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You can lose everything, but nobody will take away what you saw and what you experienced...
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Apr 18, 2013 04:00 PM Once again around the island - goodbye Ogasawara!
No more rain in the morning so I decided to go once again around the Chichjima expecting better light for the pictures from the well-known view points. I took a piblic bus for 200 y to the Kominato junction and then started to climb. I did it, but sorry - no sun today.
Back in Oshima I visited a shinto religion temple on the hill and then it was the time to pack up and go to the pier where Ogsawara Maru was waiting. Saying goodbye to all friends I boarded again the ship as the only westerner...
Departure was very spectacular: they were drumming and waving flags. The cavacade of 7-8 motorboats on the full speed accompanied the ship to the open sea. And kamikadze-divers were jumping from this boats to the see - still waving their hands.
Bye-bye beautiful islands of Ogawawara!
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Apr 17, 2013 04:00 PM Another stormy day on Chichi
Tropical storm in the morning. Locals are happy because they suffer from the lack of the sweet water... Me - not... I have still places to see on Chichijima...
When the rain stoped in the afternoon I decided to go to the trail anyway and... I returned almost completly wet. But do not worry - it is warm here!
Internet connection in Papaya is dead - I write from tho other place...
"Ogasawara Maru" is already in the harbor and I believe that tomorrow in the afternoon I will be forced to say goodbye to all my new friends from the Laughing Islands.
If the morning will be sunny I still want to go to the cliffs to take better pictures for you. Can you make any magic, please???
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Apr 16, 2013 04:00 PM 50 sharks making love on the public beach!
After yesterday's kilometers of hiking it was relaxing day. The sun over Hahajima was still shining so I took the walk to the little cave in the settlement /take a key from the tourist office/. It is rather a kind of WW2 shelter - not worth to see. Then I went to the sandy public beach and... hard to believe: I saw more then 50 whitetip reef sharks laying in the shallow water just 2 m from me! I have this recorded, sharks were 1 to 1,5 m long... Some of them were moving slowly and coming back to lay on the others...
I asked local guy what they do and he responsed: they are making love!
Wow!
In the noon I said goodbye to all my friends from Hahajima and boarded "Hahajima Maru" to Chichijima. Some of this people came especially to the jetty to wave their hands. Thanks to all!
I had a pleasure to meet captain Aki and to make a souvenir picture with him. Visibility was good on approach to Chichi so I had a chance to photograph another phenonena of the nature: the Heart Rock. Hope to show you this red heart in the grey cliff on return!
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Apr 15, 2013 04:00 PM Great view from the highest peak...
Today I had the last chance to climb Mt Chibusa - the highest peak in Ogasawara group of islands. Yesterday I experienced serious tropical storm. How will be the weather today? Thanks God the sun was shining since the morning and at 7.30 I was already on the trail. In fact there are two trails to the top of Chibusayama - how they call it here. Left one is shorter but steep. The right one - longer and offers more panoramic views. I took left one up and the right - down. I reached the summit after some 1,5 hours of non-stop climbing in the dense tropical forest. From the level of 463 m there was especially good view of the hardly accesible eastern coast. On the west side the settlement was visible too and the chain of little islands too. It is not true what they write that you can see whole island from Chibusayama - the far north is not visible. But it is still great panoramic point.
I lost one day due to the rain so despite the morning effort I decided to go in the afternoon to the far north of the island - to the abandoned village of Kita-mura. Once 600 people was living there... I rented from the tourist office car with local driver to drop me there. According to the published tarrif it cost 2200 y for 12 kms of up and downs. Kita is nice bay with stoney beach but nothing except little pier remained. I returned walking and visiting attractions like empty Higashi port, Ww2 cannon, Big Bay and Long Beach. Legs are very heavy after such a day :-)
But what a day!
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Apr 14, 2013 04:00 PM Tropical storm over Hahajima
I woke up in the middle of the night. Thunders? Yes, and heavy rain! In the morning I noticed also strong wind. It was blowing till 1 am. At 3 pm I put my windbreaker on me and went for the walk. Soon the rain stopped and I had a chance to visit lokal cemetary on the slope. Interesting place. Rolf, the Jap-naturalized German who decided to spend his life here in 19th century is buried there. There is small but interesting museum in the village with his bust in the front.
Then I managed to climb Mt Shonensaki - the hill overlooking the village. At the upper part you have to use chains to climb safely to the top. There is a great view of the village, Oki port and Mt Chibusa. If the unpredictable weather will be good, tomorrow I want to climb this mountain - the highest in Ogasawara.
People are nice to me - I have been to the school to see how they teach here /luxury!/ and charming Asako from the shop promised me a loaf of bread for tomorrow... let's hope...
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Apr 13, 2013 04:00 PM The view from Mt Kofuji
Sun!! Take your breakfast and go! Not so simple. At check-in to the hostel or guesthouse in Japan they ask you if you want meals. If you agree you will be charged for breakfast extra 700-900 y. But let you know first what you are signing for: this will be traditional Japanese breakfast - each day you will get the soup, then the piece of smoked, dry fish, some vegies and unlimited rice. Enjoy!
