Gumbies

Fall　秋

2009-11-10T00:55:00.007+09:00

We'd like you to enjoy these pictures from our weekend trip to the Miyazaki mountains.　先週末宮崎の山に行って、秋の風景を楽しんだ。

And a couple of pix from our English school's Halloween parties. Happy Halloween! 11月31日は内の学校でハロウィーンパーティーがあった。

Against Magazine アゲンスト雑誌

2009-11-01T23:52:00.006+09:00

Awhile back we lived for a year in Hidalgo, Nuevo Leon, Mexico. While there we grew to love Mexican people, culture, food and the country. Mexico is still very much a part of who we are, even now.
While living in Mexico, we made many great friends and lifelong connections. Recently we received an email from an acquaintance asking if we could write an article about a kayaking adventure in Japan. Our efforts have been published in the Mexican Adventure Magazine "Against". The article can be viewed free of cost (it's in Spanish).

何年前にメキシコのヌエボレオン州で一年間住んでた。メキシコの文化、食べ物、地形、人々等は今なお鮮明に心に残っている。最近メキシコ人の知り合いからメールが来て、アゲンストと言う雑誌に記事を書かないか?今月は雑誌のホームページに無料で掲載されています。読んでミユウか？スペイン語ですが。。。。

Siempre extrañamos muchísimo de nuestros amigos en México.

Gumbies MTB

2009-10-30T00:41:00.012+09:00

Hi and welcome to our first concerted effort at making a video - we're still not sure why we actually made it, but...er...we had fun doing it. Hope you have fun watching it too.

What a nice place though, isn't it? When the leaves really turn color, it's magical. This coming weekend the fall colors should be at their height. We're on our way!

もののけ姫の森 - Princess Mononoke's Forest

Inland seas 内海

2009-10-23T23:09:00.063+09:00

The eastern side of Amakusa is characterized by inland seas with small rounded islands covered with lush vegetation. The islands act as a natural wind barrier leaving the water glass smooth on the leeward side. There is a slight similarity to the landscape in Canada's Northern Ontario, where lakes are dotted with small islands.
小さな円っぽい青々した島々は天草の東側の内海の特徴です。これは湖が多い北部カナダのオンタリオ州の地形と少し似ているので懐かしい感じがします。

This interesting 22km tour was made possible by spotting a car at the destination point (Tate Beach). It weaves a path between small uninhabited islands; landing on any of these is convenient since the shorelines are gentle. The final 5km crossing of Hachiman Strait rounds out the trip. The strait is a bit tricky due to rather strong currents and the shipping route - the latter requires an alert approach due to the nearby turning points and because the ships tend to shortcut the official route. We encountered the freighter, or rather it encountered us, almost a kilometer off route.
今日のツアー出発前に新和町の立海水浴場で車一台を置いておきました。そうする事によってこの22キロの片道のツアーが楽に出来ます。

A ruined house on stilts in the sea. It used to be a fisherman's home; an art film (Monshen) was even shot here just before the roof caved in. At low tide, the sea recedes to reveal a small island. Yet this unique and scenic place is destined for a pathetic ending. Elsewhere in the world, it would probably be turned into a restaurant or some such tourist trap, but in Japan, I guess people would rather go to Disney World letting most of the true, fragile beauty of their heritage go to waste.
屋根が陥没する前にモンシェンと言う映画はこのビルで撮影されました。

Heading toward Kuroshima, we pass by the aptly named "Hadaka-se", which means 'naked rocks' in Japanese. Crowning the rocks is a beautiful banyan tree, already leafless in this dry autumn season.
裸瀬の上に立派なアコウの木があります。今年の秋は非常に乾燥していたのでもう葉が落ちました。

Beginning the final traverse (Hachinoshima, the northernmost point of Kagoshima Prefecture, is in the background). The ever-present tidal currents have kicked up a bit of chop against the autumn breeze.
この写真の後ろの景色は鹿児島県の北端に位置している蜂ノ島です。最終地点への横断で海流と北風が打つかって波が出ている。

No day would be complete without a little excitement. The crossing of the Hachiman is only a mere 5km, but it contains a moderately busy shipping route. As we left Hachino-shima we first had to dodge an onslaught of speed boats, each passing close, perhaps to check us out. Next in the far distance I made out a miniscule white rectangle, which soon grew larger and larger, until we were looking at a freight ship heading straight for us. Perhaps buffeted by the currents, it kept weaving left and right, oblivious to our presence. It was really hard to decide which way to go to effect an escape, and we changed tactics twice in the final ten minutes. In the end, the ship passed in front of us, but still nearly 1km short of the shipping route proper. We arrived at Tate Beach safely if a little frazzled. By the way, that's not a giant squid attacking Rick, it's a piece driftwood he is hauling home for the aquarium. Giant squids are rare in these parts.
何の刺激もない一日は物足りないでしょう。5キロの八幡瀬戸を横断するために航路を渡らなければならない。蜂ノ島から出て、いくつかのスピードボートを避けました。次は貨物船が現れました。航路が決まっているのに流れのせいか船が左右にうろうろしていた。どうやってこの船を避けるか悩んでいた。何回か作戦を変更して、最後に貨物船はやっと私たちの前を通り過ぎた、航路より１キロ外れ。私たちが立浜に着いた時は体より精神的に消耗していた。

ところでリックのカヤックの後ろでリックを攻撃にしている巨大なイカに似ている物体はただの流木です。：）

Surfing at Takahama

2009-10-23T00:13:00.002+09:00

Leanne catching a wave at Takahama.
天草の高浜で里杏はサーフィンをやっている。

Nice turn!
ナイスターン！

Tokara Day 6-9 　トカラ6日目から9日目まで

2009-10-17T23:42:00.008+09:00

We continued our tour through the heart of the Tokara Islands. In this region, the Kuroshio could be felt the most, flowing west to east at 3-4 km/h.　The weather was generally calm until we reached Kuchino-shima, where 2 days of strong easterly winds had us grounded.　We took this time to explore the island and its coral reefs; in the end it was well worth it to remain for a while on this northernmost island of the group. トカラ列島の旅を続けます。この辺では西から東へ流速３-４キロの黒潮の影響が一番強く感じました。口之島に着くまでに天気が安定していたがその後の二日間のやや強い東風のせいで動けなくなりました。この二日間、車を借りて、島を探検したり、珊瑚礁で潜ったりしました。

Lush greenery on Suwanose-jima.　Only the southern tip of this island is inhabited (some overly large school buildings are visible in the photo); the rest of the island is a wasteland dominated by an active volcano. 青々とした景色の諏訪瀬島で盆踊りも楽しんだ。島の南側に学校と集落があります。活火山が島の特徴です。

A semi-abandoned airfield on Suwanose-jima is the only one of its kind in Tokara.　It was built during an ill-fated effort to build a resort here, and stands as a monument to the wastefullness of the Japanese headlong construction effort.トカラ列島諏訪瀬島で殆ど使われてない唯一の空港。

As we departed the martian landscape of Suwanose's coast, we were surprised by a sudden, loud explosion. Looking back, we noticed a mushroom cloud of volcanic ash. The volcano had erupted again, but it probably did not faze the inhabitants. 諏訪瀬島の火星のような風景から出発する時突然火山は噴火しました。

Approaching the spectacular south coast of Kuchino shima we were entertained by the ever-curious boobies flying overhead. 口之島に横断途中頭上に鳥の群れが！

Prior to our trip, we studied many maps, brochures, and internet sites in order to familiarize ourselves with the islands topography and special features, But we never expected to find such a spectacular coastline. You need a boat to see it, and even the photographers don't seem to bother to go. 立派な自然な海岸が意外でした。宝物でしょう!

