On this cold, desolate morning, we awoke early and ate a quick breakfast of instant corn soup and French bread and then walked accross the street from our minshuku to the monument marking Japan’s Northernmost tip.



We posed for a few quick pictures to mark the official start to our Nihon Judan (cross-Japan) tour. Unfortunately we were almost numb with cold and couldn’t wait to get back into the car, so it was a rather uneventful start.



From there, the only way to go was South, and that’s what we did. We stopped now and again to get a better look at things, like this flock of ezoshika (Hokkaido deer).



We also stopped for more snow pictures as well as a little topless tomfoolery (just the guys, sorry). And then we were back in Nayoro, this time for lunch rather than sledding. We ate at at Isohachi, an izakaya (pub) that serves good hearty lunches.



What you’re looking at is a plate of zangi, which is Hokkaido’s version of kara-age (fried chicken nuggets). Zangi differs from kara-age not only by name, but by size and flavour- it is twice as big as regular kara-age, and is flavoured with garlic and sesame seeds as well as the usual ginger, sake and soy sauce.



Along with two giant zangi each, we had miso soup and ikura (salmon roe) stuffed onigiri (rice balls) and a big plate of oden (stewed tofu and seafood) to share. A great, filling lunch, made by Isohachi’s mama-san (owner), the ever-smiling Hori-san:



And then kakigori for dessert. Kakigori is a summertime treat made of shaved ice drenched in sweet toppings, but since Nayoro claims to have the best snow in Japan, we thought we’d see how it tasted. Turns out it’s pretty good, especially topped with anko (sweet bean jam) and condensed milk.

This was at Nayoro’s Piyashiri Ski Resort, and as good as the kakigori was I was getting awfully nervous. I was still having trouble understanding what was going on, see, and since we were at a ski resort I figured we’d have to ski. I am not a skier at all, something that never fails to shock the Japanese, and have only tried it once. That was up at Camp Tawingo back in grade 7, which was a very long time ago. Being as big a wimp back then as I am now, I didn’t enjoy the falling down part of skiing. And I quickly figured out that the safest and fastest way down the hill was not by skiing standing up, but by sitting on my heels. This worked very well and got me down the hill a few times without injury, but it also earned me the nickname “bumski”. Which make me like skiing even less. I seriously doubt I’ve improved since then (except for a little extra padding on the bum), so I was dreading having to ski.




What a relief it wasto bypass the ski hill and head for the snow tube hill! I also haven’t snow tubed since Camp Tawingo, but since it requires no actual skill and has a favourable fun-to-injury ratio I actually liked it. And this time around I liked it too- no, I loved it! Snow tubing is so much fun. It was absolutely freezing and having to walk back up the hill each time was a pain in the ass (how come I never minded that part when I was a kid?), but it was such great fun I wanted to play all day.




Day 1: Soya Misaki to Pippu, 299.5km

Izakaya Isohachi
01654-2-2863
6 Nishisanjominami, Nayoro-shi, Hokkaido

Nayoro Piyashiri Ski Resort
01654-2-1180
Nisshin, Nayoro-shi, Hokkaido