To Kyushu for the first time in my life.
This is Keita Ariba. For me, coming from the Tohoku region, Kyushu has been a terra incognita I had never set foot in during my life until now. I had only ever heard of the Aso Caldera and Mount Unzen-Fugen in social studies class. For this trip, my goal was to visit these two places. I wondered what it would feel like when the landscapes I had only ever seen in photos appeared right before my eyes.
We live in a convenient era where a wealth of information is available as soon as you open your smartphone, but I believe there is no thrill that surpasses seeing nature with your own eyes. Furthermore, the process of getting there is an important experience in itself, so we packed what we needed for our bicycles—our everyday tools—and set out on a 4-day, 3-night journey.
Using the FDA Flight Bicycle Transport Service
We used the flight bicycle transport service with FDA (Fuji Dream Airlines) departing from and arriving at Nagoya Airport. This FDA bicycle transport system is truly convenient, and I wanted to share it with you all, so I wrote a detailed blog post about flying with a bicycle last time. People tend to shy away from flying with their bikes, but you would be surprised at how much more convenient it is than you can imagine, so I definitely hope you give it a try.
To the magnificent land of the Aso Caldera
We arrived at Kumamoto Airport from Nagoya Airport and began by assembling our bikes. I always feel that the moment I start pedaling my own bike from the place where I’ve landed after flying with it is a moment of pure freedom. As soon as I started riding, the mountain range woven by the Aso Caldera zone looming before me was so magnificent that my excitement for the ride ahead only grew.
We proceeded while checking against the main route I had researched beforehand. However, there were times when we trusted our instincts that a different path looked better, and of course, we took routes that diverged from the plan. I know from past experience that that is precisely when you encounter the best roads.
We kept riding along the skyline, and after the climb, the sheer overwhelming scenery unique to the caldera zone made me instinctively exclaim "Whoa!" more than a few times. In fact, I was actually shouting it out loud.
I had heard from several touring enthusiasts that the Aso region was truly a spectacular sight, but it far exceeded my imagination. I was stunned by the many landscapes that felt like they belonged to a place other than Japan.
Taking the ferry to Mount Unzen-Fugen
Leaving the dynamic scenery of Aso behind, we headed for the Kumamoto Port ferry terminal and boarded a ship. Our destination was the Shimabara Peninsula in Nagasaki Prefecture. It was a short 30-minute boat trip on a high-speed ferry. We left our bikes with the crew, and as we watched the sea, the Shimabara Peninsula appeared before us in no time.
From Shimabara Port, we rode for about 20 kilometers to the hot spring area where the Unzen Hell (Unzen Jigoku) is located. With the smell of sulfur from the hot springs gushing up from everywhere and the sound like rumbling from the earth, the landscape shrouded in white steam was truly a scene from hell.
The delicious local food, the wonderful scenery, the scent of the trees, the sound of the earth pulsating—a journey where you confirm your itinerary at your own pace is very free and interesting.
And the time spent with friends who accompany you is very precious. The journey, with all the helping each other along the way, becomes a memory better than anything else.
My travel companion for this trip was Happy, a former Circles staff member who now runs the bicycle shop "HAPPY SLAPPY" in his hometown of Hamamatsu. We are the same age and had a massive failure on a trip we took together two years ago. This trip was also a chance to redeem ourselves, and we achieved that by making it onto our flight on time. (In other words, we missed the flight last time...)
In the current social climate, I feel that more and more people are reevaluating the value of the "bicycle" as a tool. I believe the bicycle, which allows you to avoid crowds and fully enjoy the outdoors, is a tool that lets you enjoy a new way of traveling in the future. I hope you will use it as a tool to see the scenery one step beyond your daily life.
★Everyone's flight bicycle transport logs here
Visiting the scenery I want to see and the people I want to meet in the town of hills - To Biei via FDA flight bicycle transport
https://circles-jp.com/event/116678/
Captivated by the superb view – To Aso/Unzen via FDA flight bicycle transport
https://circles-jp.com/event/112248/
Shikoku Karst above the clouds – To Kochi via FDA flight bicycle transport
https://circles-jp.com/event/112274/
A story about how to get to a landlocked island super easily – To Izumo via FDA flight bicycle transport
https://circles-jp.com/event/113699/
PFM journey in search of pottery – To Izumo via FDA flight bicycle transport
https://pfm.nagoya/blog/izumo_miyuki
A story about touching the island and coming back – To Sado Island via FDA flight bicycle transport
https://circles-jp.com/event/115105/
Beautiful beaches and dark tourism - To the Goto Islands via FDA flight bicycle transport
https://circles-jp.com/event/116756/
BIKE to Yamamichi Festival and the Shimanami Kaido – To Kochi via FDA flight bicycle transport
https://circles-jp.com/event/134546/
★★★Recommendation for FDA flight bicycle transport
https://circles-jp.com/products-review/110981/