It's an elephant! ゾウだぞう。

This is the tidal race off the northern tip of the island. Instead of heading off into this hairy mess, we decided to wait out the windy weather.北端からタイドルラピドを眺めに行きます。しばらくこの島で探検しようと決めた。

We spent two days on this beautiful island waiting out some windy weather. We managed to rent a car and explore the whole island. In the the afternoons we swam in the sea. Waiting never felt so good. 風があったので口之島で二日間待った。のんびりでドライブしたり素潜りしたりしました。待つ時間より楽しい時間を過ごした。

流れに乗って平瀬海水浴場から岬まで流されながら素潜りを、毎日何回か繰り返ししました。周りを見ると亀があちこち泳いでいた。In the sea, we found a diving paradise. Starting at Hirase swimming area, we drifted along a couple of kilometers on the current to the cape at the northern tip of the island, then stroll back along the road and go again. While we were diving we saw numerous sea turtles and other sizeable creatures; we've never seen such density of sealife anywhere else.

da dum... da dum... dadumdadumdadumdaDUM DADADEDUM! Shark! Actually, I had to tail this one (pardon the pun) for about 20 minutes to get a decent picture. Sharks are generally pretty shy creatures. ジョ――ズ！！！サメも結構いました。

We found internet access at the local school. While checking the weather, we made friends with some of the teachers. On each of the Tokaras, there are literally more teachers than students. The population is continuing to decrease, and the future of these schools is in jeopardy. In any case, our new friends had never been snorkeling. We decided to meet them after work and take them out for a few hours. They donned our life jackets and away we went. They were extatic to see the sea turtles. It is always nice to share beautiful experiences with fun people. That night we partied it up over dinner and drinks. ネットで天気予報をチェックする為、学校の方へ向かった。トカラの学校はどこでも先生が生徒より多いです。子供の人数がものすごく少なく成っている。先生たちと仲良くなって、シュノーケリングを経験させると、海亀をたくさん見たから皆喜びました。

Okinose

2009-10-02T12:36:00.000+09:00

One of the better kayak tours in Amakusa. The map was made by overlaying a satellite image with the sea chart, and finally our GPS track on top.

We spent a Sunday introducing this wonderful place to some friends.
休日は何よりも友達と一緒にカヤックを漕いで、無人島に行って、のんびりするのが好きです。

集めた貝の刺身パーティになりました。Today, the lunch menu was various types of shells, along with sandwiches, rice balls and sliced tomatoes.

最近大ヶ瀬で素潜りを楽しんでいる。地図では海中公園と書いてあるが、それはいったいどう言う意味か分からない。週末では各岩に釣り人がいるし、釣り船も多いです。海中公園をこれからもっと保護しないといけないと思います。Recently we have been visiting Ogase, a beautiful set of rocks about a kilometer off the Amakusa coast and ostensibly a protected area. It is sanctuary to sea birds, dolphins, sea turtles, sharks and a large variety of subtropical fish and coral. However, the protection only exists on paper: the area is heavily exploited by sport fishermen who, by being willing to pay $60 for a round-trip ticket, create a lucrative niche for opportunistic locals with boats. Money talks.

大ヶ瀬では水性生物、魚類、珊瑚のバラエティーが多くて幻想的です。

どこよりも色鮮やかだ。

Central Mountain Biking　九州中央山地MTBツアー

2009-09-26T02:00:00.015+09:00

On a rare long weekend this September, we took a rambling bicycle trip through the mountains of Central Kyushu. We plotted the trip (red) and the drive up (green) over an image taken by a space shuttle astronaut (from NASA's excellent Earth from Space site). The course was very hilly with about 80km of distance 1000-2000m of elevation gain for the first three days. A relatively flat but long 140km finish on the fourth day was possible by following the Kuma River basin and canyon through the hills. The image shows fog in the upper basin; an almost daily phenomenon in an unusual flat valley surrounded completely by mountains.
９月のシルバーウイーク九州の中央で自転車の旅に行ってきました。NASAの宇宙から撮ったイメージの上に自転車の旅は赤い線で車で行った分は緑です。今度の自転車の旅登りがきつかった、最初の三日間８０キロの距離で登りが１０００-２０００メートルでした。最後の日は球磨川盆地を下って非科学的に楽な１４０キロでした。このイメージでは殆ど毎日の現象で盆地では霧が深いです。

The course began from our friend's house on the southern outskirts of Kumamoto City, where we dropped off our car. The sun had just risen, illuminating the pastoral landscape as we followed the flood-control dikes of the Midori River upstream into the hills towards its headwaters.
スタートは熊本市の南の郊外の友達の家。そこで車駐車を止めて貰って、緑川を源流の方へ向かって出発しました。

Rice will be ripening soon in the western foothills. Bevies of dragonflies hover over the paddies as the day heats up, but the ubiquitous vermillion of amaryllis (literally 'equinox flower' in Japanese) shows that the summer is winding down.
夏の終わり：トンボが田んぼの上に飛んでいる、お米はもうすぐ収穫で彼岸花が赤く咲いている。

As the terrain becomes more rugged, we begin climbing among terraced fields whose elusive color seems that much brigther when set off by the dark green of the deep mountains.
山の緑とだんだん畑が美しい。

We enter the narrow Naidaijin Valley and the forest and steep mountainsides close on us.
内大臣の狭い谷に入る。

The dirt track leads over a high pass over Kyushu's spine into Miyazaki Prefecture, through some of the most remote tracts of western Japan.
砂利道で山越えて宮崎県に入る。

Patches of virgin forest were spared on the highest reaches of these mountains; they are a fountain of relaxation to pass through.
山の上の方原生林がまだ残っている。

The source waters of the Mimi River, clear and vigorous in spite of a rather dry summer.
耳川の源流。

Thirty kilometers downstream, the Shiiba dam spans the grown river, a part of an extensive system of tunnels and dams that harness streams for hydroelectric power.
椎葉ダム。

The Cental Mountains are characterized by steep, erosive slopes upon which narrow roads twist precariously. One tack of the road below me, Leanne steadfastly climbs toward the day's summit.

A multi-hour sweaty uphill crawl is rewarded by an hour's exhilirating descent into the valley.

Like a ghost in a static landscape, Leanne makes a fleeting pass in front of an amaryllis-spangled bank.

Spending a damp morning ascending the Dogawa valley, we can retrace our meandering path on the landscape viewed from on high. I took some artistic license with this image, just for a little fun.
渡川の谷に下ります。

Quite unexpectedly, we find a large and impressive waterfall on the Oyabu River. We have explored these hills through and through it seems, but they still haven't revealed all their secrets to us. The fall is marked by only the smallest of symbols on the topo map and so was easy to miss.
大藪川で大きくて美しい滝を発見しました。

Behind the veil of water, an exquisite inspiration for a Japanese-style garden.

Roadside Iwagumi Series continued...inspired by nature and Zen? A mere accident of the gnashing Japanese construction machine? Or both?
岩組みシリーズの次き。

On the morning of the final day, the mountains opened for a time to reveal the lush, fertile Hitoyoshi Basin with its sea of ripening rice.

Camera technology really could not do justice to the delicate colors that were all around us.

The mountains encircling the basin bring daily fog and chill air in the winter, but are also a source of clear water and nutrients that make this valley one of the most fertile farming areas in the country.

A pastoral scene in the Hitoyoshi Basin - sorry I went a bit nuts at the controls again!

Rolling Practice　ロールの練習

2009-09-16T23:19:00.003+09:00

Lately we’ve been spending time on the water with our partner in crime Jerremy Akiyama. Jerremy is a natural sportsman amply endowed with mind-body coordination, so it was not a great surprise to see him roll a kayak on his very first try (after only a verbal explanation of what to do), it was nevertheless the first and only time we’ve seen it done. He is an avid sport fisherman of national renown and many of our paddles together have been visits to remote rocks where he enjoys casting lures into the sea while we spearfish, snorkel, or survey the area.

