Awesome Cycle Outing: Revisiting My First Real Mountain Ride

DMC-SZ9 at an effective 26mm — 1/250 sec, f/9, ISO 100 —
map & image data — nearby photos

Happy at the Start of a Long Ride

along the Kamo River in Kyoto, Japan

8:51am - taken while moving at 20 kph (12 mph)

photo by Manseki Kanemitsu

If you would have told me half a year ago that I would be riding a
bicycle as far as 10km, I would have never believed you. Bicycles where for
places too close for a taxi or my scooter or a car.

It's amazing how “giving it a try” can change your opinion about something.

On Thursday I retraced the path I took on my first “real” ride last
February, covered in “Attempting a 100km Bikeride in the Mountains of Kyoto, Part 1:
Hanase Pass” and then “Part 2: the Last 70km”. The tough part of this ride is not
the distance, which turns out to be about 92km (57 miles), but the long
unrelenting steep slopes. It was my first real ride because I didn't know
any better... it's a pretty tough ride.

So, three months later I have some experience under my belt, I thought I'd try it again. I was happy to be joined by ironman rider
Manseki Kanemitsu, whom I met two months ago in
“A Bicycle Ride to the Kuuya-taki Waterfall”.

This tough 90+km ride on Thursday followed a ride the previous day that,
though shorter and with less hills, was nevertheless pretty intense. So doing this longer/tougher ride the next very next day felt all the more of an
accomplishment.

DMC-SZ9 at an effective 26mm — 1/250 sec, f/9, ISO 100 —
map & image data — nearby photos

A Beautiful Day in Kyoto

8:53am - taken while moving at 16 kph (10 mph)

photo by Manseki Kanemitsu

I brought along my Nikon D700, which is smaller than my regular Nikon D4, and a
Sigma 35mm f/1.4 lens, but had them packed in the rear bag
at first. I had to pull them out when we stopped to pick up some drinks...

Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/8000 sec, f/2.8, ISO 200 —
map & image data — nearby photos

Always Stylish

Manseki has a coffee before we hit the mountains

9:09am

The route we took (here), like the first time (here), took us up to the same Hanase Pass that I'd done the previous day, so this made my fourth ascent. I had the camera with me, but left it
in the rear pack, so concentrated on the tough climb.

The previous day my main goal had been “don't quit”, and the secondary
goal “don't stop”. I felt good today when I realized that “don't quit” was
now a given and that “don't stop” had become my primary goal.

I was pleased when I returned home to check the stats... I made the main climb
(from Kurama Hot Springs to the pass)
in 36:50, beating the previous day's record by almost two minutes, and
the first time by more than 10 minutes:

New Personal Best!

After descending the other side, I stopped at a vending machine in the next village to get something to drink,
the first of about seven half-liter bottles I ended up buying along the way. And it wasn't even hot (it was about 23°C/73°F).

Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/8000 sec, f/2.8, ISO 200 —
map & image data — nearby photos

Small Village

with the sign for the coffee shop Cowbell

10:41am

The coffee shop that I'd stopped at yesterday was closed, so we continued north.

The farther north we moved, the more the cherry blossoms were still out. We came across a tree with blossoms the same color as Manseki's shirt, so I
had to pull the camera out again...

Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/6400 sec, f/2.8, ISO 250 —
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Matching

11:00am








Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/8000 sec, f/2.5, ISO 200 —
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Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/8000 sec, f/2.8, ISO 250 —
map & image data — nearby photos








Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/5000 sec, f/3.5, ISO 250 —
map & image data — nearby photos

Pretty Countryside

11:23am - taken while moving at 25 kph (15 mph)

It was an absolutely-beautiful day in a beautiful countryside, though the photos don't get it across well.

Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/800 sec, f/6.3, ISO 250 —
map & image data — nearby photos

11:27am - taken while moving at 16 kph (10 mph)








Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/1600 sec, f/6.3, ISO 250 —
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Preparation for Planting

11:28am - taken while moving at 23 kph (14 mph)

The small valleys we rode through were filled with small family farming plots, many busy with activity in preparation for
the next rice crop.

Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/1000 sec, f/6.3, ISO 250 —
map & image data — nearby photos

House in the Countryside

11:29am - taken while moving at 24 kph (15 mph)








Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/1600 sec, f/6.3, ISO 250 —
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11:30am - taken while moving at 24 kph (15 mph)








Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/2500 sec, f/5.6, ISO 250 —
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11:32am - taken while moving at 18 kph (11 mph)








Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/400 sec, f/9, ISO 250 —
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Friendly Chat

Manseki chats with an old lady at the river in front of her house

11:39am - taken while moving at 20 kph (13 mph)








Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/1600 sec, f/7.1, ISO 250 —
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11:44am - taken while moving at 11 kph (7 mph)








Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/250 sec, f/7.1, ISO 280 —
map & image data — nearby photos

11:46am - taken while moving at 40 kph (25 mph)








DMC-SZ9 at an effective 26mm — 1/250 sec, f/3.1, ISO 250 —
map & image data — nearby photos

Heading Up to Nomi Pass

11:50am - taken while moving at 21 kph (13 mph)

photo by Manseki Kanemitsu








Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/800 sec, f/4.5, ISO 250 —
map & image data — nearby photos

11:51am - taken while moving at 21 kph (13 mph)








Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/2000 sec, f/3.5, ISO 250 —
map & image data — nearby photos

Gutting It Out

12:01pm - arriving at Nomi Pass, elevation 653m

能見峠 (標高653m)の到着

Less snow this time, unlike last time.

