Loop in the Fukui prefecture
Good sleep! Okay breakfast.
Another nice sunny day, warm this time so soon after starting most of us were in shorts and short sleeved shirts. We started with a train ride of 20 mins in a local train from Tsugura to Mihama and then met up with our bikes. We followed a bike path and back roads to Wasaba Bay, which looks like a lake but is one of many inlets on the coast. Going through the villages it was again oddly quiet, with few people about but the explanation came when we got to the Bay as it was well lined with fishers. They were catching a small fish with a very pointy nose.
It felt like a summer’s day, riding around a lakeside resort.
Contrary to the sign, it was almost completely flat!
Wasaba Bay is full of fish farms, mostly mackarel and that was the explanation for the village being empty!
Next we cycled around Lake Mikata, which had a cycle path around almost all of it that was reminiscent of the seawall around Stanley Park. Very few other cyclists, but more cars on the roads than we’re used to as it’s a Saturday so crossings had to be taken carefully. There were orchards of fruit trees every place possible to grow them, mostly persimmon but some citrus as well. Many were being tended/pruned by their owners.
From a bridge at one of the few hills we had to climb.
A very picturesque ride.
An interesting lunch stop with seafood pizza and delicious fresh apple juice. There are quite a few persimmons left on the tree; we understand they need to be left until the sugars have been maximized, often after the leaves have fallen.
The manadarin oranges we have been eating have been heavenly… there was a tree next to this one that was loaded, but many were still green.
After lunch we set off back to the train station, and transported back to Tsuruga. Getting back early meant time for laundry (hand washing in the sink) and a visit to a well reputed coffee shop a km away. It was indeed good coffee and the dessert menu was fantastic – all kinds of homemade ice cream (tea, kyakura (??) amongst others, and many traditional desserts. The staff spoke no English at all, so my translator came in very handy. Sorry I didn’t take a picture, but the traditional dessert I consumed was lovely – served on a banana leaf, with sweetened adzuki beans in the centre, three flat wagashi balls (glutinous rice flour + small amount of sugar + water, mix to a paste then knead, boil, cool and shape), a little whipped cream and an unidentified topping fruit (?dried plum?). Yumm. A quick walk around the main street on return to the hotel area took me to a grocery store where I picked up some sushi and sussed out the local yuzu sake for future purchases. I managed to navigate the self-checkout lineup – the store was clearly in rush hour mode and the queues at the cashiers were long – progress is being made! Again, the translator was helpful in the grocery store to navigate around meat ingredients.
Briefing at 6 pm for the next two days and a complicated pack – a daypack with all things needed for a travel day and then cycle gear for the toughest cycle day the day after, in the mountains. Happily it looks dry for the rest of the week, including Saturday in Kyoto. Will take it!
Distance today: 37 km, elev gain 129 m
Highlight of the day; the warm gentle ride around Lake Mikata