The other day, we shot sequences of ourselves doing the basic sweep and roll. Jerremy has been practicing toward ten rolls in a row (he’s at five now). Consistency is most important in practical kayaking; finer points of technique can come later.

Jerremy is righting his kayak solidly using a powerful combination of sweep and draw. His quick hip action and lower back flexibility are excellent: watch his kayak flip itself in the blink of an eye just when the paddle shaft is at right angles to it. Perfect timing! At the conclusion of the stroke, Jerremy performs a draw, instinctively and correctly sweeping the paddle down and forward as his body comes out of the water. Therefore, his paddle ends up under the water surface, but not deep enough to cause any serious problems. The initial, sweep part of the stroke still needs a bit of tuning up. Jerremy keeps the paddle tracking precisely along the water’s surface, which is very commendable, but the angle of the paddle blade to the surface is a bit too big – about 45 degrees. At this angle, it is necessary to push away quite bit of water out of the paddle’s path during the long sweep. Jerremy certainly does not lack power as he stirs in an impressive amount of air bubbles, but this technicality does not affect his roll’s consistency too much. Note also how his head comes out of the water a bit too early, requiring additional power from the paddle during the draw to haul all that body mass up.

Rick executes the sweep and roll simultaneously, so his hip-twist is slow and continuous. He is extending his body and arm out, giving the paddle more potential leverage. His head is tilted back and actually leads the motion, always facing the sweeping paddle and coming out of the water last. Because Rick’s paddle blade is tilted only 10-20 degrees to the water surface, he does not need much power for the sweep; the motion is very smooth and fast, reducing the total time needed for the roll. Throughout, only surface water is stirred up and although Rick executes a subtle draw at the end of the sweep, the blade never sinks deeper than about 10cm. This leaves him in a fully stable position as he completes the roll.

Both boys can roll decently, but there’s still plenty of room for practice!　

Late Summer Outing

2009-09-14T10:03:00.010+09:00

A map of one of our favorite day trips in Amakusa's southern extremity. We went last weekend with two of our friends. 天草の好きなカヤック旅の地図です。先週末友達二人と漕いできた。

Like going for a walk in the park.　のんびりで公園の散歩見たいな感じ。

素潜ったら美味しい貝を拾った。Oさんはナイフで開けてくれた。
I found some tasty shells while diving.　Mr. O. pries them open with a knife.

This little guy was living in one of the shells. なんか可愛い。貝の中にいた。

Oさんは最近素敵なOさんはWFKアラシを購入しました。

Mr.O had just purchased a beautiful Waterfield Kayak "Arashi" sea kayak.

A creepy discovery. In years gone by, when contagious diseases could not be easily controlled, sick individuals were often banished to small uninhabited islands to die. One of these, Kuwashima, is said to have such a history; this sometimes gives the otherwise idyllic island a spooky feeling. This time, our friend discovered human-like bones embedded in the dirt where a small landslide exposed the underlying soil and rock.

Day 3-6: Takara-Suwanose

2009-09-09T00:41:00.011+09:00

The west-to-east flow of the Kuroshio became evident on this interval, just like the forecast said it would. Speeds were up to 1.7 knots (3.2km/h) around Akuseki-jima. Normally, the currents are 2-3 knots from the north-west; these crossings would certainly be more challenging under such conditions. As it was, we had the wind and current more or less behind us, and were able to move quickly.　予想通り、黒潮の西から東への流れはこの辺で明らかになりました。流速は悪石島の付近で一番速くて１．７ノット（３．２km・h）だった。黒潮の状態は普段に変わりやすいけど、一般的に北西から南東への２－３ノットの流れです。今回幸運で追い風と良い流れのおかげで速く横断しました。

This section of the trip was perhaps our favorite. The inhabitants of the southern Tokaras were particularly friendly, welcoming us heartily, showing genuine interest (and concern) in our way of travel, and spending time with us to show us each island's unique sights. On the sea we were on our own, of course, but once landbound it felt almost like a guided tour!
We hoped it would last. On the sea, we began to feel the Kuroshio, though it usually speeded up rather than hindered our progress.　
A persistently strong south-west wind blew all the way through to Akuseki, allowing us to sail much of the way in choppy to rough seas. Combined with the effect of the current, this really increased our speed; we achieved a nearly 9km/h average between Takara and Kodakara. Expecting rough water on approach to each island, we sacrificed some speed and steered upstream (left) each time but the expected races never materialized, and we actually under-shot each island (except Suwanose). But that was a small price to pay as insurance against getting washed into the open Pacific or among the enormous haystack waves for which the area is famous. It's amazing that with this wind, we never saw dangerous waves, even from a distance. On Kodakara, not knowing what was ahead, we spent a day waiting out strong winds and a rolling sea. In retrospect, we would have been okay even if we had gone that day, but our decisionmaking was sound. We did not take any major risks and the pleasure of a solidly executed travel plan feels better than a mere speed run.

A portion of a current data chart we were consulting before and during the trip. Some of the ferries running between Kagoshima, Amami and Okinawa are equipped with current meters and their measurements are viewable on the Kagoshima Fisheries website. Data quality is good, although the time is not explicitly specified, so it is hard to account for the tidal component of the current. The ferry runs along a route different from our own track (shown in red for reference), but the current observations compare well with our own. Interestingly, the wakes of several of the islands show quite clearly on the ferry track 20km or so downstream of the islands, leading us to believe that each island leaves a long and useable wake for regaining ground should one somehow be swept too far eastward by the Kuroshio.　これは鹿児島県水産技術開発センターのHPで鹿児島から奄美、那覇、甑へ就航している定期客船で観測した流れのデータを示すグラフです。情報の質が良いが、計った時間が載ってないので潮流の影響がわかりにくい。定期客船と僕たちの（赤線で示している）航路が大分違うが、流れの測定の結果を比べると、主に大きく変わらない。フェリーのデータを細かく見ると島から２０キロ下流でもその影が見えます。もし黒潮に東に流されたらこの影を利用して島に戻れる可能性があるだろう。

Like Takara-jima, Kodakara too has a rampart reef embedded with tall pinnacles like this one. By its base and invisible in this picture, a swimming-pool-size artificial lagoon was blasted out of the reef, making playing in the sea accessible for local children. Currents, waves, and sharp rocks on the coastline make the sea otherwise off limits to all but very experienced swimmmers. 宝島と小宝島も同じ地形で珊瑚礁からピナクルがあちこち出ている。こちらの「赤立神」の麓でプールのサイズの人工的な海跡湖が出来ている。島の海岸の周りの流れ・波・鋭い岩の為泳ぎにくいから、地元の子供のために作られたプールです。

This yellow variety of hibiscus was ubiquitous in Tokara, contributing to the distinctive feel of the islands' natural environment. この黄色ハイビスカス（黄蜀葵）がトカラで代表です。島の特別な自然な環境の観照に増やしてくれた。

宝島から諏訪瀬島まではこの旅の中で一番楽しかった部分でした。出会った島民が特に優しくて親切でした。僕たちの旅について本当に興味と懸念を持っていて、車で島の案内もしてくれました。海では独行で動いたが上陸するとツアーに参加しているの感じでした。海ではやっと黒潮を感じていたが航海に悪い影響がなかった。悪石島まで絶えることなく強い南西の風が吹いていた。そこまで荒波でもずっとウインドパドルを使って快走した。追い流れと風の為宝島から小宝島までの横断では平均速度９km・hに近づいた。島を近寄ったら三角波が立つと思ったので避ける為に左へ溯上したが余り激潮が無かった。実は諏訪瀬島以外に島を避け過ぎました。でもどうしようもなかった。もしデッカイ三角波に会ったら大変な事になるでしょう。最悪の場合太平洋に流されてしまう。

