Day 8 - Furo Fushi Onsen Promises That "If You Bathe Here, You Will Not Get Old Or Weak”- Hot Springs Walking Tour Of Northern Japan

 

Day 8 - Furo Fushi Onsen Promises That "If You Bathe Here, You Will Not Get Old Or Weak”- Hot Springs Walking Tour Of Northern Japan 

Breakfast in our hotel in the Juniko Shirakami forest offered a selection of apple juices and apple jams, along with the usual offerings.

This region of northern Tohoku, and especially the Aomori area, is famous for the delicious apples that have been grown here for more than 150 years.

Another rare offering for Japan was fresh cubes of Aloe Vera plant, which I delighted in eating with yogurt and an apple compote.

The lady at the front desk was surprised when I rejected her offer of the hotel’s shuttle to the nearby train station, saying that we would walk from the hotel.

She said no one ever comes or leaves here by foot.

We walked down the mountain to sea level, and followed the coastal road north.

Today we had a simple itinerary, just walking from one hotel to the next hotel, without relying on any train schedule to help us at the end of the day.

The sunny blue skies promised an enjoyable day.  

We walked north most of the day, choosing secondary roads that passed through villages and were as near to the coast as we could get.

We ascended many hills, followed by many descents. 

There was one tunnel that we needed to go through, so we tried to avoid it by using a longer bypass road that went through a village, but as we got there, the road was blocked by a rockslide and a sign saying that the road had been closed until further notice due to the possibility of more landslides.

It specifically said that walking is  dangerous for pedestrians, so we reversed our steps and walked through the tunnel.  

There were no convenience stores, cafés or restaurants along our route, but we had brought along our own snacks and a thermos of hot tea, so it was fun to have an outdoor picnic at noon, after we had walked about ten kilometers.  

The route was pretty and fun to walk today, and we thoroughly enjoyed the views that we had of the ocean.  

We walked through rice fields, forests and fishing villages.

This area is reputed to have the biggest catch of tuna in all of Japan.

When we arrived at our hotel in Fukaura village, called Koganezaki Furofushi Onsen, we were pleasantly surprised at our spacious and clean 10-Tatami mat room.

We love sleeping on futons laid on Tatami rice mats, and having great views of the ocean added to the harmony we felt.

After resting in our room a bit, we put on our summer kimonos and went to soak in the hot spring Onsen.

The bathing area also had a spectacular ocean view, along with special iron-infused hot bath water, that is said to be very healing and invigorating. 

Soaking here we felt very nourished by the natural environment around us.  

The reddish-brown, iron-rich mineral source of the hot springs sprang up naturally.

The name Furo Fushi Onsen comes from the claim that "If you recuperate here, you will not get old or weak". 

The hotel has three different baths, an open-air bath along the sea, a new public bath "Furo Fushi no Yu", and a public bath in the main building "Kogane no Yu". 

The Onsen by the sea is separated into two sections.

There is an area for women only, and another area that is mixed, for men and women.

To use it, women get a black nightgown and men wear shorts.

This mixed gender bathing is rare in Japan, and it is even more rare to find hot springs that allow the wearing of bathing suits.

Usually it is forbidden to wear any garments at all.  You always bathe in the nude.

The main building’s hot spring also has an outdoor bath overlooking the Sea of Japan.

The indoor iron bath was so hot that no other women could go in.

I used it by myself, alternating between the ice water bath and the really hot red iron water bath.

There was another mineral sourced flowing bath that had a clear water source, and a sauna, which would be nice to use when it is snowing outside.

I soaked until the fatigue in my feet left. 

This onsen hotel is famous, so it had many guests and daily visitors.

At the hotel’s gift shop, I bought snacks of dried Aomori apples and tiny apple pie sticks, baked by a local woman, for tomorrow’s walk.

I also bought a soap made with iron from the hot springs that is said to be full of minerals.

Dinner was a super-buffet, with an amazing selection of local seafood, plus raw, pickled and cooked vegetables, Yaki soba noodles, and many Japanese dishes reflecting the seasonal emphasis on pumpkin, chestnuts and carrots.   

There are a lot of carrot dishes made in this area, especially desserts like carrot pudding, carrot cakes, carrot sauce, jams and sweet juices.

Sending you love and hugs,

Tali

Walked today - 16 km.

Total walked to date - 120 km.