Reveries From An Island Hopping Bicycle Tour

After cancelling our Journey to the East Cycling Tour three times due to COVID, in 2023 we finally managed to run two separate groups of riders, one following the other three days later. I was fortunate to ride half the tour with the first group and the second half with the second group. I, and all my fellow riders, enjoyed the tour to such an extent that when I came back, I informed our team that Japan really deserved another tour with a different route. Our Operation Manager Miles, or as I call him, our firewall for new tours, was initially not convinced but eventually he, Kazu and Ozgur came up with the Island-Hopping Japan Cycling Tour, where I am currently writing this blog.

It is one thing to suggest another tour in Japan, it is quite another when the time to join the tour arrives. Doubts creep in. Will I enjoy Japan the second time as much as the first time? After all, things will no longer be new. Will the same things that gave me so much pleasure, will they be the same? Will watching an old lady shuffling alongside her bicycle grab my attention and make me smile? Will a mother with a child in front and one on the back of a bike make me want to grab my camera? Will visiting some of the famed 88 Shikoku temples be enchanting as before? Will the route that passes less known places attract participants and how will they enjoy them?

Today two and half weeks into the tour, sitting in Uwajima, a small city on the western coast of Shikoku Island that I had never heard of, I sat in a delightful Japanese garden, Tensha-en, which apparently refers to a place of heavenly forgiveness. The garden was created by the last feudal lord of the area in 19th century, who lived to be 100 years old and named it after one of his ancestors who wrote about the ideal way to live one’s retirement.

As I sat in the corner observing a small bird hopping around on the pristine grass and doing things which I don’t usually do at home like watching a leaf fall off a tree and land in the water, I smiled to myself, all my doubts about the tour gone. The tour, at least so far, has been beyond my expectations. The team has come up with a terrific route that meanders through forests, small towns and villages, the coast and, of course, the mountains. The traffic on the roads has been almost non-existent and when we do encounter vehicles, the drivers are respectful and patient. The views have been magnificent, the accommodations, both traditional and modern, have been great and the food, typically traditional Japanese.

Almost everywhere, after a day of cycling, we find a yukata (cotton summer kimono) in our rooms. We strip, slip on the yukata and quickly head for the Onsen – traditional hot baths that also includes a sauna as well as a cold pool, for those like me, who after soaking in very hot water or a sauna, love to cool off in a cold pool. If there is a better way to clean up and relax after cycling 60, 80, 90 km or even 100km with an altitude gain of 1500 meters or so, I don’t know about it…and as you are all aware, I have cycled all over the world.

I mention the distances here on purpose. If you are a long-time follower of TDA tours, you might think, wow, these are not typical. The distances are shorter, even the elevation gains are not as large as some other tours. Your observation would be correct. It seems that the team decided to experiment a bit and create a TDA ‘Lite’ tour with shorter distances and more rest days. I must admit that so far, the reaction of the participants has been very positive. I will keep you posted.

Apropos the ‘garden of heavenly forgiveness’, as I sat in the garden and watched another leaf fall, my mind wandered to an email from one of the participants of the recently finished Silk Route. What an achievement! Belated congratulations to all the participants. Unlike this tour, the Silk Route is one tough epic. In this case the participant and apparently several others were unhappy with the bike boxes we provided for their trip home – “In short these boxes are not up to the standard I would expect from TDA given the general proficiency I have experienced with other aspects of your tours.”

Thank you for the compliment! I write that because being in Japan I think of Wabi Sabi. Wkipedia describes it as, “the appreciation of beauty that is imperfect, impermanent, and incomplete.” What I am trying to say is that TDA is imperfect, impermanent and incomplete. We try hard, very hard, but we don’t always succeed. Yes, these boxes were imperfect, but not for lack of trying. I hope that all the bikes have made it home and are in good condition. Sending this thought from the garden of ‘heavenly forgiveness,’ I hope you can forgive us.

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