Kyushu has presented us with so many highlights including an active volcano, a city thriving in a crater, a quaint onsen town and a geothermal park. Above all that though, highway 11 has taken first place as our number one ride in Japan so far. Here is a breakdown of our time on Kyushu.
Day 1 : Usuki towards Aso
We woke up early and took the ferry at 5:40 a.m. to Kyushu arriving at the port city of Usuki where we started our climb towards Aso. We covered about half the distance before staying at a cute little (and another legitimately free) campsite just after Harajiri falls. The riding was not super interesting and the wind was demoralizing so we took a long midday lunch break.
Day 2 : Aso City
Completing the push up, over and into Aso city after an early morning start. Aso city is a city built inside a crater that was once a lake. It is incredible to have a city surrounded 360 degrees by a huge crater wall! We entered the national park and saw Mount Aso, a collection of five volcanoes amongst which one is active and as long as the levels of sulphur permit you can go up and walk along the edge. We waited about 2 hours to get the green light to go up. It was a really incredible sight but to be honest it was the whole park and area that impressed us. That night we stayed at a local hostel where the setting was more like a home. It had a well stocked kitchen where we made dinner and enjoyed the evening with other travelers including two other cyclists.
Day 3: Highway 11 from Aso to Kurokawa Onsen Town
For both of us this was perhaps the best day of cycling yet. It was a challenge for sure requiring us to climb out of the crater and up into the plateau but the scenery was so stunning. Looking back on views of the town of Aso set in the crater with the national park with Mount Aso next to it was spectacular. We continued to climb until we reached a campsite right outside Kurokawa Onsen town. Voted best onsen town in Japan it is a picturesque little town with adorable ryokans. There are 24 participating ryokans that have onsens in them. We bought a "hopper pass" giving us entry into three of them. Neither of us are big on lounging around in hot pools but the settings were beautiful and it was cool to check out each ryokan and their respective onsens while walking around the town.
That evening we headed back to camp and spent our coldest night yet huddled in our tent.
Day 4: Highway 11 continues from Kurokawa Onsen Town towards Beppu via Yufuin
Tied with the day before as the "best day of cycling " yet, we continued climbing along highway 11 with more impressive views back at the crater while heading towards Beppu. We completed the Makinoto Pass which proved challenging and rewarding as our last mountain pass on the agenda for this trip. It was a proud moment to do yet another pass amongst many on our first big cycle trip. It is amazing how much stronger we feel since our first pass in the alps almost 5 weeks ago.
It is clear that we found fall with leaves of almost every colour throughout the ride today. We stayed the night at a campsite beside Lake Shidakako where we spent part of the evening chatting with a couple from Switzerland, also cycling Japan, around a campfire.
Day 5: Descend into Beppu
Technically a "non-biking" day, we only biked 20kms today but it was all downhill back to sea level. At we entered town we went to a geothermal park called "Hell's Beppu". We have been to a similar type park in New Zealand many years ago. This was much more developed but still very fascinating to see multi-coloured pools bubbling and steaming up from the earth.
We are currently waiting to check into our accommodation at a coffee shop while finalizing plans for the next few days.
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