This climb is intensely steep for a short distance, but overall much shorter/easier than I remember from the February trip.
Still, I was tired.

DMC-SZ9 at an effective 26mm — 1/1250 sec, f/3.1, ISO 200 —
map & image data — nearby photos

Wasted

photo by Manseki Kanemitsu

For the last few years I've not really needed to eat much during the day, and will often have nothing to eat until evening,
even on days that I do heavy exercise at the gym. But today I was really tired, in the “drained of energy” sense. In preparation for the trip I'd had breakfast, which I seldom do these days, so that I'd have energy, but by this point I was just weary.

So, we paused a bit for the snacks we'd brought...

DMC-SZ9 at an effective 26mm — 1/200 sec, f/3.1, ISO 100 —
map & image data — nearby photos

My Lunch

a natto rice roll

photo by Manseki Kanemitsu

After an all-too-short 8-minute break, we headed down the other side of Nomi Pass. It's very steep and even without snow we couldn't go fast. It took eight minutes to travel the 3km, descending 220m through sharp twisty curves, and it the incessant downward pressure on my
wrists hurt quite a bit.

Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/3200 sec, f/3.5, ISO 250 —
map & image data — nearby photos

Emerging from the Mountain

12:18pm - taken while moving at 26 kph (16 mph)

(compare to this photo in February








Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/6400 sec, f/3.5, ISO 250 —
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More Pleasant Countryside

12:19pm - taken while moving at 26 kph (16 mph)








Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/3200 sec, f/5, ISO 250 —
map & image data — nearby photos

12:19pm - taken while moving at 36 kph (22 mph)








DMC-SZ9 at an effective 26mm — 1/1000 sec, f/3.1, ISO 160 —
map & image data — nearby photos

“Action Shot” of Me

how I take photos while riding on smooth terrain

12:21pm - taken while moving at 16 kph (10 mph)

photo by Manseki Kanemitsu








Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/2500 sec, f/5, ISO 250 —
map & image data — nearby photos

12:26pm - taken while moving at 19 kph (12 mph)








DMC-SZ9 at an effective 26mm — 1/1000 sec, f/3.1, ISO 160 —
map & image data — nearby photos

Oops

12:30pm - popped my chain, but fixed in a jiff

photo by Manseki Kanemitsu








Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/800 sec, f/5, ISO 250 —
map & image data — nearby photos

Did I Mention

that it was (at times) a really pleasant ride?

12:34pm - taken while moving at 38 kph (24 mph)









Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/6400 sec, f/3.5, ISO 250 —
map & image data — nearby photos

Pause for a Real Lunch

in the middle of nowhere, though technically still in the same ward of Kyoto City where the trip started!








Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/250 sec, f/3.5, ISO 640 —
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Bon Appétit

at ダイニングcafe いろは

After lunch came my biggest regret, to pack the camera away before
continuing. I thought we were close to Route 367, which I recall as nothing
more than a means to get home (I've taken it many times by car), so I
didn't think there'd be anything photogenic, but it turns out that the next
few kilometers before getting there were the most pretty of the trip.

DMC-SZ9 at an effective 26mm — 1/250 sec, f/9, ISO 200 —
map & image data — nearby photos

About to Arrive to Route 367

1:42pm - taken while moving at 14 kph (9 mph)

photo by Manseki Kanemitsu

Even Route 367 was filled with beautiful scenery that I'd just never
noticed from the car, so eventually I had to pull out the camera...

Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/1600 sec, f/5, ISO 250 —
map & image data — nearby photos

Stacked Wood

on the side of Route 367; 1:56pm








Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/500 sec, f/9, ISO 250 —
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Pretty Curves

though still uphill at this point

2:06pm - taken while moving at 26 kph (16 mph)

From where we entered Route 367 to Kyoto City proper has six tunnels,
all of which are dangerous on a bicycle when moving from north to south as
we were, because all of them are uphill. When moving away from the city,
the stretches with tunnels are downhill and you can apparently get enough
speed to move with traffic, so don't have to worry (so much) about being
creamed from behind.

When I did this route in February, I had no clue about any of this so I
blindly (figuratively and almost literally) went through the
tunnels, but Manseki's experience and wisdom knew a better way.

