Flying south for the weekend

There's a little mathematical equation that is used among HSM-51 pilots to describe their time here in Japan. It goes like this:

There are 52 weekends in a year. The pilot is likely to be on the boat for about 60% of those weekends. Of the leftover free time, half of it will be dedicated to SDO or squadron events. That leaves the pilot with about 10 weekends during the year to actually see Japan.

So when I (Kylee) managed to squeeze my way out of working for Ichiban (spouses store) on a Saturday, Stephen and I jumped at the chance to travel down the Izu Peninsula. Our destination: Shimoda.

Shimoda is only a 3 hour train ride from Yamato, so we packed our bags and headed out the door at 7am on that gloriously free Saturday morning. We managed to take a wrong train at some point but got right back on track eventually. That's quite a common occurrence when there's about a thousand different train lines going all over the Kanto plain. Once in Shimoda, we walked around the "downtown" area to get acquainted with our location before catching the bus to a popular surfing area called Shirahama beach where we climbed on the rocks, relaxed with a good book, and just enjoyed the peaceful atmosphere. I use the work "peaceful" because we were basically the only people on the beach. And of course it was cloudy and cold (our luck). Coming from California, I was surprised to see an empty beach on the first weekend of June but then Stephen quickly pointed out that when you're on an island beaches are dime a dozen. Not such a prime location as it is in California. Also, the Japanese don't like to be tan so they tend to avoid the sun, i.e. beaches. Which made for a very romantic and private getaway for us.

We stayed in a traditional Japanese hotel complete with tatami floors, yukatas to wear (like robes), and a tea set. Our room had a balcony which looked over our "private" beach. When getting ready for bed we had to pull out the mattress, pillows, and sheets from the closet and did our best to make a bed the way we thought it should go. After some guessing and playing around we eventually made a comfortable japanese style bed on the floor. A very cultural experience indeed!

During the evening, we strolled down Perry Road, named for Commodore Perry who catalyzed trade between Japan and the U.S. in 1854 (also a Naval Academy alum). Represent! Perry Road is full of little restaurants and shops that look like they would get good business during their open season but that doesn't begin until July so we sort of had the whole town to ourselves. It was actually a bit reminiscent of our time on Catalina Island.

The following day we walked through the park overlooking the Pacific ocean which was full of blooming hydrangeas. There were flowers bigger than my head! It was the perfect time to visit.

This small weekend away showed me how I need to be more meticulous about keeping my weekends free for when Stephen is home and how exactly to plan those weekends so we don't end up 3 years from now regretting not having traveled.

More photos available at:
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10100583130533651.1073741827.12004504&type=1&l=b6a3001351

Ten-en Hiking Course

You would think with a country as populated as Japan, there wouldn't be much room for nature.  When we left San Diego, we thought we were leaving behind beautiful hiking trails, fresh air, and the great outdoors.

We were wrong.

The Trailhead

Japan does have a huge population, but they're all centered around the cities.  In those cities, everything is set up to be very space efficient.  Therefore, there's a surprising amount of space in certain areas, and hidden on ridgelines and in valleys.  The Ten-En Hiking Course is a perfect example.

Located in Kamakura-shi, the entrance to the hiking trail is all but impossible to find.  We were lucky enough to find directions to it on a blog post (much like ours!).  To help out other people looking for this beautiful trail, I'll post the link to the directions:

On the trail

http://en.japantourist.jp/view/kamakura-s-tenen-hiking-trail-do-this-hike-as-if-you-were-a-samurai

The entrance is hidden next to a very normal looking house - although there are signs that direct you to the trailhead, it's very easy to miss.  Even if you enter at the other end of the trail, it's through a large shrine and up a series of stone steps.

View of the hills above Kamakura

Once you're on the trail, however, you feel as if you were immediately miles away from the city.  The foliage is thick and green, and you can usually only see up the next bend in the trail.  In many places, the ground cover overgrew the trail, and you'd have to push your way through leafy ferns and grass.  There's rocks, trees, plants, scenic vistas on the ridges, and everything you could wish for on a 2 hour hike.

 It's not particularly strenuous, though there is some altitude gain, and the path is not paved (thank goodness, it felt good to be hiking on actual dirt).  If you pushed the pace, you could probably finish the route in a little over an hour.  Or, you can take your time, explore side trails (we walked 10-15 min down some forks to see where they led, and didn't see an end), and extend the hike to a couple hours.

It was a wonderful find, and we look forward to discovering other hidden gems in Japan!  Find more pictures located here:

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10100583129071581.1073741826.12004504&type=1&l=09187b1b5d

Keep hiking!

The Wheel Turns

It's how you can rediscover old passions and enjoyment in activities that you haven't done in a while. For me, it was heading back to the climbing gym and getting back on the rock. I forgot how much fun and challenging it can be to get to the top of a mere 15 feet.

It helps to have people around you who are passionate about be same things though - I can thank Matt Petersen for reinvigorating my desire to climb. We'd talked about climbing in the past, and finally went out to discover some Japanese climbing gyms. The first is called Stone Magic, and it's located near Machida. Matt and I took the odakyu line from Yamato up to Machida, and then transferred to the jr line to fuchinobe.  It's about a 15 min walk from fuchinobe.

The gym itself is pretty solid - quite large by Japanese standards, and has over a hundred top rope routes, including a natural rock pillar in the middle of the gym. The back wall is dedicated I bouldering problems. Most of the routes and problems are out of my skill level right now, but it's motivating to get better.

The second gym is in Yokohama, and it's a dedicated bouldering gym. Take the sotetsu line express to Yokohama, and it's a 10 min walk from Yokohama station. B-pump Yokohama is smaller than Stone Magic, but has a lot more boulder problems. There are two floors, with the top floor offering the most advanced problems.

The rating system is different than the US, using a straight numbering system. 10 is the easiest, and 1 is the hardest, with each route color coded to a number. Both gyms have the chart posted on the wall, which makes it easier to remember. Of course, routes are inherently subjective, and some routes are easier or harder for me, just due to my height. Reaching problems are hard, but I'll struggle on an easier route that requires more technique.

My goal is to go climb at least once a week, either gym or outdoor. It helps that they are open later (they don't close until 2300), and it's usually cheaper after 1830 anyway. Depending on schedule and how motivated I am (and how willing Kylee is to let me climb), I could easily head there after dinner for a hour or two.

All in all, I'm excited to be climbing again, and I hope to head outdoors sometime when I come back from deployment!