小宝島で強い風と荒れた海の為に一日停滞した。回顧的に考えると行っても大丈夫かもしれないが休んでもよかったと思う。旅はのんびりして、リスクを出来れば少なくして、島の風景を楽しめる。

Spiders rule the late summer in southwest Japan, gradually growing in size as they feast on abundant insect life. Even near our home, one cannot go hiking in the fall without vigorously swinging a stick around to clear the huge and resilient webs off the trail. In Tokara, the spiders were one or two months ahead of Kyushu in size. This one was already about 5cm; we wonder how big he will get in October? 晩夏は蜘蛛が虫の世界を支配する季節です。

The aptly named Kodakara-jima, or Little Treasure Island, is small enough to walk around comfortably, offering enjoyable scenery around every corner. This and nearby Treasure Island's Mediterranean hues differ in character from the abundantly rich greens of the rest of the Tokaras. Nearby Kojima and other reefs (visible in the background) reportedly have first-class snorkeling and fishing; tropical species such as the giant Napoleon Fish are to be seen. 小宝島は名前通り小さくて気楽に一周を歩けます。宝島と小宝島は景色がどこでも美しくて、景色は中々地中海の島に似ている。

We explored the reefs on the lee side of Kodakara while waiting out a windy day. Notable was the abundance of sea-snakes of all sizes; we were told that this is their breeding ground. Rick spent several hours spearfishing in the crystal clear water, but the fish outsmarted him this time. With labyrinthine caves and crevices in the limestone reef into which the fish can and do escape, a snorkeling hunter has very little chance of success. Because of the presence of reef sharks, the fish are also a lot warier of human-size creatures than they are at our home base of Amakusa.

The breeze ripples the forest of dense bamboo forest that covers the high ground of Akuseki-jima, giving it a deservedly desolate appearance. Our new friend Mr. Higo the fisherman drove us all around the island. He dreams of someday visiting Canada and seeing the scenery of the Rocky Mountains. Meanwhile our own jaws drop on the spectacular sight of these lonely islands scattered across the deep indigo sea. 悪石島の竹山が薫風で踊っていた感じがした。

On this volcanic island chain, geothermal springs are the norm and many simple but authentic spas can be enjoyed free of charge, though perhaps the tropical summer is not the right time for such a tour. Leanne, whose body seems to generate very little intrinsic heat, didn't think so I guess. この暑い天気でも里杏は温泉を楽しめる。

Mr. Higo pointed out to us a nature trail that led through the sub-tropical foliage of a thick, dark jungle. The distinctive leaves of the Chinese fan palm particularly caught the eye. 悪石島のジャングルにてビロウの葉っぱが目立ちました。

Not bad for Gumbies ガンビーズのくせに悪くない

2009-08-31T22:10:00.016+09:00

Hi! In part, because we have a few more interesting pictures that we didn’t have time to put on the blog in ‘real time’, we’ll give it one more pass, including also some navigational data that might be of interest to people contemplating the trip in the future. So here goes.
旅の間インタネットがあった所で少しアップしましたが、それ以上色々な写真や話やナビゲーシオンのヒントをこれからアップするよていです。この旅をやってみたいと思う人に役に立つのかな?

An map of the entire trip, also showing the predicted Kuroshio current. The prediction turned out to be accurate enough to help in strategy planning along the way. The trip was about 475km, done in 14 days including 3 days of waiting for better conditions. Without distractions on the open crossings, we averaged 6.3km/h, paddling and sailing.　
旅の地図です。予想している黒潮の流れも載っている。１４日間（三日間の休憩日も含めて）の遠征はおよそ４７５キロでした。平均スピードは６．３km/hでした。

This is a chart of all the open sea traverses. The red numbers show the total distance paddled or sailed that day. Green numbers show the time taken port-to-port for each day. Orange is the time spent actually doing the crossing; purple is the crossing distance along track, whereas turquoise is the straight-line distance. Finally, average speeds for the crossings are in magenta; able to sail on about half the crossings, and having good luck with the currents, we were able to achieve some fairly good results.
これは横断の情報をまとめたチャートです。赤い番号はその日の距離。緑の番号は港から港までの横断時間です。オレンジの番号は横断の時間。紫の番号は横断の距離です。水色はまっすぐ横断したら、その距離です。ピンックの番号は平均スピードです。

Day 1-2 (Amami-Oshima – Takarajima)

A map showing our movement, as well as the direction, speed, and (in color) the tidal phase of the sea currents encountered. On this section, currents were up to 1 knot in strength - normally not enough to seriously hinder a sea kayak's progress.

最初の二日間は蒸暑い環境に慣れようとしました。南西に位置していた台風のせいで３メータ以上のうねりがはいて、天気予報は変わりやすいの１０-２０ノットの南西の風でした。横当の無人島に到着できるかどうかのために緊張しながら出発しました。
These two days were spent adjusting to our new environment. It was extremely hot and humid, and the sea was rolling with 3 meter waves coming from a typhoon far to the southwest. There were also south-west winds at 10-20 knots and the weather forecast was unsteady to boot. We therefore ventured onto the high seas with some trepidation. At least the currents here turned out relatively weak (up to 1 knot) and quite irregular, more or less as expected. On the way to Yokoate we encountered east-setting currents, which slowed us down a bit. We were able to make some of this up later by sailing (at a difficult angle to the wind), but not enough to prevent a nighttime landing. All along we had worries that the landing beach would be exposed to swells coming from yet another typhoon to our east, so we approached the island by starlight and with much anticipation; not relishing the thoughts of waiting in the kayak all night or paddling another 40km of nighttime swell to the next island. Luckily, we were able to land in small waves. The next day, windy and rolling conditions persisted on the sea while we sailed to Takara-jima on a good tailwind. On the way, for the record, we detoured slightly to a 'degree confluence point' - actually the point of exactly 29N latitude and 129E longitude. Strong currents were expected as we neared land, but they did not materialize and we approached in choppy but navigable seas. The incessant wind further intensified that night, a condition the locals said was not typical of the area’s summer weather.

Killing time before boarding the ferry at Kagoshima, we visited a museum dedicated to erosion-control dams (yes, the Japanese have built a museum for just about anything you can think of), where I attempted to demonstrate my superhuman power to the enthusiastic cheering of four very excited schoolgirls on a summer vacation school trip. Sadly, I had generated only about 1/2250th of the force required to stop even a small mudslide. Crushing defeat or not, this measly impetus, coupled with Leanne's own paddle power, would have to do on our impending crossing of 400km of open sea and one of the world's post powerful ocean currents.

Another bad omen? Most of the islands we were about to visit had volcanoes, three of them active, and as the ferry pulled out of Kagoshima port, we were treated to an impressive eruption of ash from a fourth: the very nearby Sakurajima. But this couldn't have been very portentious: that day the mountain was burping almost continuously. Getting back to our parked car two weeks later, we found it covered by a layer of the fine greyish-brown dust so thick that our vehicle's original color could barely be made out. 丁度フェリーが出港すた時桜島は火山灰の噴火した。

Day 2, morning. Kaminone-jima floats on the sea like a mirage. Overwhelmed by the raw intensity of it all for a good deal of this trip, we stared thoughtlessly at the world around us.　
上ノ根島はミラージュのように水面の上に浮きます。

Bizarre rock formations on the reef shelf of Takarajima.
宝島の変わった岩の海岸。

On Takarajima (Treasure Island) we ran into Makiguchi-san, a friendly resident who offered to take us on a tour in her truck.
宝島で優しい住民の牧口さんに会って、「島を案内しましょう」の招待を貰って、一緒にトラックで島を回りました。牧口さんの娘さんのＹＵＫＡチャンは宝島の暮らしやトカラ馬とのふれあいを日記にしています。

The Degree Confluence Project 29°N 129°E

2009-08-28T23:30:00.013+09:00

During our summer expedition to the Tokara Islands, we managed to make a detour to snatch a 'first visit' to the remote confluence point 29°N 129°E. There is an on-line effort called The Degree Confluence Project with the goal "to visit each of the latitude and longitude integer degree intersections in the world, and to take pictures at each location". Check it out for yourself.

