Date

2022-10-24, Monday

Distance

93.51 km (808.68 km in total)

After I got up at night, I saw a cat that seemed to be living in the wild rummaging through our trash and drinking our milk. It's strange to me, as I had been told that cats don't have the ability to digest a certain substance in the milk, but this cat seems fine after drinking it. Quite impressive a demonstration of survival instinct.

The toilet at this campground uses an eco-friendly composting system: beneath the toilet is a sand pit, and there is a button that stirs everything into the tank below to eventually be turned into fertilizer. Very unique, but I still missed the comfort of a good warm bidet.

We started the day by switching our rear panniers because the Topeak trunk bag I gave my friend (to replace her broken backpack) doesn't fit her rack very well. This results in the bag jumping around and sometimes falling down from the rack when we bike through a bumpy surface. Being the stronger of us, she is carrying more weight now.

Today we headed to Abashiri along National Route 238 that goes around two lakes. The first is Saroma Lake, the largest lagoon in Hokkaido that is separated from the ocean by a narrow landform. Its water, being of mixed-sand, has therefore two distinct colours: the further one turquoise-ish, the closer one brownish. This feature is particularly visible from higher elevation. At the roadside station located next to this lake, I heard a song singing 'Sa-ro-ma Saroma~ Sa-ro-ma Saroma~' in a musical style that recalled the battle songs in Kamen Riders in Japanese tokusatsu (特撮, literally 'special effects') TV drama.

Only until now did I realise that the songs we have heard so far were all specially composed theme songs for the towns or roadside stations we passed through. They are surprisingly diverse: from cutesy earworms to fiery fight songs or even ones that sound like superhero anime openings. The catchiness is real: once you have heard one, it loops in your head relentlessly. (Terrifying, but in the best way.)

The second lake was Notoro Lake, which is smaller than Saroma Lake but still takes hours to go around it. From a small town called Tokoro easterward, there is a dedicated bike trail parallel to National Route 238 bridging between the town and the city of Abashiri. It was a nice scenic ride with tons of foliage and cute roadside decorations until we hit an inundated area. We had to bike in the dark on the main road again.

The weather was nicer today even though the sky remained overcast. We stayed bundled in our full rain gear just in case. We passed through many hills but natural beauty such as that which can be observed in a blooming canola field made us feel aesthetically and spiritually fulfilled. By the time we neared Abashiri, the clouds parted behind us and actual sunbeams broke through — like a blessing from the weather gods.

After checking in what would be our home for two nights, my friend brought me to experience a meal at an izakaya that offered fresh seafood, although I don't drink alcohol. It feels nice to have a warm space to wash our clothes, dry our tent and enjoy a bath in an onsen. However, obviously, we can't afford staying in a hotel every night.

Tomorrow will be our first rest day. We will upgrade our winter gears in preparation of the colder weather to come.

The full take — 26 more photographs from this day