24th-27th August 2020
Drive to Kobuchisawa (with a quick stop for breakfast at Futaba) and to the Yatsugatake Natural Country Park with the bike on the back of the car. Then one day of cycling, before completing the journey to Hakuba valley.
On Tuesday, a full day of driving, taking as much as possible local roads from Hakuba to Lavendar Bearch on the Japan Sea coast, Itoigawa (where I stopped for lunch).
Then took the Hokuriku Expressway, along the coast to Toyama city (I started taking local roads but was constantly following slow moving trucks so got onto the expressway in order to get back to the mountains as quickly as possible). From Toyama, headed back into the mountains and to Takayama. From Takayama, took the Cosmos Kaido back towards Matsumoto. Then back along the Azumino Art Line, via the “Nihon Alps Salad Road” (through delightful orchards) and then eventually back to Hakuba.
