The change from Autumn to Winter can happen in an instant. One day we are out riding and the next day, we are frantically clearing snow. Hokkaido is now blanketed under a foot of snow that will keep us enveloped for around 4 months. The bikes have gone in to hibernation mode until we uncover them at around the end of March.

We have had a great summer, but all things have come to an end, including Hokkaido’s riding season.

Recently we participated in the Biei Century ride which was held in our Playground of the Gods area. Hundreds of cyclists joined, flying in from all parts of Japan and even as far away as Okinawa. The course was quite hilly, so everyone had some pretty pumped legs by the end! Although it was a century ride, it was held over 2 days, a route of 60km the first day and then 100km the next.

We received discounts for some of the local hot springs to take care of our legs and also some local rice as part of our participation to replace some of the lost calories. For more photos, click here.

We have just come to the end of an extended period of rain which has kept us off our bikes, so it was good to get out again. We chose an area of the Playground of the Gods that has some beautiful undulations and where each downhill gives you enough momentum to get up the next rise with little effort.

Mid way through the 50km ride there was a magnificent rainbow that was in the direction that we were travelling. It became a race to get there before it dissipated.

We were guiding a shop group from Sapporo today. Road Kids come every year, usually guiding some of the single-track mtb trails in the mountains of the national park. This time was a road riding event and we treated them to one of our local rides in the Playground of the Gods. The route was 80km long with an ascent of 1,000 meters and took in some of the terrain and landscapes that make the area so good for riding. For more pictures of the day, click here

Riding the other day there was some movement in the bushes beside the road.  On closer look, it was two fox kits or pups hiding in the bushes. Mum was nowhere to be seen and probably a short distance away foraging for food for her young. Foxes are often seen by the side of the road in Hokkaido. Occasionally we see deer and tanuki as well.

It was a magnificent day in the area of the Playground of the Gods and so we rode a 70km loop towards the Daisetsuzan National Park. It was an Obon holiday so there were quite a few fellow cyclists on the road enjoying the day out. We finished at one of the famous cake shops in Furano and ate soft cream while enjoying views of the area that we rode.

As the lavender starts to fade, we are now coming in to flower season in the Central Hokkaido area. People from all around Japan will make the journey to see some of the flower farms in full bloom. There are quite a number of these flower farms in the Playground of the Gods tour area which make for nice places to take a break.

A slight change of scenery today, spending the morning at some of Sapporo’s local single-track. Good trails can be found only 20 minutes drive from the centre of the city amongst a forest park with hiking trails that bikes are allowed on. It was a very hot today, so we were happy to be riding under the canopy of the forest in the slightly cooler shade. The trails are dirt and quite rooty, but nothing too technical. They also follow the contours of the area nicely so that there isn’t anything too steep to climb.

It was a scorching hot day and so we chose the best activity for keeping cool, downhill mountain biking on Furano Ski Resort. Being a weekend, there were a lot of people riding the ropeway and enjoying the cooler temperatures at the top of the mountain which are around 4 degrees less than the bottom. A mix of hikers, mountain bikers, sightseeing families and tourists rode to the top for the cool air and entertained themselves in various ways.

The downhill course is around 3km long and descends around 800 meters vehicle. There are fantastic views of the valley on the descent with the high mountains of Daisetsuzan National Park in the background. Fast riders will clock up speeds of up to 70km/hr and complete the downhill in around 5 minutes.

For more pictures from Furano Ski Resort, click here