In the far north of Honshu, on the Tsugaru plain of Aomori Prefecture, the Tagoyano site is a shell midden left by people of the Jomon period, the long era of hunter-gatherers who lived in Japan for over ten thousand years and made some of the oldest pottery in the world. The mound consists mainly of shells of shijimi, a small freshwater clam that thrived in the brackish water of the old lagoon. Along with the shells, archaeologists found pottery, tools and bones, and the site has become part of the Jomon Prehistoric Sites in Northern Japan, inscribed by UNESCO in 2021. There is little to see above ground now, just a grassy area and information boards, but the picture it paints is rich: people living by water, fishing, gathering, making beautiful vessels.
Nearby, at Kamegaoka, the famous Jomon figurine with goggle-shaped eyes, the shakoki dogu, was found, and the station at Kizukuri in Tsugaru town has a giant replica of it on its façade, a slightly surreal sight. To the north lies Lake Jusan, still producing shijimi clams today, and the Shirakami mountains with their ancient beech forest are to the south-west. Mount Iwaki, the single volcanic cone of the Tsugaru region, dominates the skyline on clear days.
The riding is relaxed. The Tsugaru plain is flat and agricultural, with rice fields and apple orchards. In autumn, the red apples hanging over the road are a sight in themselves, Aomori being the apple capital of Japan. Roads are straight and quiet, and the run along the coast of the Sea of Japan towards Ajigasawa and the Shirakami mountains, or north to the Tsugaru Peninsula and Cape Tappi, is wonderful, with cliffs, fishing villages and wind turbines. The main issue is the weather: the winters here are among the snowiest in the world, and riding season really runs from May to October.
Goshogawara, about thirteen kilometres away, has fuel, shops and restaurants, and it is home to the Tachineputa festival in August, with enormous illuminated floats. Shimokizukuri is closer for basics. Try a bowl of shijimi miso soup and a slice of apple pie, and listen for the Tsugaru shamisen, the fast, percussive folk music of the region, often played live in local restaurants.