Yugawara has been soaking tired bodies for well over a thousand years. The hot springs appear in the Man'yōshū, Japan's oldest poetry anthology, and a local legend says that a tanuki, the mischievous raccoon dog of Japanese folklore, was found bathing in the spring to heal its wounds. The town sits where a short, steep valley opens onto Sagami Bay, at the border of Kanagawa and Shizuoka, between Odawara and Atami.
For riders the main attraction is the Tsubaki Line, the prefectural road that climbs from the town to the Hakone pass. It is a famous motorcycle road, with tight bends, steep gradients and views over the bay as you climb. Surfaces are mostly sound, but the road can be busy on weekends, and police are often present. In foggy or wet weather it can be treacherous, as the upper sections are often wrapped in cloud.
The town itself is a quiet onsen resort, with old inns, public baths and a river running through the valley. Many writers stayed here in the twentieth century, drawn by the hot springs and the mild climate. The plum grove at Makuyama park, above the town, blooms in February and early March, a sea of white and pink with the bay below.
As a base it is hard to beat. The coastal road has fuel and konbini, the inns and small restaurants serve fish landed in the bay, and mandarin orchards climb the terraces behind the houses. Several public baths take day visitors, and twenty minutes in hot mineral water undoes a day of hairpins better than any stretching routine.