 2012.

We have our own private onsen in our room at Hotel Hanayura.

View over Noboribetsu onsen.

Before bathing and dinner, which will be served in our room, we take a short walk around Noboribetsu onsen.

Jigokudani, Hell Valley.

Hell Valley is about hot steam, sulphurous streams, and volcanic activity -- nothing grows there.

However, the valley provides hot water to Noboribetsu's hot springs.

From Hell Valley we take a day hike trails to surrounding woods. The smell of sulphur follows us everywhere.

Oyunuma pond.

Wild strawberries.

Hotel Hanayura.

The dinner is served in our room. The server brings us a dish at the time, and meticulously and very politely explains each of them, in Japanese.

We planned to save the menu, which was all in Japanese, and ask our Japanese colleague to translate it to us afterwards, but for some reason we forget it in the room.

Anyway, we had a lot of seafood. All very beautifully displayed.

We finish the day watching women's Olympic soccer game between Japan and Sweden. The game ends in a scoreless tie.

We wake up early at 5:30am. and it is already full daylight. We go for a run toward Lake Kuttara. It is all uphill, but clean and crisp air makes running really easy.

We pass Oyunuma pond. After four more kilometers uphill we get a glimpse of Lake Kuttara (no pictures since the cell phone camera locked itself and we don't know how to unlock it). We return to the hotel. Before breakfast we dip in the hot onsen.

The breakfast is served in the hotel restaurant. It consists of many small dishes, mostly fish and seafood. After the a-la-carte, we fetch some fresh fruits and veggies from the buffet.

We take a train to Toya. There we catch a local bus to Toyako onsen by Lake Toya.

North Pacific Ocean.

From Toyako onsen we need to take a taxi to our hotel. We have three more hours until the check-in opens. We leave our backpacks behind and head out to explore this onsen town on foot. But first we have lunch in the first cafe-restaurant we find, even if we are not too hungry.

After the lunch we have some coffee at Cafe Jalibu.

Lake Toya is quite calm, and the air clear. We can even see Mt Yotei in the background (it's in Niseko where we were last winter)

We take the Lake Toya Volcanic Course to 1977 Remnants Park. The park commemorates the 1977 eruption of Mt. Usu.

This used to be a hospital.

A dragonfly on Tomi's hat.

The dinner at the hotel is a simple buffet with rice, noodles, seafood, and pickles, and some green salad with tomato and broccoli. We are served some sashimi afterwards.

After the dinner we head out for a walk. Walking is not easy, since there are no street lights, and car headlights dazzle us. There are also spider webs everywhere.

We wake up early and go for a short walk before breakfast. Mist lingers on Lake Toya.

The breakfast is equally unassuming as the dinner: green salad and rice with condiments, hot dogs, and scrambled eggs.

This is one of the nearby restaurants, but unfortunately they don't post their hours.

After the breakfast we walk uphill to Usuzan Ropeway that takes us to Usu Volcano South Rim Trail.

How to behave in a Japanese toilet.

View to Toya.

Local beer is available at Sanchon (Summit) Station. We save them till we return from the hike.

It takes us about two hours to walk the trail to the turning point and back.

Down and up we go, several times.

It is nice and quiet; we barely see anyone, since many of the tourists who take the ropeway up do not go any further than the viewing platform.

Wildlife!

The sun is merciless; it is a warm day despite the breeze blowing from the ocean.

Noboribetsu Premium Beer time!

After briefly returning to the hotel, we head to another walking tour to Konpira and Nishiyama Course. This is the area that was totally destroyed in the 1977 eruption of Mt. Usu. Control damns were built afterwards to prevent any future damage by mud slides. And they worked well when both Konpira and Nishiyama erupted in 2000, although there were no human residences in the area anymore.

Several destroyed and abandoned structures (apartment buildings and a municipal bathhouse) remain in the area. Even in 1977 there were no human casualties, because of the efficient prediction system all residents were evacuated.

Yu-Kun crater is emerald green.

Toyako onsen town. In the foreground are the large-scale erosion control damns built after 1977.

Ash everywhere.

Old incinerator was destroyed in the eruption.

Dinner at the hotel, this time served in our table.

After the dinner at the hotel, we enjoy a couple of Yona Yona ales in Cafe Jalibu.

