Today, I finally enter the Japan Alps National Park via Hirayu Pass. From Takayama City, its 35km to Hirayu Onsen village where I will be staying for the night. The first 20km were rather easy with gradual slopes and quiet roads.
The road to Hirayu Pass
Then, after I passed the 20km mark, the road to Hirayu Pass began, and it became dramatically steeper! Dropped my gears to 1-1 ratio and I started the slow climb to Hirayu Pass.
Start of Hirayu Pass
Almost at the top...
The top of Hirayu Pass was marked by Hirayu Tunnel which led to the valley where Hirayu Onsen village was located. Although it was a downhill ride down through the 2.4km tunnel, the ride was rather unpleasant as the path for bikes was very narrow (narrower than the width of my bike and luggage at times). At certain parts of the tunnel, I even had to get off to push as it was too narrow to ride across safely. Losing my balance meant falling into the path of an oncoming truck...
Finally coming out of the tunnel after about 15 minutes, the valley where Hirayu Onsen village was, came into sight. The view was spectacular and it was a very dramatic downhill coast all the way into the Hirayu Onsen village.
Coming out of Hirayu Tunnel (1,670m above sea level)
Exciting 50km/h downhill straight into Hirayu Onsen village (1,300m above sea level)
Entrance into the onsen village of Hirayu
Entering Hirayu Onsen village just before noon, it was still way too early to check into my accommodation for the night - Eitaro Ryokan, so I left my bike there and went to look for a place to have lunch. Lunch was at a nearby ramen stall and after that, I proceeded to soak my feet at the town`s free foot onsen. The water was really warm and it helped to relieve the soreness!
Hirayu village`s public foot onsen
Taking a short walk around the town, I visited the local nature appreciation center as well as a few of the other small tourist establishments near the bus terminal. Then, it was back to Eitaro Ryokan to check in and rest for the next day`s big ride..... Another highlight of my trip - The Norikura Skyline Road.
Summer flowers beginning to appear everywhere
Onsen bath in Eitaro Ryokan
2 comments:
Looks great. So how does one make reservations? and does one need any?
Hi there~
The "onsen" village just after Hirayu Pass is rather small and does not have many hotels/ryokans.
My suggestion is to make reservations in advance especially if you are planning to go on a Japanese public holiday or during the weekend.
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