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Congestion-free highways
It's a sunny Saturday. It's a beautiful sunny Saturday.
I left a little after 8 a.m., which is early for me. From the Tomei-Kawasaki IC, I took the Chuo Expressway via the Ken-O Expressway. We took our first break of the day at Hatsukari PA. It was a weekend of fine weather, and there were many touring riders.
The forecast was for higher temperatures, so I wore a short-sleeved T-shirt and a mesh jacket with a windproof liner, but it was hot. I've already removed the windproof liner.
Where to get off the highway: ..... That's the problem.
As usual, I don't have much of a destination in mind for this day. The only destination I have decided on is the hotel .... in Gifu tonight, so that I can go see Monet's Pond the next morning. This is the only destination I have in mind. But, well, if that's the caseIt is your duty as a motorcyclist to go through the Venus Line.The problem is the route. The problem is the route.
We parked at Yatsugatake PA for our second break of the day to study.
I look at the map on my phone: ..... But in the end, it was the usual course. After getting off at the Suwa Minami IC, we took the Yatsugatake Echo Line in the direction of Lake Shirakaba and arrived at the shore of Lake Shirakaba in about 30 minutes.
To the Venus Line for the first time this season
We ran up the Venus Line and took a break by Lake Shirakaba. After taking out a PET bottle from the seat bag and rehydrating, we set off for Kirigamine.This is where the real Venus Line begins.
It is a road that is always pleasant to come back to. The road runs along a mountain ridge and offers a series of spectacular views in every direction.
What a blessing to have such a road within a day trip touring area with easy access from Tokyo.
Lunch at Kirigamine
We will have lunch in Kirigamine, where the parking lot is full of touring riders.
I ordered a set of something random: ..... Well, it's drive-in food, so it's more about the atmosphere than the taste.
Speaking of the Venus Line, I prefer the back Venus route from Utsukushi-ga-hara Kogen to the route up to here.But today, it was in a slightly different direction. I'll save it for next time when I go to Karuizawa.
I'm going to Gifu for a bit.
After finishing our meal, we continued down the Venus Line toward Suwa Lake. From Nakasendo, we headed toward Nakatsugawa. We will drive toward Gifu.
We took a snack break at Narai-juku on the way. I'll take a hot spring bath while it's still light. And so on.
This is the reason why I woke up in the morning with a runny nose.
I thought about it as I looked at the train, which was too rusty to be on display, and set my phone's navigation system to Gero Onsen and started to drive, but decided to keep quiet for today and took the Nakatsugawa IC to the Chuo Expressway again. I'm a little short of driving time, but I decide to enter the hotel while it's still light.
walnut miso nabe
After taking a quick nap, I went to the hotel's large bath. It seemed to be an artificial hot spring, but there were no other guests, so I had the whole place to myself. I soaked in the bath and washed away the sweat of the day, and my health was restored.
That being the case, we decided to have dinner at ...... I googled around and found not many options, but I found a nice looking pub within walking distance from the inn.
Yamanami Liquor Store
"I'm by myself, can I eat?" I asked and entered the restaurant. I was tempted by the ayu (sweetfish) rice bowl, which was on the seasonal menu, but I ordered the walnut miso nabe (hot pot) as a set meal to nourish myself a bit. I also added a salad.
What is this? It's pretty good.
It is filled with Chinese cabbage, burdock root, leeks, konnyaku, beef, oysters, rice cakes, and quite a bit of crushed walnuts. At the end of the meal, I poured the soup over rice and ate it all.
Today's mileage is about 450 km, after an early night.Monet Pond tomorrowit is!
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