After trekking across Hokkaido, I had two short days of unsuccessfully trying to get back into work mode before it was the sweet, sweet weekend again. A new ALT, Tim, decided to throw a party (we called Sausage Fest '09) in his Eastern town of Teshikaga - conveniently located between the Big Trio of Lake Kussharo, Lake Mashu, and Lake Akan - and had planned a hike up to the peak of Mashu-dake on Saturday afternoon. Not one to pass up a hike (even though I just finished a 4-day trek) I decided to head out to Teshikaga on Friday night with Mr. New Zealand (Simon Daly) and Nikki (from my previous roadtrip).

The hike was short and sweet compared to my Daisetsuzan hike, along a nice forest path rather than over boulders and stones. It was a 4-hour, 14km round trip around the crater rim of Lake Mashu, which is called Kamuito, or "The Lake of the Gods", in native Ainu. It's a caldera lake inside a volcanic cone with numerous signs forbidding eager tourists to enter the lake. It's also one of the deepest lakes in Japan and one of the clearest lakes in the world. It was windy but sunny and cloudless, giving us a perfect view of the mysterious, deep, blue lake. The hiking path starts on the Western edge and winds along the lake's cliff edge before ascending up to Mashu-dake that hugs the Eastern edge of the lake. From the rocky peak at 857m next to scree slopes and loose cliffs, we had a panoramic view of the lake, the surrounding countryside and lake Kussharo in the distance. Standing on the peak of a mountain gives me sense of accomplishment for the physical, and ofttimes mental, struggle to reach the peak. The reward? Being able to look down on the world and appreciate the awesome power of nature.

I love being high. I've become a mountain addict.

I wasn't really big into hiking when I lived back in Canada. In Calgary, a mere hour away from the Rockies, I only ever went to the mountains to snowboard. Since coming to Hokkaido - the outdoor mecca of Japan filled with easily accessible hills and mountain - I was immediately drawn to take up hiking as a hobby. Like my friend Eliza said, "[In a Scottish accent] I twig you like the outdoors a wee bit." I've hiked quite a few of Hokkaido's mountains over the past two summers but I had yet to tackle the biggest mountain range of them all - Daisetsuzan.

Last weekend presented us with a five-day weekend consisting of three consecutive national holidays (the Japanese really know how to celebrate), dubbed Silver Week. Taking advantage of all this free time, I signed up for a guided multi-day trek in Daisetsuzan. Our route started in a gorge on the Eastern side of the mountains and ending at an onsen town on the Western side, spanning 40km and topping numerous mountain peaks - namely Kurodake, Hakkundake, Chudake, and Kaundake. There were nine of us in my group: five ALTs, two ex-pats, one Japanese woman, and our Kiwi guide, Leon.

Loaded down with our 20kg packs, we started the trek at Sounkyo Onsen with a ropeway gondola and chairlift ride that quickly brought us up to the 8th stage. After our first taste of the spectacular early-Autumn forest colors spread out below us, we began our steep three-hour ascent to the peak of Kurodake. The night was spent at a hut thirty minutes from the peak, packed with others taking advantage of the long weekend. The sun set at early 6:00pm, taking the day's warmth with it and leaving us in the unforgiving shadows of the mountains. The night was cold and sleepless for those of us who opted to stay in tents outside rather than in the warmth of the hut. The night was crisp and clear, displaying an amazingly rare glimpse of the Milky Way splashed across the night sky. I tried, unsuccessfully, to capture the moment with my camera.. but no picture can compare to being atop a mountain and closer, however minuscule, to the stars.

We spent the next three days trekking across the mountainous high country, making our way from peak to peak, only stopping long enough to rest and take epic photos on rocky outcrops. We stayed in huts for the remaining two nights, arriving before nightfall to make dinner as the sun went down, relying on our headlamps to avoid bumping into each other in the dark. The weather decided to cooperate and greeted us with warm sunshine and cloudless skies for each days' hike. Every morning we would rise with the sun and eat a hearty breakfast of oatmeal and coffee before setting out. We trekked over 16km for two of the days, walking over barren, rocky landscapes and scraping through knee-high brush, guided constantly by the towering peak of Asahidake on our right. We dropped down into river valleys, crossed withered glaciers, climbed up dried river beds, forded streams, and scrambled over boulders, continually working towards the next distant peak.

