For someone from Kansai, the Tohoku region is an unknown territory, and I can't quite imagine what kind of culture exists there. Conversely, for people from Tohoku, perhaps the same is true for areas west of Kansai.
The name of Iwate Prefecture, the former name of Morioka—Kozukata—and the motifs of ogre legends, along with the imagery from Kunio Yanagita's Tono Monogatari (The Legends of Tono), all evoke for me images of the "otherworld" from Japanese folktales whenever I think of areas like Nanbu, Tsugaru, and Dewa. At the same time, I have a yearning for it as a sort of Jomon-esque utopia with deep forests and rich fields. Ideally, I would have liked to cross the Shirakawa Barrier and step along the Oku no Hosomichi step by step, but this time I took a quick flight. It’s a simple way to travel, but my sense of awe and reverence for this Oshu land, which keeps my back straight, remains unchanged.
As I re-read what I wrote for the BIKE to Nebuta trip around Aomori two years ago, I headed toward Iwate for my first visit. Contrary to my heavy-hearted, solemn approach, this event, the "Yamatomichi Festival," is a celebration where hikers lightly cross borders to build networks of people and culture.
The undeniably convenient FDA flight bike box
My first impression was that Iwate Prefecture is far away, but I discovered that FDA operates flights from Nagoya Airport to Hanamaki, near the venue, and decided to go immediately.
FDA is a small airline that mainly operates routes connecting regional airports. The price isn't as cheap as an LCC, but it's cheaper than the major carriers, which is just right. This time, a round trip between Nagoya and Hanamaki cost 33,000 yen, which was overwhelmingly cheaper and faster than going by car or train.
And most importantly, they lend you a bike box for free. After riding about 13km from Circles to arrive at Nagoya Airport, all I had to do was pick up the reserved box and throw my bike and luggage inside. The ease of this flight bike-transport service is so impressive that it makes me want to travel by plane.
I arrived in Hanamaki after sunset and headed to a Japanese-style inn in an old hot spring town called Dai Onsen. The name "Dai" in Dai Onsen is derived from the Ainu word "tai," meaning forest. This means it has been a hot spring area from before Japanese rule reached this land.
I left the inn early the next morning and rode along the farm roads through the vast rice fields of the Kitakami Basin, where rice harvesting was underway, heading toward Oga-ru in Shiwa Town. This is a place I had long been interested in as a new public-private partnership project that doesn't rely on subsidies. Knotty, who is also a Yamatomichi ambassador, has a shop here as well.
At Oga-ru, I met up with Sakai-san, who rides a Sklar monster cross bike. We rode along the gravel of the Kitakami Riverbed, aiming for Morioka.
I arrived at Morioka, the center of the Nanbu Domain, 30 minutes behind schedule. At BICYCLE SHOP GRINS, the hub of Iwate's cycling culture, I met up with Ryotaro-san from RawLow Mountain Works, oguu from Rapha Osaka, and Zakiyama-san, who rides a shocking pink SALSA. We immediately headed toward the Koiwai Farm area, Japan's largest farm.
Because we were running behind schedule, we only stopped at Koiwai Farm to eat and then immediately left. I'll have to tour the Important Cultural Property farm buildings another time.
I climbed toward the foot of Mt. Iwate, which loomed before us, on my bike packed with camping gear. A route that would be nothing for a light road bike turns into a hard course that feels twice as demanding just by carrying camping luggage.
Upon arriving at the venue, the two festival masters, Natsume-san and Toyoshima-san, welcomed us in high spirits. "The opening ceremony is starting soon! Everyone, please raise your hand when we ask where you're from!" they said.
People had gathered from all over the country, from as far as Taiwan and Hong Kong, to Kyushu and Shikoku. And half were local hikers from Tohoku.
Yamatomichi Festival
Most festivals were originally rituals to pray for a bountiful harvest or for the repose of the souls of the dead. Festivals based on such foundational cultures tend to be more low-key compared to superficial cultural festivals that are based on the premise of being "seen." When visiting festivals nationwide with the hashtag #Taisai-fu (Grand Festival Style), I choose flashy festivals that even outsiders can enjoy, but if I am participating in one myself, any festival becomes special. The Yamatomichi Festival is, of course, a festival where everyone participates, so after that, it's just about your state of mind. Anyway, it was the best.
The mysterious Bon dance Nanyadoyara, passed down in the Nanbu Domain, was cool as the preservation society members sang and danced, and the band Imagine Bon Odori-bu spun the circle of dancers with a groove as heavy as Naniwa-bushi.
The long-awaited TENT SAUNA PARTY was as great as ever.
Staying another night to climb Mt. Iwate the next day
I woke up at dawn to the sound of rain tapping on my bivy. The plan for the second day was to climb Mt. Iwate or hike in search of wild hot springs, but unlike the forecast, it wouldn't stop raining, so I decided to stay another night.
Originally, the Yamatomichi Festival was a call to walk across mountains and gather. Saito-kun, who participated in the special RIDEALIVE edition "TOE to TOP" that we held with Yamatomichi before, had been hiking for a week before and after, and so had Dai-chan. oguuu had ridden over 600km, traveling from Hirosaki around both the Tsugaru and Shimokita peninsulas. Because of the influence of such border-crossers, I really wanted to walk the Mt. Iwate right in front of me.
A local guy told me that staying in the hut at the trailhead was a good idea, so I left that hut at 3 AM. I started walking up the pitch-black trail and had passed the tree line by the time it got bright. I worshipped the sunrise at the Fudodaira emergency hut and went around the crater rim. It was windy but clear, and the view was breathtaking. I was able to descend by around 11 o'clock.
I switched back to the bike I had deposited at the trailhead and rode down to Morioka. After getting a recommendation for a jajamen noodle shop from GRINS, I stopped by and then headed to Hanamaki Airport. Looking back at the purple sunset sky, I could see the powerful silhouette of Mt. Iwate protruding greatly into the Kitakami Basin. It was a strange feeling to think I was at the top of that peak this morning.
Even in times when the freedom to travel or relocate was not allowed, there were groups of craftsmen and performers like yamabushi (mountain ascetics) and kijishi (woodworkers) who created their own networks and lived while moving freely. Just as they propagated knowledge and information they acquired to closed sedentary societies, Yamatomichi is carrying out an activity called HIKE LIFE COMMUNITY, which transmits and spreads new tools and communities for hiking culture throughout the country. And the culmination of that cultural mix in a festival is exactly the trajectory through which culture has developed.
In addition to localism as a land, there is also cultural localism—cycling-only culture, hiking-only culture. As I wrote extensively during the Yatsugatake trip, there are ideas that return to each culture by crossing the boundaries of each way of enjoying it. The Ride & Hike where I interacted with a new land, a new festival, and new people was, in any case, the best.
Thank you to all the Yamatomichi staff who called for BIKE to Yamatomichi Festival as a Yamatomichi Festival project.
Yamatomichi Festival
https://www.yamatomichi.com/news/16776/
BIKE to Yamatomichi Festival
https://www.yamatomichi.com/news/18504/
TEXT & PHOTO by Monjya