Day 6: Yoshinohara - Kasukabe

Distance covered: 16 km
Weather: Fine

After breakfast at my hotel in Omiya I rode the New Shuttle to Yoshinohara Station, which is where I had originally planned to finish walking on Day 5. It was a beautifully fine day and my blisters weren't bothering me at all. I felt confident of reaching my goal of Minami-Sakurai, some 22 km east along Route 16. But soon after setting off I had to negotiate a pedestrian overbridge, and on the descent my knees again started hurting. I reminded myself that pain never killed anybody (I don't know where I heard that expression, but it seemed appropriate) and tried to think positively as I pressed on. But the traffic-clogged road and less-than-scenic surroundings made it difficult to remain optimistic.

Thankfully, the congestion eased as the morning progressed, and I was even treated to some semi-pastoral scenes in the form of rice fields complete with one or two egrets. Further on I noticed some farmers planting rice, and stopped to watch them working.

But such enjoyable moments were few and far between, and by lunchtime the pain in my knees and the constant noise and fumes from all the cars and trucks had become unbearable. I looked at my map and saw that Kasukabe Station was just a couple of kilometres away. I could head straight there and catch a train to Chiba, where I had booked a hotel for the next few nights. The pain and suffering would end. It was very tempting.

Up ahead was a Saizeriya, so I decided to stop for lunch and think over my options. By the end of the meal I had made up my mind to abandon my walk. It all came to the fact that I simply wasn't enjoying it. Also, I had very little to lose by stopping. I wasn't doing this to prove anything to myself or anybody else. The only downside I could think of was that I would have to admit that the people who told me I was foolish to try to walk the length of Route 16 were right. Sure, it's possible. The fact that I had made it this far proved that. And there are some pleasant stops along Route 16 that have much to offer the traveler on foot, such as Yokosuka, Yokohama and Kawagoe. But with the exception of the stretch along the coast of the Miura Peninsula (and possibly on the opposite side of Tokyo Bay in Chiba Prefecture, though I don't know because I didn't get that far), there didn't seem to be enough in the way of pleasant scenery in between these places to provide relief from the monotony of the bland suburban landscapes and relentless traffic. Maybe I'll go back some day and complete this walk (I don't like leaving things unfinished). But somehow I doubt it.  

Day 5: Rest day

Distance covered: 0 km
Weather: Gloomy

Dear reader, the knees were still sore. I decided they needed a day off, which would also help my blisters heal. So after hanging around my hotel in Shinjuku for most of the morning, I took the train to Omiya, from where I was determined to resume walking again the following day.

Day 4: Hachioji - Kawagoe

Distance covered: 36 km (by train)
Weather: Mainly cloudy

With my knees still giving me trouble, I decided walking 36 km was out of the question. After breakfasting at the hotel restaurant on all-you-can-eat bread, a boiled egg and coffee, I went to the station and caught the 8.17 train to Kawagoe. 

The train journey to Kawagoe took an hour, as opposed to the seven or so hours it would have taken on foot. I also saved myself a lot of pain and discomfort. As I walked from the station to the warehouse district, it started to drizzle. It continued to rain on and off for the rest of the day, but it didn't really bother me. It was my first time in the city, and I enjoyed strolling around looking at the old buildings, many dating from the Edo period.

Just after midday, I headed back to Kawagoe Station and caught a train to Shinjuku. There I checked into the hotel where I'd spent my first night before heading to Kannai and where I'd left my suitcase. After resting for an hour or so I went out in search of a pair of knee supporters. I found what I thought were some reasonably priced ones at Tokyu Hands, but when I got back to my hotel room and removed the packaging I was horrified to find just a single supporter inside. At first I was angry. It seemed bizarre to me that knee supporters would be sold individually and not in pairs. I mean, nobody buys just a single shoe. So who on earth would buy just a single knee supporter? The answer, which when it came to me made perfect sense, was people who have one sore knee! Anyway, after another rest I went back to Tokyo Hands and bought another one. I also got on the Internet and found some exercises designed to relieve knee pain. With any luck I'd be better by the morning and able to resume my walk along Route 16 from Kawagoe.

Day 3: Sagami-Ono - Hachioji

Distance covered: 20 km
Weather: Fine

With just 20 km to walk today, I departed at the relatively late (for me) hour of 8.30 am. To start with I felt OK, but after a while my blisters started hurting, and more worryingly, my knees started to get sore. Luckily it was flat for most of the day, otherwise I might have really struggled. As it was I had to take a lengthy break after walking for an hour, and an even longer one later in the day after lunch.

The road was four lanes and pretty straight for the first 10 km or so. The traffic was unrelenting, and there wasn't much variation in the "scenery." It was quite a relief when the narrow footpath gave way to a lengthy section with separate pedestrian and bike lanes, a rarity in Japan. At least it meant I didn't have to keep stepping aside to make way for bicycles on the footpath, which is quite narrow in some places along Route 16.  

Near Hashimoto Station, I stopped at a branch of Komeda’s coffee for lunch. I ordered the "egg pizza toast," which was basically a super thick toasted egg sandwich with a pizza-like topping of tomato sauce and cheese. It was pretty gross!

After lunch the road narrowed and became windy. It was nice to escape the heavy traffic, but I didn't enjoy the hills, which hurt my knees and sapped my energy. It was also getting pretty muggy.

With just a couple of kilometres to go, I noticed a pleasant-looking park on my left and decided to stop for a rest. Katakurajoseki Park is a popular bird-twitching area and also has some funky statuary.

I lingered in the park for quite a while before tackling the last stretch of Route 16 into Hachijo. It was downhill, but I had to go up and down some stairs to get to the other side of the station, and as I was descending I experienced excruciating pain in my knees.