The last day of the trek saw us leave our lake-side hut near Kaundake for the long trek out of the mountains. The gradually sloping ridgeline we followed gave panoramic views of the river valleys and Asahikawa in the distance. As we dropped below the tree-line we began to navigate through overgrown underbrush, low-hanging tree branches, mud ponds threatening to swallow our boots, and along conveniently placed boardwalks through marshy wetlands. Once we reached the forest, the hard rocks underfoot began to be replaced by soft foliage and fallen pine needles. The path broadened out and I was able to change my focus from my footing to the amazing colors of the trees overhead. We were walking through a majestic forest awash in the reds, yellows and golds of Autumn. A few kilometers from the end of the hike, we stopped for a break at a lookout platform across the canyon from the misty Hagoramo Waterfalls. After a short hour descending down steep switchbacks, we finally arrived at our destination - Tenninkyo Onsen. The dirt accumulated on our bodies from the previous four days of trekking across Hokkaido was quickly washed off in a long, relaxing soak in the onsen, bringing to an end an amazing four days experiencing the wonders of Japan's outdoors.

Check out my album for more pictures of Daisetsuzan, and check out the Japan Adventures website for info on upcoming hikes around Hokkaido.

Since coming to Hokkaido, I've had an insatiable desire to see every square inch of the island, which has led me to develop a small fascination with Hokkaido's 道の駅 (Michi-no-Eki). Translated as "Road station", or "Rest stop", they're kind of like train stations for automobiles. The usually funkily (is that a word?) designed buildings have information about the area and are complete with restrooms, a souvenir shop, a restaurant, and most importantly, Michi-no-Eki magnets.

There are 92 Michi-no-Eki's strategically placed all throughout Hokkaido, forcing one to visit the far-flung towns and regions of the island just to buy these ¥250 magnets. In some cases, there is no other reason to visit! Each of the magnets has a cartoon picture of the region's mascot or a stylistic depiction of the its main attractions. Aibetsu, for example, has a superman-esque mascot with a mushroom-shaped head and an 'A' on his chest. Ashoro is apparently famous for feet. My town is slightly more normal and has a tulip mascot in honor of our yearly Tulip Festival.

I've been able to collect 32 magnets so far on my various journeys throughout Hokkaido, and I still have a long way to go.. literally and metaphorically. This was inspired by a previous ALT - Nik - who boldly managed to collect all 92 magnets during his four years in Hokkaido. I'm determined to complete this task in two years. My goal is to collect them all as a testament to my time spent here in Japan, my devotion to see all of Hokkaido, and my slight OCD obsession with these kinds of things. My future fridges are destined to be decorated with tangible memories of the sights and sounds of Hokkaido. Wish me luck and safe travels.

My magnet collection

I ♥ camping.

I just completed another weekend of camping for the Eastern Welcome Party at nearby Lake Saroma. Over 30 JETs from Eastern Hokkaido showed up at Camp Kimuneppu to fought off mosquito bites for some good times of camping, hiking, drinking and socializing. It was the perfect way to welcome the newbies to Japan, see old friends again, and make new ones.

A few of us showed up early and camped on Friday night, having our own little six-man party (with fire Poi and a dance party) before the real party began. The next morning was pretty chill as we bummed around and ran errands, waiting for everyone to arrive. In the afternoon I led a hike/march up Mt. Horoiwa for a beautiful bird's eye view of the entire Lake Saroma and once we got back to camp, June and I put on a Crazy Olympics event to raise money for HEC (she's the Coordinator and I'm the Camp Coordinator this year). We got everyone involved in events such as Chubby Bunny, Egg & Spoon race, intense Sock Wrestling, the 1L Milk Challenge, and (drunken?) Chariot Races using the campgrounds' carts. As the sun set, Justin provided us with a delicious vegetarian dinner, and then we had a bake sale auction where we raised over $150 selling cookies, deserts and cheesecakes. As the night fell, the sky cleared up and I was able to get some amazing night shots of the stars.

After playing with fireworks, frying up meat, eating smores, and taking pictures of people in an undersized, hot-neon tracksuit, everyone was slowly dropping off one by one so I decided to call it a night. The next morning, everyone at camp groggily ate breakfast and packed their things before slowly making their way home. A few of us stuck around to the very end to help clean up, then went to Caroline's house to watch a movie and pass out.

It was another successful weekend of camping - my 2nd in a row - and I have yet another weekend of camping to look forward to at the Northern Welcome Party this weekend. It's looking to be the biggest one yet!