Next morning we head out for a run. Lake Toya is calm as always.

We run on the Southern and Eastern coastline of the lake. The route is really hilly.

It is time to move to Sapporo for the conference. We have been there before so it is relatively easy to orient ourselves and find places. We walk around a bit before the check-in and visit the Patagonia store we found last winter.

We have dinner at Brasserie Avion next to the University of Hokkaido campus. They have liqueur bottles from all over the world in a display cabin. This is from Finland. Literally translated it says black currant punch shot.

The place is small and cosy. The menu is in Japanese, and the only thing we recognize is pizza Margherita. So, pizza it is tonight!

We also ask if they have any green salad, but no fresh veggies are available. This is what they come up with: some delicious stir-fried winter vegetables.

The Pizza.

Kiwi sorbet with cherries.

There won't be much to write about the next four days, when Tei attends the Cognitive Science conference in Sapporo Convention Center. This picture is from the nearby shopping mall.

These are some local microbrew beers we enjoy in our room in Hotel Gracery after the first conference day.

We also have some carry-out dinners Tomi finds in the nearby JR Station.

A Scandinavian smell(?) shop at the JR Station.

A conference lunch: A burger in a burger place in the mall next to the convention center.

A dinner at a Belgian restaurant Paul's cafe.

The place is quite popular.

Bangers and endive salad.

CogSci 2012: A conference presentation on how slopes are perceived, and why downward slopes are perceived steeper than upward slopes.

On the second but last conference day we have dinner in another beer place Buddy Buddy. (Gumbo hotline! I wonder if they'd deliver to Singapore: this is a food style that is still totally lacking on that tiny red dot.)

We have jambalaya and gumbo,

and watch some strange ritual (singing) played on TV.

Buddy Buddy viewed from the street.

This poor student lost his poster. Because of our pre-conference travel, Tei had her poster printed in Sapporo, and delivered directly to the hotel room. This probably would not have been possible if her co-author were not Japanese, and had arranged everything.

After the last conference day, we take the train to Furano.

We change trains in Takikawa,

and have about an hour to explore the town center.

Iloinen loma == Happy vacation!

It is cool and humid here in the mountains; Furano is a winter sports destination, but nothing much more than wine and flowers in the Summer. We head out to find dinner, and in the first crossing we see a sign to Yamano DoXon advertizing "brews, food, and wine." We have the salad of the day, sausages and venison curry with local beers and wine.

Bed & Breakfast Furano.

The morning starts grey but relatively warm. We find ourselves on Kururu-Go bus line. The bus service takes people to various local tourist attractions, which are all associated with food somehow. The visitors can hop-on and hop-off at any point for a flat price in one day.

Clouds hang low over the Furano Ski Area (Kitanomine Zone)

We take the bus to the grape juice factory. They also make ice cream with the grape juice.

From the factory we walk to the next destination, which is Rokkatei confectionery company.

Rokkatei amidst grape vines.

Rokkatei tasting room offers small tasters for a minimum price, and free coffee.

Some colorful confectionery.

Bush blueberries.

An art gallery in Rokkatei features some powerful art, this natural scene included.

Wine grapes.

We continue the tour on foot to the Furano Wine Company for wine tasting and then to Furano Wine House for lunch. Despite cloudy and a bit drizzly weather, this is a perfect day for walking.

Flower fields are something that Furano is famous for; no lavender (blue) this time of the year, though. Furano ski area in the backdrop.

Help yourself, please.

A view over Furano town from the winery.

After the lunch we continue walking all the way to the town.

It is Sunday and downtown Furano is mostly closed.

Our next destination is Furano Cheese Factory. 'Cheese' in Finnish was originally misspelled.

While most of the visitor at the cheese factory are indulging in pizza, we taste locally made buffalo mozzarella with tomatoes. Japanese tomatoes are the best we've ever had.

Pizza in the making.

We have a long walk back to the hotel. We see a lot of creatures, both dead and alive on the pavement. Also a guy comes up and asks us something and acts somewhat incoherently. Then he keeps following us. It gets a bit creepy.

The scenery looks like Southern Finland, the bicycle/pedestrian path included!

Birch trees --- even more like Southern Finland.

Famous Furano flowers grown in a nursery.

