Mount Haruna and Ikaho Onsen · short arc

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. Fuel stop near Machida

   Machida is a big commuter city on the south-western edge of Tokyo, poking into Kanagawa prefecture like a thumb, so that locals joke about whether it really belongs to Tokyo at all. It is busy, built-up and practical, with department stores, train stations and endless convenience stores, and it makes a straightforward starting point for rides into the mountains to the west.

   Read the complete Fuel stop near Machida write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Mount Haruna and Ikaho Onsen is where the day begins. Next is High point near Sagamihara.

2. 2. High point near Sagamihara

   Sagamihara is a big city on the western edge of the Tokyo sprawl, but it stretches surprisingly far into the mountains. Its western part takes in the Tanzawa foothills, Lake Sagami and Lake Tsukui, two reservoirs on the Sagami river surrounded by forested hills, and the change from suburb to mountain happens quickly.

   Read the complete High point near Sagamihara write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   You top out here; the road stops climbing. Next is Mount Haruna and Ikaho Onsen checkpoint 8.

3. 3. Near Kokubunji

   Western Tokyo does not look like much from the train, a continuous sprawl of houses and stations, but walk a little and the old landscape shows through. Springs emerge at its foot, feeding small streams like the Nogawa, and some of the paths along them feel almost rural, with bamboo groves, old trees and the sound of running water.

   Read the complete Near Kokubunji write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   The route ends here after 265 km. Next is Scenic stretch in Ageoshimo.

4. 4. Scenic stretch in Ageoshimo

   Ageoshimo is a district of Ageo, a commuter city in Saitama prefecture, north of Tokyo, on the flat Omiya plateau between the Arakawa and Ayase rivers. In the Edo period, Ageo was a post town on the Nakasendō, one of the five great highways that radiated from Edo, linking the capital with Kyoto through the mountains of central Japan. Travellers, merchants and feudal lords on their way to and from the capital stayed in its inns.

   Read the complete Scenic stretch in Ageoshimo write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Scenic stretch in Ageoshimo, about halfway. Next is Photo stop near Satte.

5. 5. Photo stop near Satte

   Every spring, along an embankment in Satte, about a thousand cherry trees bloom at the same time as fields of yellow rapeseed beneath them, and the combination of pink and yellow draws huge crowds. Gongendō Park, on the levee of an old river, is the place, and if you happen to ride through in late March or early April, it is a sight to remember. The rest of the year, Satte is a quiet town in the flat farmland of north-eastern Saitama.

   Read the complete Photo stop near Satte write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Photo stop near Satte sits at 199 km, about halfway. Next is Tokyo / Kanto rides return.

6. 6. Near Ōami, on the way back

   It is farming country: rice paddies, vegetable fields, greenhouses and patches of woodland, with low hills to the south and a scattering of small towns. Chiba is famous for its peanuts, and in autumn the fields are dotted with drying stacks, called bocchi, a sight unique to this part of Japan.

   Read the complete Near Ōami, on the way back write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Tokyo / Kanto rides return comes up about 225 km into the recorded legs. Next is Food stop near Kisarazu.

7. 7. Food stop near Kisarazu

   Kisarazu is the Chiba end of the Tokyo Bay Aqua-Line, and for riders that alone makes it special. The Aqua-Line crosses the bay from Kawasaki in two halves: a long tunnel under the water, then a low bridge that skims across the surface for several kilometres into Kisarazu. In the middle sits Umihotaru, an artificial island with a parking area, restaurants and a deck with views over the bay, where on a clear day you can see Mount Fuji to the west and the towers of Tokyo and Yokohama to the north. It is tolled, and crosswinds on the bridge section can be fierce.

   Read the complete Food stop near Kisarazu write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Food stop near Kisarazu closes the day.