Day 10: Still hiking

Ahem..

Armed with plenty of water and tasty Japanese snacks we continued on the 6 hour hike up the mountain. As I continued to climb, I eventually tucked my camera away into my hiking backback for fear of a fall ending my photo taking. The ground was pretty slick in certain areas so I decided to play it safe.



Directions. Not much help.





Another waterfall.




I liked the root systems that were probably revealed through the slow erosion of the soil over hundreds of years.




Each large tree here had a name. I forgot what this one was, but it was I think almost one thousand years old. Like Jomon's little baby brother.

Day 10: More hike

Lots more to see on this hike


Every once in a while the trail would open up to reveal a dried up riverbed, or the surrounding forest.




I liked the way the trees lined the trail.




Everything was covered in a healthy coating of moss.

Day 10: the hike

Not much to say other than here's more hiking pics:



These were freaky to cross over




The view looking down





Everything was very green. Almost too green, as it makes for uninteresting photos

Day 10: It's game time

An early morning bus ride into the clouds and a quick bathroom break before we headed out on one of the best hikes I've ever been on.



We didn't have a guide so I wasn't fully stretched and warm like these hikers were.




This was the first bridge we crossed. There were a lot of bridge crossings on the hike. Most of them just bare train tracks elevated over a shear drop. We counted how many on the way back, but I forget now.




Although fun at first. Walking over train tracks eventually really sucks on the legs. If ever confronted with such a trail, walk on the side.


Much much more to come.

Day 9: Dinner

What better way to end the day.



Perfect thirst quencher




And if that doesn't do it, this will. It seems like the locals all keep a personal bottle of soju there




Yakitori assortment




Yum




One more please




Thanks

Day 9: end of the island

As we began to approach the end of the line for our tour around the island, the scenery became less interesting and as hunger set in, we had other things on our minds.



Our car




The coast




A random church lighthouse at the end of a very narrow winding road.




More trees and paths that we didn't have time to explore.




I liked how it was the only contrasting color and composition of the environment

Day 9: more ocean, more falls

Decided to go see the ocean today. Going through my Yakushima pics makes me miss the ocean. It's funny how close I am to the ocean, and yet I probably see it once a year.



Yakushima waves and sunshine.



Another waterfall



I liked the patina on these guardrails.

Day 9: Cruise and hike

Our goal was to drive around the island for the day as there's a road that runs around it. Narrow at times, and always interesting. Monkeys, deer, waterfalls, and beautiful scenery. We didn't have a lot of time to stop by all the places we wanted to though.



This car was parked at the top of the hill after climbing from the beach.




We stopped by a place where we thought we could hike to see this.




There was a more strenuous climb past the waterfall but we didn't make it because we were on a tight schedule, and somebody was pooped :)



There was a ton of wildlife on the road, which ironically kept people from driving too fast naturally. Christina figured out a way to get them to look at you too. But that was after this photo.

Day 9: Breakfast

Eating in Yakushima was a different experience than Saigon. I couldn't walk around aimlessly in the mornings and pick and choose what I wanted that morning, made fresh. I had to purchase things at the market the night before to ensure we had stuff to eat the next day. What we traded for food convenience we got in beautiful air and landscape.



The outside of the hostel.



We encounter some early risers on our way to pick up the car, or food. I don't remember




Breakfast.




The view.

Day 9: Patient model

Thank you random stranger for being up so early and ignoring me as I took your picture.



I forget what she was doing. I think she had some shellfish?




I think someday I'll compile all the photos I've taken that remind me of Millet. I should go tighter on this unless I print it big later.



I like stencils

Day 9: More sunrise

It's amazing how different each sunrise looks despite them all being taken within a span of half an hour.



This would look better bigger because you lose the awesome texture on the siding.




Early.




Mid.




Late. It started getting to hot/bright to photograph without me going blind so I turned around and got some of the harbour. More later.

Day 9: Good morning

Los Angeles has some of the world's best weather. Plenty of sunshine all year. Why is it that I miss sunsets and sunrises so much? Yakushima reminded me.



One reason why our hostel was one of the best places we stayed. This was the view from outside our room.



I like this one because it looks like there's a light on inside of the house. Really it's the sunlight ricocheting around inside.




We were right next to a warehouse like area. Some cool silhouettes.

Day 8: evening

Funny thing about that day was that it got brighter towards sunset as the clouds that had rained on the island previous to arrival moved on. I took it as a good sign.



The "walk" man has a fancy hat and a suit. Love it.



Sunset. Such a nice quality of light.




What better way to end the day. I ended up hungry for food while Christina lay passed out from exhaustion. I went searching and found this izakaya place. I was the only person there for most of my meal and nobody spoke english, so I ordered in Japanese from memory of my favourite dishes: Butta Kakuni, teba saki, agedashi tofu, yaki nasu, grilled saba, etc. They then just told me what they didn't have.

Day 8: more amazing clouds

If I remember correctly, the sun decided to make an appearance, and with it, the clouds changed from the gloomy overcast variety to the dramatic beauty that I could not quite capture. There were rainbows that appeared everywhere and because the clouds were so low lying, every second that passed created a new composition that was breathtaking. It was a great late afternoon.

Here's what I could muster.


\
Gloom



Here comes the sun. (do do do doo)




I couldn't quite capture how awesome the sky was.




A different perspective