夏休みの間、北緯２９度・東経１２９度をカヤックで行ってみました。そのレポートは交点プロジェクトに発表しました。ご覧ください。

We made it home! 　奄美ー九州横断完成

2009-08-23T12:58:00.020+09:00

During this expedition, satelite tracking was made possible by SPOT.
遠征の間ＧＰＳなどの人工衛星を使うスポットと言うトラッキングシステムを使って安心しました。

We actually made it to Kyushu's southernmost point, Cape Sata, late at night the day before yesterday. But to get closer to our car, we followed that up the next morning with a crossing of Kagoshima Bay. Car recovery (from the ferry parking lot in Kagoshima City) still took the entire afternoon of walking and riding trains. Loading the nearly 7m long kayak onto our 3.5m minicar (making it look somewhat aircraft-like), we proceeded homeward under cover of darkness, dropping the boat off at the Water Field Kayaks factory in Kumamoto and eventually arriving at our domicile at about 3:30 in the morning. We are recuperating today from what was by far the longest day of the trip!

The Kuroshio races off the northern tip of Kuchino-shima, further roughed up by a persistent east wind. We waited for two days before setting off into marginally better conditions. In all, out of 14 days we only spent 3 days waiting out the weather - a statistic that points to our good luck on this trip. 口之島の最北端の沖合い激潮が発生している。この状態はもうちょっと良くなったまで、二日間待っていた。しかしこの旅の14日間から、３日間しか待なければならなかった。それは僕たちにとって普段より運が良かった。

今朝深夜やっと帰宅しました。皆の応援やサポート有難う。九州への横断はもう一昨日の夜中九州最南端の佐多岬に着いた際完成したけど、鹿児島進行で駐車していた車の回収をもうちょっと簡単にする為、昨日の朝鹿児島湾口を横断して指宿の長崎鼻海岸に着いた。それなのに車の回収は昼の残りをかかった。結局借りたカヤックをWater Field Kayaksの熊本での工場で持って行ってやっと深夜三時半うちに着きました。遠征の一番長い一日だったですね。今日寝不足で疲れてゆっくり休みます。

From the clifftop at the Heike Castle viewpoint on Ioujima, Leanne looks at Takeshima and Showa-Ioujima over the indigo waters of the Kuroshio, here and there discolored by volcanic hot springs. The latter island erupted out of the sea only in 1934. 硫黄島の平家城展望台からみた竹島、昭和硫黄島、そして温泉水に色を変われた海。この強い潮流が変わるまで硫黄島を出るまで午後３時ごろまで待っていた。

Ioujima's highest peak Iou-dake, or Sulfur Mountain, is an active volcano. In the words of local official Mr. Tokuda, "It's the hottest volcano in Japan. When it's going to blow, nobody knows. If it does, we'll all run for the fishing boats, head to sea, and wait for rescue there." Many thanks to Tokuda-san for letting us have his truck for the morning so we could poke around the island and take these pictures. 「いつ爆発するのか誰も知らない」の硫黄島の活動の多い硫黄岳。出張所長の徳田さんによると、日本全国での一番温度の高い火山です。噴火すれば、皆島の漁船に乗って沖へ逃げると言いました。徳田さんは自分の軽トラックを島の探検の為僕たちに貸してくれて有難うございます。

The ferry comes to Ioujima twice a week, stirring up the mango-colored, volcanic-spring-fed water of the port. In spite of the local officials' honest efforts to increase tourism, hardly anyone comes to visit this beautiful and fascinating place. Why not is a bit beyond our comprehension too. 硫黄島の港の海底温泉によるマンゴ色に染めた海水を掻き回しながら、定期船が入港します。ローカル政治家も取り組んでいるくせにこんな面白くて美しい場所なのに、中々観光客が来ないって。これは私たちも余り理解できない。

ところで、例の佐多岬への横断のタイミングを潮流に合わせて見たから、夜中の航海が予定通りだった。しかし今回の流れは予想より違ったから有利に使えなかった。ただその時、SPOTのページを見ていた人に心配をかけたかも知れない。ごめんね。硫黄島でネットのアクセスが簡単にできなかったから、皆に知らせる事も出来なかった。僕たちにとって夜中の航海は昼と同じぐらい平気です。今回、鹿児島湾口の辺りにある沖縄へのと九州周りの航路の交差点に近づいた時（２１時ごろ）色んな貨物船やフェリーでかなり賑やかったので次々に来た６隻ぐらいの大きな船とのニアミスを問題なく避けることが出来ました。ただ最後の辺佐多岬の海岸での厳しい逆流れを登るのはちょっときつかったです。地礁に大勢いた晩の釣り人にもびっくりさせたかも知れない。

OK, bye bye! Leanne is stranded on a buoy in the middle of the mouth of Kagosima Bay. 里杏は、鹿児島湾口の中央付近にある神瀬浮標に登っちゃった。

The goal is in sight during the final hours of the expedition: approaching Nagasaki-bana on the coast of Satsuma Peninsula with the Fuji-like Kaimondake wreathed in rainclouds. 遠征の最後の数時間、鹿児島湾を横断しながら、土砂降りの雲の覆われた開聞岳を望む。

Kuchierabu-shima 口永良部島

2009-08-21T09:11:00.003+09:00

Hello from Kuchierabu. Although we were aiming for Yakushima yesterday, we were rebuffed by strong winds. But we were able to use those in combination with the strong currents to progress north towards Kuchierabu, which actually turns out to be a shortcut for us! So we were lucky again. The traverse took 11 hours which is still quite fast considering that we did not take the direct route at all. Today, we are speculating whether to go to Ioujima or to stay a day. The weather outlook looks okay so either seems good. But vacation time is growing short...

口永良部島からこんにちは。昨日屋久島を目指したのに、強い風にここまで流された。横断は11時間かかったが、それも大分早かった、直接のルートを行かなかったから。今日はここを一日探検するか、硫黄島へ横断するか、今考え中。島はかなり面白いけど、休みの時間も限られているのですから。

Waiting at Kuchinoshima　　いい天気を待っている

2009-08-19T10:11:00.005+09:00

Heavy showers and gusty winds blew in this morning; taking a look at the windward side of the island, the tidal race is in with 2-3m waves. We will wait one more day here because this wind is about 15 knots and exactly opposite of where we want to go, not to mention interacting with the Kuroshio to make waves. So we have one more day to enjoy this beautiful place!

今朝明け方頃、どしゃ降りと突風が出た。風向き海岸を見ると激潮の波だらけ。無理やれば行けるけど、逆風がうるさいから、もう一日待つ事にした。また素晴らしい素潜りの楽しみ！

Kuchinoshima's south-west side had the best coastal cliff scenery seen so far on this trip. 口之島の南西側に素晴らしい絶壁の海岸がある。洞窟やトンネルも数か所。

A turtle came to check us out while snorkeling at the island's northernmost point. It's a great snorkeling spot; you can let the Kuroshio Current convey you more than a kilometer from the beach to the cape along the coral reef; then walk back along the scenic coastline road. 島の最北端のセリイ岬で素潜り途中海亀が寄ってきた。海水浴場から岬まで黒潮にサンゴ礁沿いに流される最高の巣潜りスポットを見つかった。

I guess there's no escaping it: we look like giants next to the local people. 口之島のおばあちゃんと一緒にポーズ。

Walking to the Furii-dake viewpoint with the whole island spread out below. 島の北の方にあるフリイ岳展望台まで歩く。後は島の全体が見える。

Kuchinoshima 口之島

2009-08-18T09:58:00.004+09:00

To follow our progress throughout the expedition, go to our SHARED page on SPOT. 遠征の間現在位置を知りたいならＳＰＯＴスポットのＳＨＡＲＥＤページに見てください。

Hello from Kuchinoshima, the last of the Tokaras. We are taking a break here for a day, as the winds are not particularly favorable and we have a long, difficult traverse ahead of us. We are at the school briefly checking the Internet. Surprisingly there is a pretty good store here so we were able to stock up on food as our supplies were running a bit low. We'll probably go swimming and snorkeling later, or on a short excursion around this very scenic island.

