Japan
Mountain-Biking Hokkaido
| Outfitter |
Price |
Accommodations |
Active Journeys
800-597-5594, www.active
journeys.com |
$2,150 |
tourist hotels |
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The Route: A 13-day, 450-mile tour on the paved and dirt roads of Japan’s wildest and least populated island. You’ll log 50 miles a day along the rocky beaches south of Sapporo and then head north to alpine Asahikawa, bunking at roadside campgrounds equipped with soothing traditional baths.
When to go: July
Difficulty: Moderate
Travel advisory: This is one of the word’s most hospitable cycling destinations: Motorists routinely slow or pull over to avoid catching cyclists in their slipstreams, and village farmers and fishermen are likely to invite you into their homes for tea.
High/low points:
- Gazing at Lake Akan’s intensely green waters from a forested ridgetop and then riding hell-for-leather down to camp on its pine lined shore.
- Struggling to find the energy for long, steep climbs after a few days on the local low-protein rice-and-greens diet.
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