Kyushu 2015 Autumn Self Drive Trip - Day 7

Day 7 : Izumi to Kagoshima

Today we went to the Izumi Crane Observation Centre ( about 25 min away from the station ) to see the Cranes that had flew here to avoid the  winter. Every year , between late October to March , there will be more then 10,000 cranes here. English site and a blog from someone who had better pictures. When we got there , it was drizzling a bit and the weather was very cold but still we did saw a lot of cranes there though picture quality is not that good. Here are 3 links of the videos i took when i was there , Video 1 , Video 2 , Video 3

Cranes in the field along the way

In the open field might have some , here and there

It started to rain when we were leaving so we decided to check out the "Samurai House" near the Izumi Station area. There are a total of 3 that is open for visiting , all are free. Think they are free guides but the only do Japanese only so we just visited one and look look see see.
Next , we are wanted to go straight to Kagoshima and visit Senganen Garden (仙巌園) - it's a garden facing the sea and Sakurajima ( one of the "live" volcano in Kyushu ) . Apparently it's once belong to a powerful clan , which the garden was design in a way that the Volcano is the "mountain" and the sea is the "pond" , like how in chinese said "有山有海“. But because it's drizzling and we did not really managed to catch any nice Autumn colours yet , we decided to detour to 曽木の滝公園 , which is one of the Koyo place cos according to the web report , there is still Koyo ( red leaves ) here. There is actually a abandoned factory nearby that is only visible when the water level is low (think in the summer months , link here if you are interested).
This is like a big park with an underground passage tunnel ( think you need to pay to go through , think it will take you from the entrance of the park to near the water basin area , we did not go in ) , there are some shops and a few restaurants (we had our lunch here).

The only red tree left

A glass panel at the end

Another tiny falls on top at the other end

There is a small platform with a part with glass panel , which allows you to see the part where the water was flowing out but as it was raining on n off , it looks very dirty with all the sand. The water here is flowing very fast that is why there like a Dam to drive power from these water nearby. There is a few attractions nearby , like the submerged power plant , a dam and a bridge but due to time constrain and also the weather , we just stayed a while had our lunch and moved on.
We decided to drive to Kannondaki Park (観音滝公園) to try our luck again cos this is another Koyo spot. There is a waterfall here , think some chalets ( like a campsite kind of thing ) and there is a river which think you could go down for activities in summer months. We were lucky then the rain is not that heavy when we are there , but it got bigger when we were about to leave. The pictures will looks even better if the leaves were in better conditions but still this is one of my favourite picture.
After here we actually detour again to another spot , 藺牟田池県立自然公園 , this is actually a big lake which is also a place for sakura viewing other then Koyo but when we are there , it was very cold and most of the trees are already bare ( cannot trust the online reports of koyo too much cos we detour here cos one of the site put that the leaves is just nice for viewing ). We just spot take a look and then move on to Kagoshima city cos the weather is kinda of dark and hope to get out of the mountains road.
It was about 7 pm and was still drizzling when we reached Kagoshima and checked into the hotel. Was very lucky that there is a last carpark lot for us at the hotel ( apparently for Toyoko Inn hotel , some carparks had to be reserved when you do the booking ( else have to call them  if cannot do online , not very sure cos we never know about this) but some is First Come First Served. Do note also most ( if not all ) the carparks for the hotel chain is all on top , meaning they is those auto parking type. You drive into a life and then everything else is automatically controlled by the parking staff. So meaning , best to have everything you want taken with you when you alight as if i am not wrong thought they only charges a flat rate from check in to check out but if you wanna take out your car and park again additional charges will incur.

For dinner we had the famous Kagoshima Kurobuta Pork at Kurokatutei (黑かつ亭), which is also known as "6 white" aka “六白” ( this means that other then the 4 legs , tail and nose  is white, the rest of the pig is black in colour )  also the pigs are fed with sweet potatoes. Quoted online " The Kagoshima Kurobuta pig has black hair throughout its body and six white markings, namely its four limbs, nose and tail. Compared with other types of pork, the fat of the Kagoshima Kurobuta pork has a higher melting point, and is thus non-sticky and has a light, crisp flavour. Having fine muscle fibre and rich in amino acids, the Kagoshima Kurobuta pork, touted as “soft, tender and tasty”, is highly regarded throughout Japan and is also the pride of Kagoshima prefecture. "  The cutlet is really good ! not only the pork does not have the usually "porky" smell/taste , they way they fried it was really good , crispy and non oily. they also sell the black pork bun but it's chill :( so we did not buy to try , Actually wanted to buy and maybe use the hotel microwave the next morning but cos we will leave early so a lot of guest will be having breakfast there ( the microwave is usually at the dinning area too ) , so paiseh lor.