口之島からこんにちは。学校でネットの天気チェックとアップデートしています。今日は不都合な北東風で屋久島やクチエラブ島までの長くて難しい横断前一日休みます。運がよくて、適当に車を一日3,000円で借りて、島のあちこちまで行けた。島の集落にびっくりほどのいい店があって、食べ物なども普通に買う事ができた。村の真ん中綺麗な「里の川」と言う湧き水まであって、水の不足も全然ない。住みやすい島でしょう。今は又暑くなって、このあと恐らく素潜りに行こうかなあ。

Nakano-shima 中之島

2009-08-16T18:42:00.017+09:00

With a following current and calm seas, we made it to Nakanoshima today in 5 hours port to port (that's about 33km). It was a fun day with great views of the surrounding islands. Today's highlight was four hammerhead sharks seen in close succession off of a cape at Suwanose with a strong tidal race. We tried to take pictures of them but alas, they stayed just out of reach of the lens. Another highlight was a sudden eruption of ash from the volcano of Suwanose-jima just as we were leaving the precints of the island. It was accompanied by a loud explosion and what sounded like breathing of an enormous dragon for several hours, all this seen an heard from a distance of 5-10 kilometers.

Tomorrow we will make the easy traverse to Kuchinoshima, the last of the Tokara islands, under clear skies, and calm winds and sea, according to the weather forecast. It looks like we will be obliged to wait there for two days for favorable winds to return before making the long and difficult crossing to Yakushima. But that's okay, we've got lots of time and we are loath to leave these beautiful islands just yet. We'll try to update you from Kuchinoshima if possible.

To follow our progress throughout the expedition, go to our SHARED page on SPOT. 遠征の間現在位置を知りたいならＳＰＯＴスポットのＳＨＡＲＥＤページに見てください。

今日は追い流れ、無風と凪の状態で諏訪瀬島から中之島まで渡った。３３キロの距離およそ5時間で漕ぎ越えてらくらくだった。諏訪瀬島の潮目のある岬でハンマーヘッドのサメが4匹かなり近く見えて、写真を撮りたかったけど結局だめだった。そしておよそ一時間後、もう島から5-10キロ離れた時、大きい爆発の音でビックリして、諏訪瀬島の火山が目の前に噴火しました。黒い火山灰の雲が空に上った。その後もう一時間ほど、巨大なドラゴンの息ような音が続けていた。島の住民が大丈夫かしら。

明日天気予報がよくて、のんびり口の島まで横断する予定です。その後二日間ぐらい風が悪る予想で、待たなくちゃかもしれない。しかし、休みの時間はまだまだたっぷりあるし、トカラの島々が何となく気に入て出たくないし、しばらく残してもいいんじゃない。できれば口の島からまだまだアップデートを送ります。

In the meanwhile, here is a small selection of photos we took along the way.それで、いくつかの前の数日の間撮った写真をアップします。

Snorkeling at Kodakara. We've never seen so many sea snakes in one place. They are extremely poisonous but bite only in self defense. 小宝島でのスノーケリング。海蛇（エラブウナギ）が非常に多かった。

A great discovery: Tokara people are gold. For example, here are the Iwashitas, Kodakara couple extraordinaire. Entomologists, cow farmers, shell divers...possessing encyclopedic knowledge of the islands. Brought us full hot meals right to our campsite. 　小宝島の素晴らしい夫婦の岩下さんたち。蝶の専門家。牛を育っている。素潜りで貝などを取るのはとくい。僕たちの島の滞在の二日間夕ご飯を作ってキャンプまで持ってきてくれた。大きな感謝します。

Yet another new friend: Masayuki from Kodakara. Retired from the Japanese Self-Defense Forces, though looks about 35. Visited us at least 3 times a day, and gave us a wonderful send-off. 小宝島のもう一人の友達のマサユキさん。自衛隊から停年して、故郷に帰って、今牛を育っている。毎日何回もキャンプまで遊びに来て、カヤックの旅などに興味があったそうです。出た時も見送りにきました。

Approaching Akuseki-jima, with a flock of boobies keeping us company. 悪石島に近づきながら大きなカツオドリの群れが頭上を回った。

Arriving at Akuseki, it was 37 degrees in the shade. Rick tries to ward off heat stroke by becoming torpid. A short while later, a discovery of a freezer full of ice solved our problems.　悪石島に着くと影でも37度で地獄の熱さ。リックが死にそうだった。しかしすぐあとで漁協の製氷室を発見。

Rik dwarfs our new friend Higo, a knowledgeable local fisherman (his tiny boat is in the background). Higo-san took us on a tour of the island in his truck, and shared with us valuable local knowledge of the surrounding sea.トカラの素晴らしい島民シリーズの続き：悪石島の漁師のヒゴさん。トラックで島全体を案内しました、ローカルの海について色々教えてくれました。

Higo-san caught two fish called 'Aodai' that day, at a 200 meter depth in the offing of the island. He cut one up for us to eat as sashimi for dinner. It was the most delicious sashimi we had eaten to date, complemented by Kodakara Salt. その日ヒゴさんが島の沖合で200メートルの水深でアオダイと言う魚を二匹釣った。一匹を綺麗に三枚におろして、「食べてください」って。子宝の温泉塩をかけて食べました。今までこんな美味しい刺身を本当に食べたことがない。身が透明で、ちょっとだけ甘い味をしました。

When the ferry comes to any of the Tokara islands, everyone springs to life. The ferry is Tokara's only link with outside civilization. フェリーが訪れてくると突然島が賑やかになる。

Noteworthy rock formations on the north tip of Akusekijima. We began the 17km traverse to Suwanose from here. 悪石島の最北端の絶壁の海岸。ここから諏訪瀬島への横断が始まる。

Approaching Nakanoshima today under sunny skies and calm conditions. 凪の状態で中之島に近づいた。

Akuseki-Suwanose 悪石島から諏訪之瀬島

2009-08-16T09:29:00.005+09:00

Hello everyone,

Here we are at the school in Suwanose Island for a quick update. We have to get going as quickly as possible for the crossing to Nakano Island, so we will keep this brief. Hopefully later we will have some time to update with pictures. After a warm sendoff by the inhabitants of Akuseki, the 20km crossing to Suwanose went smoothly in three hours. On the way we saw dolphins and beautiful views of the surrounding isolated islands of Suwanose, Taira, Gaja, and Kogaja, rising out of the great blue sea. Large schools of flying fish emerged suddenly in front of us out of the waves. We can feel the Kuroshio current more and more as we move north; approaching Suwanose we had to lean heavily into the paddles to make it through the tidal race near the southern shore. Once landbound, as usual we were welcomed warmly and even participated in the island's traditional Bon Dance which fortuitously took place last night. This morning we were treated to a free breakfast by the feisty Mrs. Mori who runs a local inn for fishermen. Suwanose also has a beautiful campground under whispering pine trees but alas, even now at the height of the summer season, there was not a vacationing soul in sight. Such are the paradoxes of this country.

