So we stayed a day in Abashiri. What's so interesting there, you'd wonder? Well indeed, there is not much at all... But the weather was so unpleasant, and it was about time for a rest day anyway, that we decided to have a lazy day and stay high and dry in our hotel. Of course we walked around a little, but there was literally almost nothing to do in this place. It's famous in winter however, as the sea is then covered with drift ice, giving spectacular landscapes. In summer there is not that much to do in the town itself, especially on such a cold, gray, wet day (yes there would be nice bike rides in the area, but not on such a day!). Anyway, we enjoyed the day, it was nice to just relax and be lazy, and have some nice meals too!
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Leaving our hotel in Abashiri
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| Still a gray, misty and cool morning, but at least it's not raining anymore |
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| Outside of town, riding along the coast |
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| The Sea of Okhotsk |
Today we continued our trip, and the weather was okay. It was still gray and a bit cold, but it was dry and in a way, a nice day for cycling. The route was following the coast the entire day, and it was mostly flat, plus we had a light tailwind. Easy cycling, in a wonderful landscape. We rode through fields of flowers, saw lots of birds among which a pair of cranes, and enjoyed the misty mountains in the distance. It was 85km until the small town of Utoro, the place to explore Shiretoko national park. Shiretoko is wild nature, it's as remote, pure and unspoilt as it gets. Home to many brown bears, but also a lot of other wildlife, and rugged mountains with fantastic nature. We won't be able to do much as that would require multiple days and different preparation, but for sure tomorrow we have some nature exploration on the agenda.
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| Wildflowers along the coast, e.g. these lillys are everywhere |
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| The misty mountains near Shiretoko national park in the distance |
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| Fantastic cycling along the coast |
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| Fifty shades of... oh well, never mind. |
This is probably the farthest point away from home, around 6200km as the crow flies. From here, we'll be making our way back towards Sapporo, basically back in the direction of KL. Another 2 weeks to go...
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| Staring at the sea |
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| View from our room in Utoro! |