Day 17 - searching for the Nakasendo trail

my choice of roads out of town were many, but I decided to stick with the main route - 19 - at least until most of the city left behind.  it meant all sorts of footpath - bikepath versions from good to very bad, but eventually I cleared to built up areas and was heading into farming area.
Grapes were a surprise - grown up along wires  spanning out from the old thick trunks...  stone fruit trees were handled the same....  reckon this could be a nice place to visit in the late summer when fruit is being picked!

there were a few opportunities to zink off the main road and ride thru very sleepy old villages.  found one place to stop for a snack near and old shrine - I went up the steps to check it out...  and saw another new bird...  think something like a chestnut bunting or something similar...  quite pretty little bird!

Today was one of those days when it was all straight forward, but the scenery meant heaps of stops to gaze in wonder...  the river rushed and crashed around the rocks and boulders, foaming white and green...  there were places where they had tried to tame it, but it seemed to break free around the corner and rush on...

just can't get enough of these wild mountain rivers, filled with snow melt heading for the sea - either the Sea of Japan but as I crossed over the divide, the rivers were now all heading for the Pacific...
and the old Post Towns on the Nakasendo trail are truly beautiful..

drama for today was a 2.4km tunnel...  the bike path lead up to the front of it, but then narrowed to about 2ft wide...  15cm was an open drain - then the barrier fence was about 30cm from the edge, so the path was actually too narrow to ride, too narrow to turn around, so walking was the only option...  but by the time I got to the halfway point I was so over it and there was a gap in the fence, so Hennie hit the road...  we had to stop when a truck came along, but thankfully there wasn't too much traffic so we were soon back into the sunlight.

I had booked ahead (after last Sat night's debacle I thought it wise)  so eventually tracked down my bed for tonight - at the Ryokan Sarashinaya - a proper Japanese inn and was welcomed profusely and shown to my room and the bath room pointed out...  it wasn't long before I was being revived in a piping hot bath.  had a quick look around, but already dark...