Route 367 has likely existed in some form or another for 1,000 years,
certainly from before tunnel technology came to Japan, so each modern
tunnel bypasses an original section of particularly twisty mountain road
that, to some extent, still exists.

Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/640 sec, f/9, ISO 250 —
map & image data — nearby photos

Bypassed Road

2:10pm - taken while moving at 17 kph (11 mph)

The bypassed roads for the two shortest tunnels were impassable due to
construction, but since the tunnels were short, we tried to barrel through
them quickly, making sure our lights were on. (I keep my rear light on
whenever I ride anyway, as a matter of policy.)

Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/640 sec, f/9, ISO 250 —
map & image data — nearby photos

About To (Hopefully) Defy Death

2:18pm - taken while moving at 19 kph (12 mph)

Manseki set a blistering (for me) pace in the tunnel because he has a particular aversion to them, having been sent to the hospital
after getting rear-ended in one some years back. That's at least better than the cyclist who was killed last week in a tunnel in the countryside
south of Tokyo.

Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/800 sec, f/9, ISO 250 —
map & image data — nearby photos

Turnoff

We were able to bypass the 730m-long Hanaore Tunnel by taking a closed
road that goes up 100m to Hanaore Pass. The road is not passable by car, but
it's still okay by bicycle. We had to lift our bikes over a chain at the beginning
and end.

DMC-SZ9 at an effective 28mm — 1/250 sec, f/3.3, ISO 200 —
map & image data — nearby photos

Plowing Up

2:30pm - the start of a short but fairly steep climb

photo by Manseki Kanemitsu








Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/250 sec, f/9, ISO 1250 —
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Road of Questionable Condition

2:32pm








Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/250 sec, f/6.3, ISO 800 —
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Quite Steep

2:35pm - taken while moving at 6 kph (4 mph)








Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/500 sec, f/6.3, ISO 250 —
map & image data — nearby photos

Photo Op at the Top

2:39pm - Hanaore Pass (花折峠)








Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/500 sec, f/5.6, ISO 250 —
map & image data — nearby photos

View of Rt 367

2:48pm - after having descended half way back down








Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/250 sec, f/5.6, ISO 500 —
map & image data — nearby photos

“Stop”

2:49pm - “Best to get off and walk along this section”

He hadn't noticed the rocks at first, having been hidden beneath the accumulated leaves and such, but the rocks
littering the road in this area were of a particularly sharp variety that can easily cause tire punctures, he said.

Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/640 sec, f/2.2, ISO 250 —
map & image data — nearby photos

Sharp Rock

He'd been with half a dozen friends the past weekend on a long (150km)
ride that also encountered this kind of rock, leading to four flats among
the group. My first thought was that I'd ridden on rocks many times without
having given it a thought, but when it comes to cycling I'll certainly
defer to Manseki's wisdom.

And I'm glad I did, because a minute later he realized that he'd already gotten a puncture before stopping me.

Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/4000 sec, f/2.8, ISO 250 —
map & image data — nearby photos

Bubbly Hole

It was a slow leak (he has tubular tires), so he
deemed it safe to ride for a while farther, so we continued down carefully.

We eventually came to see why the road was closed:

Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/3200 sec, f/2.8, ISO 250 —
map & image data — nearby photos

“Lane Narrows”

Once we made it back to Route 367, we were treated to super-twisty high-speed downhill cutbacks that cover
1.1km to transverse less than 200m of distance. Unlike the first time I took these in February, there was no traffic,
so in theory we could really hit them hard, but with his tire situation we took them slower...

Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/6400 sec, f/2.8, ISO 250 —
map & image data — nearby photos

Taking it Easy

2:57pm - taken while moving at 38 kph (23 mph)

After the road straightens out, I stopped to show Manseki the steps to
Kyoto's “I Fall” Tower, which he'd not noticed before. My excuse not to climb the 300+ steps this time was that he had cycling shoes with clips on the bottom. Plus, I was tired.

While we were there, I noticed this guy going the other way (up toward those steep curves)...

Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/250 sec, f/3.2, ISO 250 —
map & image data — nearby photos

Interesting

3:04pm - interesting that he bothered with a reflective ankle bracelet, but no helmet

Anyway, it was time for Manseki to attend to his slow leak by injecting some sealant in...

Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/1600 sec, f/3.2, ISO 250 —
map & image data — nearby photos

Taking the Tire Off








Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/320 sec, f/3.2, ISO 250 —
map & image data — nearby photos

Adding Sealant








Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/2500 sec, f/1.6, ISO 250 —
map & image data — nearby photos

Replacing the Valve








Nikon D700 + Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG HSM — 1/1250 sec, f/4, ISO 250 —
map & image data — nearby photos

Tire Back On

And we were on our way, and in another hour were home.

Back at home, I was tired, but in much better shape than the first time.

Overall it was about 93km, a bit longer than the first time due to going
around the tunnels. It took about as long overall because we stopped often
this time to rest and photograph and just enjoy ourselves (and repair the
occasional tire). All and all it was a great ride.