皆さんこんにちは、諏訪之瀬島の分校から。
昨日悪石島から渡って，２０キロの横断は３時間で順調でした。途中イルカの群れも見て、青い海から点々突き出ている諏訪之瀬島，平島，ガジャ島などの島々の美しい景色を見ながら漕いだ。大きなトビウオの群れが目の前の波から飛び出したりしました。この辺の黒潮がどんどん強くなっているのを感じ始めて，諏訪之瀬島の海岸に近づくと流されない為に三角波の中を力いれて漕ぐしかなかった。島に着くとはやり優しい島民に会って，昨日の夜ちょうど行われた盆踊りにも参加して貰いました。今朝御岳民宿を営業している森さんに，美味しい朝ご飯をいただきました。分校の英語のぺらぺらのトミヨシ教頭先生は学校のインターネットも使ってくれて感謝します。

もう，そろぞろまた海に出る時間になって，今日は中之島や口之島を目指して行きます。天気は穏やかなので，何も心配ないと思います。つくとチャンス有れば，写真などもここに載せたい。今はそれにちょっと時間ない見たいです。

Akuseki-jima 悪石島

2009-08-14T18:03:00.003+09:00

Well, here we are at Akuseki-jima, after an unusually fast 6.5h traverse of 37km. The wind and current were both behind us, and the sea was relatively calm too! What luck! Well, we already made a new friend who is taking us around the island in his truck, so we can't spend too much time here. Just wanted to let everyone know that we arrived in one piece after this much anticipated traverse.
We`ll be heading out first thing tomorrow.

今日午後三時頃悪石島に着きました。３７キロ難しそうな横断は逆に簡単だった。６時間半で早かった！追い風とおい流れで、海も比較的に落ちづいて、ラクラクだった。今、やさしい地元の人に島を案内するから、長い文章書けない。ただ、みんなにここに着いたのお知らせ。明日は諏訪瀬島行く予定です。

Little Treasure Island 小宝島

2009-08-13T08:44:00.023+09:00

Pirates sailing to Kodakara (Little Treasure) Island.

A view from the high point of Takara island of its coastline. A rock called 'Mootachi' stands alone in the sea, on guard against pirates and treasure hunters.

昨日宝島で優しい住民の牧口さんに会って、「島を案内しましょう」の招待を貰って、一緒にトラックで島を回りました。海から見たこの島を陸から見ると全然雰囲気が違った。島の南端にある荒木崎灯台からの眺めが一番素晴らしかった。最高峰２９４mのイマキラ岳から、昨日訪れた横当島、奄美大島、喜界島まで見えるそうですけど、今日は靄がかかって、北東の１３ｋｍである小宝島しか見えなかった。それ以外周りは広くてうねりで荒れた海原。山を降りてから、観音洞とよばれる鍾乳洞も入ってみました。中は涼しくて、そのまま一日中過ごしたかったが、牧口さんが飼っているトカラ馬も見に行きました。この小さい馬の種類、トカラで昔から飼われていたそうですけど、宝島にはこのリキちゃん(雄）とハナちゃん（雌）の二頭しかいない。去年、元々の島に戻そうとの活動で九州大学から貰ったそうです。二頭とも小柄で与那国島のうんまと似ている。はなチャンはおとなしくて、手から草を食べさせました。リキがシャイで怖がりタイプ見たい。今からだんだんしつけを教えて、宝島のシンボルとして活動しています。牧口さんの娘さんのＹＵＫＡチャンは宝島の暮らしやトカラ馬とのふれあいを日記にしています。

To follow our progress live, track us via SPOT.現在位置はスポットで見てください。

On Takarajima (Treasure Island) we ran into Makiguchi-san, a friendly resident who offered to take us on a tour in her truck. What luck! We went to the lighthouse in the island's deserted south end where there was a very scenic view of the rocky coast. We went up Mt. Imakira, the island's highest peak at 294m, from where one can reputedly see Yokoate-jima, where we came from, Amami-Oshima, and even distant Kikai-jima to the southeast, but not today: it was so hazy that only Kodakara-jima, about 13km away, could be seen. We went to Kannondo cave, a large limestone cavern where it was damp and cool and altogether more comfortable than the scorching heat and stifling humidity of the outside. Finally, Makiguchi-san showed us the two Takara horses her family was keeping. The pony-sized horses are have been kept on these islands since time immemoriam but on Takarajima there are only these two, for now.

Unwiding after a short but exciting traverse at the Yudomari natural hot springs in Kodakara-jima (free of charge).エキサイティングの横断の後小宝島の快適な湯泊露天風呂で心を癒す（無料）。

結局宝島から小宝島に移動時間になってきて、新しく作った友人にサヨナラを言って、出発した。今日も強い追い風と波があるので、セールを使って、飛びながら小宝島までの１３キロを１時間４５分で通りました。小宝島の北東側にある城之前漁港と言うの小さい港のスロープに上陸してから、島を散歩した。小宝島はトカラの有人島としてはるかに一番小さくて、のんびりで一周を歩けます。途中岩壁や形の変わった岩が注目でした。島の人の何人に会って、おにぎり、焼き鳥、スパム、マシュマロー、スイカもいただきました。なんか周りの人が優しくて幸せ。夜は岩場から湧き出たお湯を使ったシンプルな露天風呂の泊温泉（インケジ温泉）で疲れを取りながら、流れ星と美しい夜の空を見上げました。

Much of the flat area on Kodakara is cow pasture. Like its neighbor Takara-jima, and in contrast most of the other Tokaras which are volcanoes, this island was formed by uplift of an ancient coral reef, and strange-shaped coral rocks protrude from the surface here and there.

Most of the Tokaras are surrounded by a raised band of reef that forms a natural rampart against 10-meter typhoon waves but also makes kayak landings difficult if not impossible. Safe landings are generally limited to the artificial ports.　小宝島を囲む唯一の岩棚で、「タチガ三」と言われるグロテスクな形の岩が点々そびえている。この岩棚は台風の波を防ぐけど、シーカヤックの上陸が非常に難しい。一般的にトカラでは漁港のスロープで。

Leanne chats with locals.

今日は、風がまだ強まって、その方向もちょっと悪くなって、海がしけて、そして次の悪石島まで遠いし、黒潮もあるから、小宝島で一日待っています。だからこそ、このブログをアップ時間があったね。

宝島　Treasure Island

2009-08-12T08:32:00.016+09:00

Here is a SPOT record of our trip so far. To follow our progress live, track us via SPOT.　現在位置はスポットで見てください。

According to legend, scores of years ago, the English pirate Captain Kidd came to this island and hid a treasure. The locals say there is not an ounce of truth to this fairy tale, but that that does not stop certain visitors from searching high and low for it. As for us, we have found our own treasure: 3 brand new fancy computers with high speed internet! And now for an update...

伝説によるとこの島で昔はキャプテンキッドと言う海賊が宝を隠した。島人によるといくら探してもないけど、この小さい公民館で新しいパソコン3台ブロードバンドもあることは宝ものでしょう！

Many people have asked, how do you take a pee while crossing 60km of sea between islands? Well, here is one way. Leanne takes a swim many, many miles from shore.
気持ち好い休憩。小便もしているかも。

Our traverse from Amami to Yokoate(65km) took 13.5 hours. We battled side winds, cross currents and 3 meter swell on an exciting but rather slow crossing. As the sun set we were still 10km from target, leaving us to tackle potential tidal races and a difficult landing in pitch darkness. Finally around 10:30, we made landfall on a rocky beach on the northside of Yokoate, the island's only available landing point. Landing on Yokoate at night was very creepy as we could feel the utter isolation of this uninhabited volcanic island surrounded by a wild sea.