After dinner , we went to the shopping street and did some Omiyagei shopping and also went to try the famous 白熊冰 at the Shirokuma Cafe , It's basically shaved ice with condense milk syrup and topped with fruits . Think someone mentioned that if you were to eat inside , you have to order a portion each , no sharing ( their minimum order i think ) but you can also eat at any of the restaurant in that building think they had a few floor and you can ordered it ( not sure about this but online someone mentioned they had set which is a bit cheaper ? ) Anyway you can choose to take away like us , look at the design of the take away plate in the last picture. It's was about 8 degree and drizzling when I had that ice :P Before going back hotel we went to Don Quijote for some shopping as it was just opposite, the next day is staying near the coast and there is no shops nearby so need to top up some drinks and snacks.

Kyushu 2015 Autumn Self Drive Trip - Day 6

Day 5 : Kumamoto to Izumi  ( Kagoshima ) Via Gokanosyo

Today is gonna be a very long drive from Kumamoto to Izumi in Kagoshima , direct route will takes about 2hr + but cos we will be driving to Gokanosyo ( 五家莊 ）based on google map will take almost 5 hrs , about 180 km , but actual drive is actually longer due to it all mountain roads. Why we decided to visit here is due to an article we found online , claiming this place is the "last secret place in Kumamoto " the article link is here but it's in chinese. In short , this place is actually a hiding place for one of the Japanese clan called the Heike , there are supposed to be a very powerful clan long ago but lost in war and end up hiding to prevent wipeout by their enemies. the clan actually "hid" in a few areas all over Japan, this part is just one of those. What make it so secretive about this area is that it is high in the mountain and very secluded and the story was that the clan actually hid there for generations but no one found out about them , but there was once some robbers happen to rob there then got caught but was let go by the villagers and thus the news of this clan was exposed. This is what i read somewhere online so how true is it , i am not sure. But this place is actually a autumn colour spot nowadays and can get very crowded then. Link here for a brief history of this place in english and the official website in japanese. 

Before we left Kumamoto , we actually detour to try this famous ramen 黑亭拉麵 ，it is popular of the garlic added into the soup and adding of raw egg yolk. The place is always very crowded from what i read online and it fills up very fast when we were there, taste wise i would said not bad if you like the garlic taste and also a special way of eating is to eat one of the yolk raw then the other put in the spoon then dip the noodle and eat. Egg yolks had to be very fresh in order for you to eat it raw though.

This is the start of the road to the mountain, as you can see it quite narrow and though this is for 2 way traffic , so have to be very careful at bends. This is also during the peak season , they will restrict on certain days it only one way drive. We missed the peak period by about a week cos at first we thought it will still be ok cos autumn colour will not fade so fast like Sakura seasons but we were wrong. Cos apparently due to a big typhoon in Aug , apparently a lot of trees were affected , thus this year the autumn colour is not as fantastic cos most of the branch/leaves were damaged.





It was a slow and long drive up before we reach the first viewing point , but it gets very misty suddenly and we cannot see much view ( we should have waited a while )
Cos look at the 2 pictures above ( this is a few min drive away from the first observation deck ) , when we reach it was very misty , but less then a minute ( cos we went to to toilet and came out ) the whole place is super clear , then we realised that , it's not the mist but actually clouds like the one we experienced at Mt. Unzen.

the higher of the twin bridge

first bridge to the first fall

the fall behind the shop houses

first water fall

There are many suspension bridges , waterfalls and small villages , the bridges are the only way of getting form one side of the mountain to the other side , cos when driving we can see that we are making big "U" shaped to get to the other side. As you can see from the pictures , just one week away from the peak of their autumn colour season , almost all the leaves are gone and the trees are quite bare. Weather on top is very cold so need to take note  ( think about 1-2 deg or more lesser then Kumamoto city area ). Also need to note is there the waterfalls all need a bit of walking + climbing up and down on paths so be prepare.
The pictures above are taken from the Heike village , think entrance fee is about 300 yen / pax ( or 600 yen ? )  Finally we saw some red leaves here , there is also a small restaurant , which is in one of those house in the 2nd picture. the last picture is their "stage" where performance will take place during the autumn seasons or special events. See the amount of autumn leaves in the pond ? think till be very nice if to visit during the peak but then think will be very crowded and also think traffic will be even slower.
There is a museum in the Village and ( think there is a deer feeding area from the map i saw but did not check in out ) . Inside the museum , there are a lot of displays regarding the Heike Clan , but all in japanese , there is a guide also but also in japanese ( not sure if they have other languages ) as we are rushing for time as daylight is short in winter , so we just had a quick look around then we moved on.

catchment of the first fall

some shop houses

twin suspension bridges

view from nearby the village entrance

There are some shops near one of the waterfall after the village but think it's only opened during the red koyo season ( or it might had close cos when we reach there is ard 4pm+ which is getting dark already ), so it looks like a dead town when we were there. There is a path to a very high waterfall but I did not go all the way down but only walk about 20 min and take a look ( it's the 3rd picture next to the suspension bridge on top )
Before I forgot , thanks to a fellow TA's member that give me very detail direction for this route , below is the guide for those who wanted to visit Gokanosyo in a day self drive trip to experience the peacefulness and remote of the area and how the Heike clan managed to "hide" from the world.
" You can get through the area down to Izumi in a day, but just a couple of hours won't do it. To save some really narrow roads you could just see Nihonsugi, Uminokidokoro Falls, Momigi Heike no Sato, and turn right to check out Sendantodoro Falls, exiting at Miyahara on Route 3 where you could drive south to the next expressway entrance to go south until the expressway runs out and back onto Route 3 to Izumi in Kagoshima. For a 1 day tour through Gokanosho from Kumamoto, I would use this route: 

1) 445 and 443 from the south part of Kumamoto City (Mifune) to the cross island route 218. Alternatively, you could take Route 3 South to Matsubase (Uki) to pick up 218. 