Back in town.

For dinner we choose this funny little place called Ragdoll. It is an Italian restaurant run by a Japanese couple. We are the only customers, and we wonder if they get any busier during the high season. Their pasta is not bad: maybe a bit overcooked but certainly fresh and steaming hot.

We start the morning with a 12-kilometer run in the foggy Furano. Then we return to the B&B for breakfast and head out to do laundry, and have some good coffee and ice cream.

The coin laundry is located in this yellow building, and the coffee shop, Downhill Cafe, right across the street.

After we've done with the household work we walk to New Furano Prince Hotel with a plan to ride Furano Ropeway. However, we are not too hopeful of having a great view from the top, nor having an interesting hike down.

It is not a rain proper, but an annoying drizzle when we walk up to the ropeway.

Clouds are hanging quite low today.

While waiting for the ropeway to start operation, we watch some cute animal posters: here fox cubs.

Another cute animal poster with a pair of owls.

And up we go.

It rains more up in the mountain.

There is no view, and we don't feel like hiking back, so we take the first car down.

Once we are back in town, the sun comes out.

Another weird TV game show.

On our last evening in Furano, we have dinner at the nearby Lamb BBQ restaurant Tirol.

We have Ghengis Khan and then gelato for dessert.

On our last morning in Furano, we head for a short run by Sorachi River. Before this we have gotten up to watch the last minutes of the Olympic soccer matches between Japan and France, and USA and Canada.

It is a very scenic run.

Our last breakfast at B&B Furano. In this place we get some vegetables that are fresh, not pickled.

After the breakfast we pack our backpacks and head to Furano Marche and then to the railway station.

On our way we see these drafter who great us cheerily.

Cafe Lattes at a coffee shop in Furano Marche.

We get some take-out sandwiches, which is a good decision, since there is no service on the train, besides a vending machine serving drinks.

We change trains in Asahikawa. We have about an hour to explore the railway station neighborhood.

Which really is a transportation hub with a highway and the river.

No bike parking here!

Asahikawa station is new and modern. We order beers at the vending machine.

On the train to Wakkanai, when not sleeping, we admire the very Finnish scenery (which this is not).

We stay one night in Wakkanai in Dormy Inn, which despite its DDR looks is a clean and modern hotel. We head out for dinner in the nearby Vin Steak House. They have two dinner sets available tonight; we have one of each. The server is a tiny elderly lady who very skillfully serves the dishes to the table on a tray.

Russia is not far away. There is a regular ferry connection to Sakhalin island.

Wakkanai viewed from the HeartLandFerry terminal.

Sea of Japan. We take the ferry to Rebun island, and spend the day hiking there. In the early evening we take another ferry to Rishiri island.

Rishiri-to.

Arrival to Kafuka Port in Rebun-to.

The town (and Mt. Rishiri) seen from the trailhead.

We take the 2.5-hour Momo-iwa course to Momo-iwa Observatory, Motochi Lighthouse, Shiretoko, and back to Kafuka Port.

We have a beautiful day, and the scenery is splendid.

The flower season is almost over.

We also have the luxury of hiking alone, the trail not being too crowded; we only see few other people or couples.

We get a quick glimpse of the Western coast of Rebun island.

The edge. It is also very windy up there.

Tomorrow we will climb Mt. Rishiri.

It feels like we being on the top of the world.

Another view over the Western coastline.

Shiretoko, a small coastal town.

Idyllic walk through the local fishing villages back to the ferry terminal.

A domestic tourist photographing seagulls.

A fan.

Varying information sources disagree on the expected length of the Momo-iwa course. Lonely Planet advertizes it as a "great two-hour taste of island's beauty", whereas a local brochure estimates walking time to be three hours and 40 minutes.

We expect the former to be closer to the truth, but it takes us three hours without any significant stops, and we barely make it to the Rishiri ferry. This ferry is more like Japanese style: there are no benches but people sit on tatamis on the floor.

The peak of Mt. Rishiri (1712m) is visible when we arrive at the island. Our host from Pension Misaki recognizes Mr. Tomi among the passangers --- we are definitely the only westerners around here --- and takes us to his guesthouse just a few hundred meters away in the harbour.

