Leaving Shirasa minshuku was a good experience. Not because I wanted to go elsewhere but because the staff came right out to the road to say goodbye. We goofed around getting photos and one lady asked if it was ok to upload to the web. I agreed and gave her my hiker card with this blog’s address on it. It’s got a picture of me hiking in Washington so I explained that and got some gasps. The manager asked in Japanese
“Last year Mexico to Canada. This year all of Japan?”
“Yes. And next year I want to buy a car”
That’s not quite true but how often can you tell jokes in other languages? 

The morning’s walk was the best so far. Right on the crest and a cloudless day. At first I was pushing through thigh-high wet bamboo leaves but soon the trail cleared and I got moving faster. I reached several peaks but my favourite was Me-yama. From there I could see Ishizuchi-san with its temple perched on top. To the north the land slid away to the plains and beyond that the towns in the inland sea. I could even see islands out there. South of me were more mountains than you can shake a chopstick at right in the middle was this glorious crest.
 
Unfortunately I was low on food so I had to come down (sometimes very steeply) to the valley from the pass I reached at midday. It was a long descent but my iPod helped. Another Japanese lesson and other bunch of songs to sing to as I walked. I’m now cowboy camping in a short tunnel on the long abandoned old road opposite route 17. I’ve eaten my last pot noodle and have just three bags of horrible salty nut-like things and some boiled sweets. I should be about 10 km from a town so I’ll get breakfast there, if I don’t eat whatever is rustling the bushes over there.

Word of the day: shi-ta e = down

Distance today: 40km