2) East on 218 to Misato Town. 

3) Turn south on 445 to begin the hill climb into Gokanosho. Lots and lots of turns 

4) At the top, there is an overlook you walk to and you can get some views from behind the small restaurant on the right at the corner. Don't turn right here though. The road to the right will take you back to the coast. 

5) Continue south on 445 toward Itsuki and on your right and left will be small parking lots for the long and high concrete hanging bridge which you can see off to the right. A 15-20 minute hike leads you to the waterfall on the other side of the valley that you walk above. There used to be a pipe sticking out of the mountainside on the left parking lot with water coming out. By the right parking lot is a small shop and some rest rooms. The restaurant must only be open during koyo as it's never been open when I go by in the summer. 

6) Further south, there will be a small group of buildings and an intersection sign to turn left for Heike no Sato and Momigi. This road with some ups and downs and a lot of turns leads to the old exhibit and small museum of the Heike who hid out in this valley after the battle of Dan-no-ura. The museum is up to the left. If it's crowded, you have to use the lower parking lots and hike up a lot of steps. If it's not crowded, you can drive up the small road to the left where there is a small parking lot across from the ticket building. 

7) Continue further past Heike no Sato through the small hamlet of Momigi. There are some minshuku here and an elementary school with about 7 kids. A short ways beyond that is a super tight turn to the right that leads down to a parking lot to the 2 hanging bridges over the Kawabe River. There is a thatched rest building, some rest rooms, and a small restaurant below the parking lot. These bridges were the only ways around until the road was built. 

8) If you continue farther, there is a museum of Gokanosho that mainly has photos, and beyond that a campground. The road circles back on the other side of the valley or you can turn around to get back to 445. 

9) Further south, over some new road sections and through some tunnels (look for the old road along the mountainsides to get an idea of how remote this area used to be), you get to another small group of buildings in a place called Miyahara. Here there's a sign over the road pointing west (right) to Sendantodoro Falls. Turn right. If you see the sign below, you've missed the turn to the right. Link

10) You will pass a thatched roof house and signs for some ryokan and minshuku before you catch sight of the falls from the road. Stop at a wide area if you want but you continue on until you get to a large parking area on the right and a small group of shops on the left. On the right side of the shops is the top of the trail that leads down to the falls. There's some good wading spots and if you explore more, a couple of good swimming holes down farther where the rivers join. There's a shelter at the bottom of the falls that's starting to fall apart. 

11) Continue up the mountain over the pass and you will go back down a narrow winding road for the coast. About half way down is a small turnout on the right which gives good views over the mountain hamlet of Iwaoku. Link

12) Follow Route 52 all the say down past the reservoir on your left which is behind the Hikawa dam. When you see it, there will be a stop sign at a "T" intersection. Turn left on 443 to get to Route 3 to head south to Miyahara Town. If you turn right here, there's a restaurant and craft shop at the top of the hill on your right (Furiai Center Izumi). They have varying amounts of pottery, tea, and wood products from the surrounding area. Sometimes there's a special exhibit. A bit further on if you turn to the right you will come to 3333 steps. It takes a while to get to the top but it's kind of fun. There will be roadside markers of steps as you get closer. There are pay parking lots and some small restaurants around the bottom of the steps. Link This Izumi is not the Kagoshima Izumi. 

13) In Miyahara by Route 3, the left turn to go south is sometimes pretty busy. I just follow the road straight when the main road goes to the right to a stop light and wait a while. The next highway entrance is in Yatsushiro. 

 The distances are further than you think and the driving speed is slow, so you can't do this quickly. Be sure to use the convex corner mirrors on the winding roads so you can see around the corners. It takes some practice but you soon realize how convenient they are. "

After a long drive , we finally reach Izumi, Kagoshima around 8 pm ( we left Kumamoto around 12 pm ) so except for some stop to take photos and walk to the waterfalls , we spend the rest of time driving in the mountain ( from the last POI in the mountain , it tools use about 3 hours to reach Izumi ).

Izumi is quite a small town ( from what we see at night ) cos we stayed near the train station but around there , it doesn't seems to have big malls etc. Along the way , further away from the train station ( about +/- 30 min drive ) does have quite a lot of big shops and eatery. We did not bother to explore cos our main reason for staying here is to visit the Crane Observation Centre tomorrow morning.  *Note : most bigger stores like supermarket , Daiso , H&M , etc , will have outlets a bit further from the main town , guess maybe rental is cheaper and they can have it bigger also , so they all clustered together. It's the same in many other parts of Japan.