It was too early to check in to my hotel, so I treated myself to an iced coffee and cake (with ice cream) at a Tully's coffee shop. Later, after dinner, I decided that if my blistered feet and knees weren't any better by the morning, I would take the train to Kawagoe instead of walking.

Day 2: Kannai - Sagami-Ono

Distance covered: 25 km
Weather: Fine

As I've noted previously, the restorative powers of a good night's sleep never fail to amaze me. I woke feeling re-energised, and after breakfast at the same Jonathan’s as the day before (though this time I threw caution to the wind and tried the acai bowl, which was actually quite yummy) I checked out of my hotel in Kannai and rejoined Route 16 at around 7.30 am.

Soon after passing Yokohama Landmark Tower (the second tallest building in Japan), I turned west and headed inland. My blisters felt pretty good, but the hilly terrain soon took its toll on my legs, which I now realised had not fully recovered from the shock of yesterday's 30 km slog. I took a long break by the side of the road after an hour, and on passing a Royal Host family restaurant an hour or so later I decided to stop for morning tea. Unfortunately they were only serving breakfast (it was still only 9.30 am), so I ordered the cheapest set (toast and salad) and a coffee.

Route 16 assumes various guises along its 241-km length, from quiet two-lane road to busy multi-lane expressway, and today I experienced both extremes. An example of the latter appeared ahead of me soon after lunch in the form of the Hodogaya Bypass. Looking at the map on my iPhone and the concrete monstrosity in front of me, I wasn't sure if there was a way through on foot. But Japanese traffic planners are generally pretty accommodating to pedestrians (even in remote parts of the country, major roads often have footpaths), and I eventually found a tunnel that led me to where I needed to be. 

I made good progress in the afternoon, arriving at my hotel next to Sagami-Ono Station just after 2 pm. I was given a room with a view on the 12th floor. It was so nice I abandoned my plans to explore the area around the station and stayed inside for the rest of the day. An inspection of my feet revealed at least one new blister, though the ones from yesterday looked to be on the mend. I eventually left my hotel room at around 5.30 pm to look for somewhere to have dinner, but didn't get further than the supermarket downstairs, where I bought some sushi that I ate back in my room.

Day 1: Kannonzaki - Kannai

Distance covered: 30 km
Weather: Mostly cloudy

After an early breakfast at Jonathan's, a 24-hour family restaurant just a few minutes' walk from my hotel in Kannai, Yokohama, I went back to my room and sorted through my things. The weather forecast was good, and since I'd be returning there at the end of the day, I was tempted to leave my rain gear and pack at the hotel and take just my bum bag. In the end, since my pack wasn't all that big anyway (22 litres), I decided to take it - a wise decision given the wild weather I would encounter on this, the first day of my journey on foot along National Route 16.

At 6.45 am I left my hotel and walked to Hinodemachi Station on the Keikyu Line. The platforms were thronged with commuters. However, the train I wanted to catch was heading south, in the opposite direction from Tokyo, and I naively imagined it wouldn't be very crowded. But it was standing room only for the first half of the 45-minute ride to Maborikaigan. There I transferred to a bus and not long afterwards I was in front of the Kannonzaki Keikyu Hotel, the starting point for my walk. I took a moment to look northeast out across Tokyo Bay towards Cape Futtsu in Chiba, where if everything went according to plan I would be finishing my walk in ten days' time. A distance of about 6 km as the crow flies, but 241 km along Route 16. At 8.30 am I set off.

I soon came to my first hill, just a small one but steep enough to have me breathing heavily by the time I reached the top. I definitely hadn't done enough training! But at least I was rewarded with a view. And thankfully it was mostly flat for the rest of the day. The traffic was also light for the first couple of hours, and this combined with the semi-tropical vegetation and ocean views put me in a positive frame of mind.

At Yokosuka I left Route 16 to do a little sightseeing. First stop was Mikasa Park, where Mikasa, a pre-dreadnought battleship that saw action in the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-5, is preserved as a museum ship. Next I took a stroll through Honcho, the bar district that caters mainly to personnel from the nearby US Navy base. I'd done a lot of research on the area for my novel, so it was interesting to see it "in the flesh," so to speak.

Not long afterwards, as I was passing through Oppama, it began to drizzle. Because it was almost lunchtime, I decided to press on until I came to a restaurant. But a few minutes later the drizzle turned into a downpour accompanied by thunder and lightning. I quickly sought refuge under a shop awning, where I donned my wet weather gear. The same wet weather gear I'd almost left at my hotel that morning. I'd bought the jacket the day before at a Montbell store in Shinjuku, so I was actually quite looking forward to trying it out. The pants I'd bought in Nagoya back in 2007 while walking the Nakasendo. I was also interested in seeing how my new "waterproof" New Balance walking shoes would perform in the wet. I waited for the thunder and lightning to stop, then braced myself and stepped out into the deluge. 

It was still raining when I eventually stopped for lunch at a bakery/restaurant near Kanazawa-Hakkei Station. As I ate my pizza set (which included a side salad and, somewhat bizarrely, a plate of three different kinds of bread) and drank my coffee, I became aware of blisters on the soles of both feet. I also felt cold. My mood, which had been so buoyant throughout the morning, was decidedly gloomy.

The rain had lifted by the time I set off again, but I still felt pretty glum for the remainder of the afternoon. Time passed slowly, and I was worried about the state of my feet. I was beginning to really regret having done so little training and having decided to cover such a long distance (30 km) on my first day. The last few kilometres were a real struggle, both physically and mentally. It was 4.30 pm by the time I arrived back at my hotel in Kannai. After dinner at a nearby Saizeriya, I had a bath in the hope that it would soak away the pain in my legs and tended as best I could to my blisters before hitting the sack.