奄美の名瀬港から出発して、横当島までの65キロの横断は13.5時間かかりました。横風、海流、3メートルのうねりもあった。　日の入りの時まだ横当島から10kmぐらい離れた地点で、残りは暗闇の中でのアプローチ。港もない火山でできた無人島の北側のごろった石のビーチで10：30頃上陸。うねりと黒闇でちょっと怖かった感じ。その夜ぐっすりと寝ました。

The next morning after sleeping the sleep of the dead, we finally pushed off around 10am into the same swell and unpredicable currents. This time we had the wind in our back, and Leanne enjoyed hanging on to the sail for most of the day, pulling us ever onward. Along the way we managed to navigate toward the intersection point of 29.0N latitude and 129.0E longitude. (It is such points that people like Rick actually collect and publish pictures about on the internet). We arrived at Treasure Island around 5 o`clock on a sunny afternoon, adjusting to our new surroundings: our first inhabited Tokara island. After 2 days of rough seas and barren volcanic rocks, it was, as usual, somewhat startling to readjust to civilization.

次の朝9時頃やっと目が覚めて、準備してから出発した。　南西風を利用、リアンはセールを使って、僕だけ漕いだ。行く途中緯度経度の交差点を訪れて、ゲットしました。『リックはそのことを集まっている、特別なサイトに出版する。』　宝島に午後5時ごろ到着しました。

Already bathed in sweat, this morning the walked up the steep hill to the village branch office for the internet. Here in mid-summer, even arly mornings can be hellishly hot and it's usually best to be at sea or in the shade. Rick is here topless in front of the computer checking out various forecasts and scheming about the best way to move north up this chain of islands. There is a pool of dirty sweat slowly spreading onto the computer desk from under his arm, all the more reason to sign out and get the show on the road. We will be leaving in the afternoon for the nearby Kodakara Island ('Little Treaure Island'). The wind is howling and the sea will be rough - wish us luck.

今朝公民館に行くために急さかを登って、暑くて暑くてたまらない。汗ビッショリなってきました。リックは今パソコンの前で裸になっている。運がよくてさきほどやさしい地元の人にあってドライブで島を案内するって。午後から小宝島に向けて、荒れた海と強い風で、がんばっていきます！

トカラ列島2日目　Tokara Island Expedition Day 2

2009-08-11T04:40:00.010+09:00

Looks like the tandem made it safely to Yokotate island at 10:35pm last night. This island is an uninhabited island and would be a heaven for fishermen like me.

They are scheduled to head to Takara island next. This is the most scenic island of the lot with crystal clear water and white sand. From looking at their track with SPOT, they seemed to have had a slow start to the day.

The weather looks good as they have a tail-wind to help them utilize the WindPaddle.

昨夜10:35分ごろ、無事に横当島に到着したようです。この島は無人島で、自分みたいな釣り人には天国でしょう！

次は宝島の予定です。こちらはトカラ列島の中で最も美しく、海の透明度と砂は最高です。
スポットSPOTで現在地を確認したら、どうやら、今日のスタートはゆっくりみたいです。

風も彼らに手助けする方角から吹いているので、WindPaddle を活用したら直ぐにでも付くでしょう！

トカラ列島へ 1 日目　Tokara Island Expedition Day 1

2009-08-06T23:19:00.012+09:00

Leanne and Rik boarded the ferry today for Amami Ooshima, Kagoshima Prefecture. The ferry left at 6 and arrived in Naze at 5 am. Hopefully they will manage to drag their heavy tandem boat down the tetrapods (there is no slope) and will head north toward the uninhabited Yokoate Island and then on to Takara Island. Currently, according to the Japanese Coast Guard wind meter, the wind is blowing 3m/s. To follow their route during the next 2 weeks, check out their track at SPOT.

リアンとリックは今日鹿児島港１８時出発で奄美大島へ向かって出発しました。奄美の名瀬港でスロープはないのでテットラポッドがあるところでカヤックと荷物を降ろして、奄美から無人島の横当島経由、宝島まで漕ぐ予定です。沿岸域情報提供システムのデータで奄美大島の笠利の灯台は今朝11時20分の風、風速3m/s。スポットSPOTでトラッキングされますので現在位置を分かるためにこちらを見てください。

More information about the Tokara Islands.

Happy Sailing and a safe journey!
Expedition Support Team
遠征サポートチーム

Next Expedition 次の遠征

2009-08-05T23:56:00.013+09:00

Leanne and I will be leaving Amakusa this weekend for this somewhat ambitious expedition. It's one that has been on the backburner for a while, but now we finally feel we've gathered enough experience to tackle it. Besides distance to be covered in two weeks (370+km), traversing from Amami to Kyushu requires numerous open crossings, some of them quite long and exposed. But the main problem comes in the form of the powerful Kuroshio Current, which flows across the route at about the same speed as one can normally paddle a kayak. Besides the obvious navigational problems, the current can also combine with ocean swell to create unpredictable areas of tall haystack waves near land or over shallow areas (marked with blue lines). Besides these challenges, the main attraction of this trip will be the beautiful volcanic Tokara Islands, one of the most isolated and inaccessible, yet inhabited island groups in Japan.　Once again we will be paddling Waterfield Kayak's Whalewatcher, a very stable tandem kayak. Thanks again to Mr.Mizuno for supplying the kayak and spray skirts. We will also be using both the large size Windpaddle sail "Cruiser", as well as the smaller sized "Adventure" sail. Thanks again to all those people helping us out and sending us good vibes.

今週末、僕たちは奄美大島へ向けて、奄美から九州への横断を狙います。この遠征には長い外海の横断が多くて、カヤックの動きにの強い影響の黒潮もあり、それはうねりと重なると三角波も発生しやすいなので、ちょっと難しそうな冒険だけど、今まで集まった経験でなんとなくできると思うようになってきた。経由日本の一番孤立している離島の中のトカラ列島を通る予定で、美しい島々の景色や雰囲気に囲まれてなりたい。
今回もウォーターフィールドカヤックス社長の水野さんに供給したホエールウォッチャーのタンデムカヤックを漕ぐ予定。風も利用して、ウインドパドルセールを使いながら漕ぐ予定です。
皆の協力はすごく遠征の力になります。ありがとう!

A typhoon is crossing the area as I write this, but things will have calmed down by the time we arrive in Amami by ferry. We hope no more typhoons will brew up in the Philippine Sea, at least during the first week of the trip! The expedition will be tracked by means of the SPOT Satellite Messenger, which will also serve as an emergency locator should the need arise. Jerremy, our one-person support team in Amakusa, will be updating this blog with our progress, so keep your eyes peeled. Internet access is virtually nonexistent along our route but should we get the chance, we'll also try to upload a picture or two.

現在、予定の海域が台風第８号の風やうねりによって荒れているのですけど、来週まで落ちづく予想です。しばらく別の台風が発生しないように祈ります。日蝕のツアーと同じく、今度もスポットSPOT安全器でトラッキングされます。万が一非情に成ったらスポットSPOTが上保安庁などにもつなげれますから、ちょっと安心になっている。天草でのサポートチームの穐山豪君が遠征の毎日の進行や便りについて、このブログにアップロードする予定だから、どうぞ見てください。

This is a movie of a computer model prediction of the Kuroshio for August 2009. In the Tokaras, where the Kuroshio usually makes a sharp turn to enter the Pacific Ocean from the East China Sea, the current is predicted to be weaker than usual mid-month as well as generally easterly (rather than the typically south-easterly) setting. These two factors ought to work in our favor. The prediction for August 17 is also depicted on the main expedition map.

コンピューターモデルによる8月の黒潮の予想の動画です。中旬、トカラ列島近海で黒潮が普段より弱める見込みです。それと、普段の南東方向から真東方向に変わるでしょう。そうなったら、横断がちょっとやさしくなるかもしれません。ところで、8月17日の予想は、上の地図にも載せてあります。

The current speeds are difficult to read off the previous map, so I enhanced the colors of the prediction for mid-August to more clearly show the slight but significant break in the current flow that we may be able to use to our advantage. The area we will be traversing is outlined in red. 先のイメージは、流速が読みにくいなので、8月17日の予想のイメージには、もうちょっと明るい色をつけました。横断の海域が、赤の直角形に囲まれました。これで、有利にしたい黒潮の弱めがはっきり見えます。