After 3 days I had enough. Now I buy products of my choice. Yesterday I bought the whole stock of the bread from local shop: 6 slices :-)
Ok. No buses or taxis on Hahajima so I started a walk to the south of the island. It is only 5.5 kms to the southern end but the road and trail goes all the time up or down so be prepared for a good exercise!! If you want to make side trips from the main trail to the beaches on the western coast it will cost you even more effort. Let you know: the beaches on this side are stoney ones. The first one with some sand is cozy /only 10 m wide/ Horaine.
I was well sweaty when after a long walk through the thick tropical forest I reached Minamizaki Beach on the southern tip of Haha-jima. Nice place, but the greatest view was from Mt Kofuji - the peak overlooking this beach. Wow! The blue of the ocean, the chain of small, rocky islets, dense, green forest, white croissant of the beach - this was so far my best panorama on Haha! Enjoyable!
Lets walk back...
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Apr 12, 2013 04:00 PM To Haha-jima!
It is not big distance from Chichi to Haha - only some 50 kms' but the only possible access is by sea. They have little charming boat "Hahajima Maru" with departures coordinated to the "Ogasawara Maru" sailings to/from Tokyo.
When I came at 8.15 am to the little terminal on Chichi there were only six passengers waiting. This gave me the idea how remote is the destination I am sailing to. I bought one-way ticket for 4570 y, took a picture of polite ldy-clerk, cleaned my shoes /they protect their environment on such a way/ and boarded the ship.
We blowed the horn and departed exactly at 7.30. That's the accuracy of Japan... On board they have even announcements in english! (Nothing like this on Tokyo-Chichi route). And downstairs there is even sleeping space on the floor if you want to sleep during 2 hours and a quarter of sailing... Wooooo... this was another cloudy day and I was unhappy to take dark and hazy pictures. Bad luck! But we met one jumping whale on our way /in the distance/.
Haha reminds me Fatu Hiva on the Marquesas: it has also steep, green mountains rising from the sea. In the well-sheltered, but tiny harbour a lady from Anna Beach Youth Hostel was waiting for me and the second passenger. We are the only guests in the hostel. It is rather primitive with its shared bath and lack of guest kitchen but if you are YHA member you pay only 3360 y per night. Welcome to Haha!
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Apr 11, 2013 04:00 PM Whale watching
Whale watching is one of the attractions of Ogasawara Islands. If there is enough tourists little motorboats dapart around 9 am to the ocean. Prices start from 4000 y per person. Main season is Jan to March when the humpbacks are coming to give birth to babies. But today I was stll lucky to see few of them. Great experience on th rough ocean. The tour was combinrd with a visit on the small Minamijima island where you can see nice stone arch and fish and coral watching through the glass bottom of the boat at Anijima Island. Interesting day but it is still cloudy and I am not happy regarding pictures. Tomorrow in the morning I depart on "Hahajima Maru" to Haha island - even more remote. Perhaps I will be awarded by the sunny weather!
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Apr 10, 2013 04:00 PM Exploring Chichi-jima
Only two islands of 30 in Ogasawara group are inhabited. Chichi-jima where I am at the moment is most populated with most of its 2000 people living in Omura - near the port. They have one single public bus line, but this go only along western coast. Bus departs every 2 hours and you pay 200 y per ride.
To go to the interior or to the eastern coast you have to drive the car or the motorbike /they are for rent/.
I decided to go there with a local guide Kunnio /Flora jungle trekking - ph. 04998 2 3123/. He speaks some english - he is nice local - worth to recommend!
We went first to the beaches on the western side, then to the big WW2 gun hidden in the jungle. After that we started to climb to the summits and view points on the eastern coast. Nice views, but since the weather was cloudy my pictures will be so-so. Finnally I was walking alone the ridge on the northern side.
Do you remember the lovely song of Connie Francis Send me a pillow that you dream on?
I will not send! The weight of my pillow is about 3 kilos and there is something like a grain inside. It is hard!
That is travellers life in remote Japan!!
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Apr 09, 2013 04:00 PM Ogasawara on the horizon!
This was very hard bed -only 2 cm thick!! Warm, blue ocean around since the morning. Flying fish and big boobies around the ship. Ogasawara group consists of 30islands. When I saw them they were green and foggy... Soon we passed few rocky islands to reach Futami port on Chichi-jima. Chichi is one of two inhabited islands of Ogasawara. The crowd of people was waiting on the pier. It is an event! I found somebody with papaya written on the flag - they were waiting for me. Papaya guesthouse is probably the last expensive on Chichi - they charge 4000 yen per bed in the clean 8bed dormitory. Not easy to comunicate - nobody speaks english in Papaya. But they have free wifi, so if you will bring your tablet with the translator you will survvive...
Omura - the capital of the island is small and tidy. Do not forget they use US sockets and 110 V! No bread in the bakery -all sold! You have to come early in the morning to get such a deli!
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