After a quick shower, we are served a hearty seafood dinner. Afterwards the friendly host drives us to the supermarket to buy some snacks for tomorrow's hike.

We walk back to the guesthouse as the sun sets.

The evening light is miraculous.

But the air is also getting chilly.

Next morning we are up together with the sun around 4am. The Mt. Rishiri is in clouds.

We pack the wrapped rice breakfasts and let the host drive us to the trail head. It seems we are going to have lovely sunny day ahead of us.

The trail starts paved and easy.

For most of the uphill climb the vegetation covers us from the sun.

The vegetation also blocks the view.

When we are high enough, we have a glimpse to the world below.

And the skies above.

The clouds are hanging low.

The seat is here, but bring your own toilet bowl.

The trail gets rockier and steeper as we get higher.

Time wise we are almost at the half-way point now. Only 130 minutes and 700 meters left to climb :)

Only after climbing to 1200 meters, we see the peak for the first time ...

And them some more ...

and then all of it, but it still is a long way to go, since there are no shortcuts.

At 1400 meters we enter the clouds.

The visibility gets really bad.

The air also gets chillier, but not yet too bad, since we are moving.

As we get closer to the peak the trail gets more eroded and hazardous to climb. Luckily there is the rope to hang on.

There's a small temple at the summit.

With the transition lenses and the fog, it is hard for Tei to see but a meter ahead, and at times she is totally clueless where the trail is. It is hard to get a foothold in the loose gravel. These pictures don't really depict how hazardous the climb is, since we don't stop for photos unless it is reasonably safe.

I takes us an hour to climb the last section to the Mt. Rishiri summit.

We have a short snack break at the summit before starting the descent.

Even if we are totally in the clouds, the light is bright enough to keep the glasses tinted.

And down we go.

Tough (and rough) trail. That it certainly is. Going down is always much harder than going up.

The peak is not quite visible, but it is somewhere there we are coming from.

It is still chilly and foggy.

But then the clouds recede, and the air warms up.

Finally we have a view to Oshidomari town, where the ferry terminal and our guesthouse are.

Once the trail levels it takes us no time to hike down to the trail head, where we call our guesthouse host to pick us up. It is only 2pm.

When back in town the mountain is still in clouds but the very peak is not.

We have abundant time before the dinner to do laundry and explore the town in daylight.

It is almost 6pm., and now we can see most of Mt. Rishiri.

Another hearty seafood dinner.

It is time to return to Sapporo. In the morning we pack our packs and walk to the ferry terminal. Some kelp is being dried here.

Our guesthouse Pension Misaki in the middle.

A poster in the ferry.

Wakkanai is covered in fog. We have a couple of hours before our train leaves.

We explore the harbor area. The building on left is a sport complex, and one on the right a public toilet.

Wakkanai Port North Breakwater Dome.

Nice and dry but not too scenic campsite for a bicycle tourer.

We climb to the nearby hill park.

There are a number of monuments on the hill. This one is Gate of Ice and Snow, to commemorate Karafuto Islanders who were forced to leave their homes, when Russia took over Sakhalin island.

Wind turbines.

The cemetery is a really spooky place with the thick fog lying around and black birds quietly sitting on tombstones.

With a poor map and signage we get a bit lost, and have to hurry to the train.

But there is always time to take a photo of Moomins!

A shopping street in downtown Wakkanai. Russian signs are everywhere.

Last glimpses of Mt. Rishiri.

The sun goes down behind the clouds as we approach Sapporo.

We head out to a beer bar, Higurashi. We have a couple of rounds of draft beers, some of them real ales, and pizza (the only food we can order from the all Japanese menu).

Higurashi.

Higurashi is getting smokey (smoking in bars and restaurants is very common in Japan), so we move downstairs to Otaru Beer & Potato restaurant. We order some salad and cheesy potatoes with raclette. Very tasty!

Our last day in Hokkaido. We have a few hours before the flight.

The park around Former Hokkaido Government Office Building.

We visit Botanic Garden of Hokkaido University.

We learn about Ainu people (at Ainu museum located on the Garden grounds) and Alpine vegetation.

The rose garden.

Old bachelor residence.

A modern bathroom built in an old building (honestly not very old, since Hokkaido and Sapporo have been inhabited relatively late)

An educational poster at New Chitose Airport.