Vaucluse Dreamer

We really liked our little park up, by the quay at Susami, and woke this morning to the sound of rain on the van roof, with grey skies threatening a wet day ahead.

Our hopes of a second bike ride went out of the window, so we replanned the day, and ultimately our route for the next few days. We had originally planned to continue round the coast to Nachi Shrine, but decided to head up to Hongu Taishi Shrine, first.

We have found that the weekends tend to be busier, and we expect Naichi to be a bit of a honeypot for visitors, so thought it would be better to leave it until after the weekend.

We had found a walk at Hongu, and that is bound to be a quieter option for a Sunday, so our plans were turned on their heads again, for all the right reasons.

Yesterday evening, when we had been on the sea-wall, watching the sunset, we had noticed a Tori Gate, in woodland high above the town, so decided to take a walk, before heading on.

We found the entrance gate, at the back of the cemetery and took the steep, uneven path up the hillside. It was a bit sketchy at times, with rails made from bamboo just to give us something to hold onto, as we climbed the uneven steps, and old tree-roots.

But the view was worth the climb, with the Tori Gate, in front of a little shrine, framing the view of the bay, below us.

Then a scramble back down the hill, and we continued on, around the Port, where the boats were all fitted with long-lines, for what appears to be line-caught tuna fishing.

We had watched one of the boats land its catch the day before, and the fish filled the back of the little truck, before being whisked off to market. It is clearly a thriving Port for this, and the boats were so different to those we had seen on the north coast, which were equipped for squid & crab fishing. It’s been fascinating, just noticing the differences between the areas.

We ambled around the headland, just enjoying the sight of the sea, disturbing 2 deer, as we turned a corner, which darted off in opposite directions, leaving the mother calling frantically for her fawn. I’m sure they were quickly reunited.

Once back at the van, we set the route for tonight’s stop at Hongu, and headed on.

It was a lovely drive up into the mountains, with the rain getting heavier, and the clouds catching in the trees, the further we drove.

We had decided to stop at an onsen, on the way through, finding one, with open air baths that looked rather special (even in the rain). But when we reached the turning, we realised that taking the narrow slip road, in the van would not be a good move, so we followed the sign to another one instead.

We found ourselves in a small village, running alongside a river, where there were little open-air pools dug into the riverbed, where the hot water was bubbling up from underground. They looked rather nice, but we weren’t confident to walk over and join the couple who were already in it, so went to the little onsen instead.

It proved to be quite an experience, like stepping into a mid-century time-capsule.

We were the only ones there, and after paying our 300 yen (£1.50) each, the lady showed us where to go. It was the first onsen we’ve used that smelt of sulphur, and it was simply being piped straight into the bath.

It had no frills, and luckily we had taken our own shampoo etc, but it was wonderfully authentic and we both enjoyed the experience in this quiet, slightly shabby little place.

The water was the perfect temperature for me, and it was lovely to have a little soak (even with the all-pervading odour of slightly rotten eggs)

The only rather bizarre thing after, was that I noticed my silver ring had turned a bright shade of gold, and my wedding ring had deepened in colour too. I knew sulphur could turn silver black. But gold? this was a new one for me.

I’m sure I’ll be able to get the silver back, with a bit of work. Truly bizarre.

Once washed and freshened up, we continued on to Hongu, parking in the huge car park, down on the riverbank. We’ve seen photos of this car park filled with cars, but as I type this, we are the only vehicle here.

You can Watch a little video postcard from today, here

We aim to explore the area tomorrow, taking a walk up to a view point and then round to Yunomine Onsen, another local hot water spring village, where eggs are cooked in the boiling sulphur water,

But today, we took a little walk to take a first look at the Otorii Gate, a 34m high Tori Gate (the biggest in the World), in rice fields, at the site of the original Hongu Taisha Shrine, which was moved in 1889, after a devastating flood.

We also visited the Shrine, now safe from the river, at the top of a hill, to one end of the town, with its Tori gate at the entrance

We walked up the steps..

And through the Shrine Gate to admire the incredibly beautiful building.

It isn’t painted, like so many we saw in Koyasan, but is created from local, natural materials and sits beautifully in its cedar forest environment.

It’s a truly beautiful and tranquil Shrine at the heart of all the Kumano Kodo Trails, and we’re looking forward to exploring a bit further tomorrow.

That is, if we will be able to see anything, as the clouds have settled low tonight, and there is the blood-chilling call of the raccoon dogs from the woodland, on the far side of the river.

It’s certainly an incredibly atmospheric spot tonight.