May 30

Komagane - Fujimi


What a beautiful day outside the window first thing this morning (well......... except for the McDonalds sign)..


We are headed to Fujimi today, which means view of Fuji.  I'm so glad we have good weather for it!  We started out with a bit of downhill first thing this morning.  We're in a beautiful valley.   




The entire day we seemed to be going either uphill or downhill; not much riding on the flats.  We're in the Japan Alps, afterall.  Very pretty the whole day.  A mix of rural agriculture, wild land, and small towns.




There are so many people employed directing traffic around the smallest little bits of construction that at a distance I just figured this guy was one of those.  But - not so!  Not sure what the story was, but we went through an area where we saw several of these and a couple on a bench by the sidewalk; all fake....


I'm sure these are probably weeds, but pretty in any case.


Some beautiful properties..........



Gorgeous flowers in yards again today, although I didn't stop for pictures.  And - a roadside shrine.



After climbing from about km 12 to km 40, we were rewarded with a fabulous view of the valley below from a lovely little cafe deck.





And after 8 km of winding downhill we were at the valley floor.  A quick right turn, and there was lunch!



And then the climb began again.  For most of the rest of the day.


The temperature started out reasonable enough this morning.  Just shy of 20C when we started about 8:30.  It hovered in the high 20s for much of this morning's climb.  I was saved by the fact that the humidity was not high.  After lunch it got a bit warmer.  As I climbed through this area of greenhouses, the temperature gauge on my Garmin read 38.8C, and I was wondering about exactly how hot it might be inside the greenhouse.


The next few pictures were really just excuses to stop for a minute to cool off and drink some liquid.  Pretty, but I would be ok to be done with the uphill for the day.  A factor in our favour - mostly a tailwind today. 




We saw several of these signs today.  I'm assuming it indicates the elevation.


Oh - and look!  Mount Fuji.  Just before the final turn towards the hotel.



As soon as I arrived, Sally was collecting people to take a rental self-driving golf card up to a viewpoint.  I'm in...........  Also a sculpture park up there.








The place we're staying tonight is lovely.  We have a spacious traditional ryokan room - tatami mat flooring, futons on the floor, yukatas to wear to the onsen and to dinner.  Short table and chairs with no legs.  Our window opens out onto the beautiful grounds with a view of the mountains (although we just miss Mount Fuji).  Very comfortable; way nicer than the last few nights in small rooms in western-style hotels.  Dinner was also very traditional Japanese.  We're often still not sure what we're eating, but I'm enjoying most of it.  Tonight was probably the first night of the whole tour to date that I heard people say they left still a little hungry.  

Another big climbing day tomorrow.  Then some days off to get in to Tokyo and explore the city.  Might be interesting; there is a typhoon forecast for the day we were going to do a bike tour around the city.  Might have to change plans a bit.  

Stats for the Day:

Garmin:  69.84 km.  5158 feet up.  3330 feet down.

RWGPS:  70.8 km.  1667 m up.  1109 m down.



Fujimi

Population:  112,000

AI Overview:  Fujimi is a town in Nagano Prefecture, renowned for its pristine nature in the Yatsugatake range, high-altitude scenic views, and outdoor activities.  Located 2-3 hours from Tokyo, it is popular for hiking, skiing, and mountain biking at resorts like Fujimi Panorama, as well as its Jomon-period history.  








Comments

  1. Lynn CJune 10, 2026 at 7:46 AM

    You are VERY lucky to have such clear weather to see Mt Fuji! We never did see it and we stayed in the region for 3 days!! We even hiked up a close-by mountain to see if we could get a better view -- nope! There was always a cloud obscuring the very top...

    We loved staying in ryokans! They were always SO comfortable and the food delicious!!

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