A bikepacking journey across Japan to the Yatsugatake Mountains. Bike touring in Japan is always a blast, and this late spring we decided to cycle tour and camp our way to Nagano from Gunma and back. What does the long weekend have in store?
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Route File:
Day 1 - / strava
Day 2 - / strava
Day 3 - / strava
Music:
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Gear:
Bike - Cannondale Synapse 105 Hydraulic Disc 2019
Saddle Bags - Ortlieb Seat Pack
Frame Bag - Apidura Frame Pack
Shoes - Shimano XC7 amzn.to/2Sl76kI
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Notes-
This is the Yatsugatake mountain range in Japan. Bordering Nagano and Yamanashi prefectures this volcanic mountain range is home to peaks over 3,000m and is thought to have once been higher than Mt Fuji. With its jagged summits the Yatsugatake is a popular spot with hikers and outdoors lovers of Japan.
Though I’ve ridden quite a bit of the area around the the Yatsugatake in the past I’ve not spent much time on the S or E sides, and as we were trying to decide where to plan our next bike packing adventure I thought a lap around the mountains would be a great way to ride both favorite roads in the area and explore new ones.
From Kiryu City in Gunma Prefecture I mapped out a 410km loop that we planned to tackle over 3 days.
Our goal was to cover around 120km the first two days where most of the elevation in the route was and a near century 150+km on the last day. But, because we wanted to do a camping bikepacking adventure this time we certainly had a fair bit of hours in the saddle ahead of us with all the extra weight.
While I got the bikes setup Michelle took lead on the packing. Once we had the bikes all setup we headed to bed pretty early, as the sun rises in Japan at around 5am this time of year and we wanted to get through the first 10km or so to get to the river paths before morning rush hour started. And with just under 100km and 1,800m of climbing to do we could use a good nights sleep.
Once we reached the river paths we took the Jakawa path to the Tonegawa path, and finally the Kannagawa path, for 30km of car free smooth sailing . We even came across some unexpected wildlife in the farm fields below. (Show fox clip)
After that we hopped off the river ways and began our first climb up the Kanna river to the historic town of Uenomura. This road is very popular with not only cyclist but also motorcycle and drivers looking to take their shinny toys out for a joy ride on the weekends. With that, like many roads in Japan that are known by the Tokyo motorcycle and driving clubs, the number of vehicles you will come across on a weekend or holiday is probably 10x what you will find on weekdays. So if you have the choice it’s always best to ride in popular areas of Japan on weekdays.
The road is beautifully scenic with the massive dam lake Kanna around half way up followed by exposed rock features capped with hanging forests that is really reminiscent of the iconic mountains of Yangshuo in SE China.
Once in Ueno town we were surprised to find the Michinoeki, a sort of travelers market, was closed. So, we headed back to a small local convince store in the first floor of a locals house and got a true bikepacking smorgasbord for lunch.
Then, with replenished energy we began our main climb for the day up the Budou Pass, or Warriors way pass. This was only the second time I have done this pass, and the last time was nearly 5 years ago so I was excited to get to ride this pass again. But, what started out as some fresh new pavement quickly turned to some pretty massive road damage.
Though never too serious that we couldn’t hike around it, this was probably one of the more heavily damaged roads from last years massive late season Typhoon Hagabis. Luckily after about 2km of on and off the bike, as we entered into a misty cloud hanging on the mountain, we were able to hop back on the bikes and summit the pass.
With the climbing work of the day behind us we were more than relieved to find the descending side was in impeccable condition, and had a lot of fun on the car free road flying down to town.
Once in town we found a delicious local restaurant and got two of our favorite dishes. For Michelle, some local soba noodles, and for me a tasty fried Katsu-don.
Finally with full stomachs we headed off to the edge of town to find a campsite for the evening and setup camp.
Day 2 is the big elevation gain day. At just 115km long tomorrow’s ride has a planned 2,200m of gain with a massive climb to the top of the beautiful Venus Line road at the end summiting over 1,800m above sea in what is known as the Kirigamine, or the Misty Highlands.
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