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located along the pacific ocean in
northeastern japan
the san diego coast is known for its
rugged and handsome coastlines
and coastal scenery as well as for its
fresh seafood
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the san diego coast spans the three
prefectures of
our modi iwate and miyagi
in the tohoku region in 2011
it was devastated by the tohoku
earthquake and tsunami
one of the worst natural disasters to
hit japan
in recent decades the ensuing tsunami
destroyed
many towns and villages along the san
diego coast
and thousands of lives were lost in the
disaster
the road to recovery has been an ongoing
process
with the reconstruction of towns and
residents rebuilding their lives
a new development born from this
recovery process
is the michinoku coastal trail an
approximately 1 000 kilometer long
walking trail
connecting hachinohe in aomori
prefecture
to soma in fukushima prefecture which
was conceived to connect
people and towns along the route
my name is rayna ong staff writer for
japanguide.com
and over the next three days i'll be
walking some of the best
sections of the michinoku coastal trail
and experiencing some of the other
highlights of the san diego coast
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here's the plan on day one we follow the
coast
by train and walk two particularly
scenic parts of the mijinoku coastal
trail before heading to
accommodation for the night on day two
after a morning walk along the coast
we'll pick up the rental car
take a boat to explore an uninhabited
island
and visit an excellent memorial museum
about the tsunami
day three our last day is spent hiking
more of the coastal trail on a sacred
island
before visiting a reconstructed port
town
our journey ends in sendai where we drop
off our car
so follow along as we uncover the wild
and weathered san diego coast
a three-day trip hiking along the
michinoku coastal trail
day one
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after arriving at hatinohei station we
make our way to the start of the
michinoku coastal trail
from there we walk the first nine
kilometers off the trail
following the coast to tanesashi kaigan
station
from where we'll get on the train
changing ones at kuji
to tanohata station we get
back on the trail and walk about seven
kilometers of the kitayamazaki section
popularly known as the coastal alps
before taking the train
to miyako where we will be spending our
first night
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the michinoku coastal trail spans about
a thousand kilometers and i'm here on
kabushima where the trailhead is
and i'm really excited to begin my
journey let's go
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my walk ends at taneshashi kaigan
station from where i take trains to
tanahata
my next destination
along the way the train makes a couple
of stops on bridges for passengers to
enjoy the scenery
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i've had a good rest on my two hour
train ride and i'm going to take a short
taxi ride to the start of my next hike
along the kitayamazaki section of the
michinoku coastal trail
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the section offers views of some epic
sea cliffs
a number of beautiful almost private
beaches
and two tunnels which the locals carved
by hand about 60 years ago
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so
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my route also includes the trail out
from umiyoshi beach
which students who were cleaning the
beach on march 11th used to get to
safety away from the water
after the earthquake hit it must have
been a confusing and nerve-wracking time
for the students
i cannot even begin to imagine the
emotions and feelings they must have
felt
some ruins and reconstructions of
buildings devastated by the tsunami can
be seen
along the coast one of which is the
ruins of a sea wall that was left behind
as a sober reminder to visitors and
future generations of how strong the
tsunami was
and can be
after that we head back to tanahata
station to take the train to miyako
station
which is not far from a hotel for the
night
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after 50 minutes on the train i'm at my
accommodation right now
and this place looks absolutely
beautiful at two big hikes and i'm super
hungry
so i'm gonna have some dinner go for a
bath
bed see ya
goodbye
day two
we start the day with a morning stroll
along the trail
around jodogahama beach before picking
up our rental car
then we drive to the town of yamada
where we'll take a fishing boat to check
out some oyster and scallop rafts
before kayaking around a small
uninhabited island
after that we get back in the car and
hit the iwate tsunami memorial before
carrying on to our accommodation
at the edge of a peninsula for our
second night
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i'm in my rental car and on my way to
yamada
we'll be getting on a boat to see a
scallop farm and after that
go kayaking around an uninhabited island
i think it's gonna be fun
and scallops are some of the main
seafood that is harvested in the waters
in the town of yamada
and the distinct rafts dot the waters in
the bay
i signed up for a farm tour and was
treated to a crash course
in oyster and scallop aquaculture
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so on this tour we get to eat raw
scallops
and the boatman is going to prepare them
for us now
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perfect these are like perfect
not far from the oyster and scallop
rafts is the small holland island
where visitors can go kayaking and
swimming
it takes about 30 minutes to kayak
around the island
and the island is a great side trip for
those who want to see the coast from a
different
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angle
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so that was kayaking and i think i got
like super brown
but we're heading back to land now and
we're going for lunch
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everything in the seafood bowl is from
yamada the town that we're in right now
and it's as fresh as you can get
can't wait to dig in
the iwate tsunami memorial is a museum
and park about the 2011 tsunami
it stands in the city of rikuzen takata
where massive tidal waves of up to 13
meters
swept away the entire city centre
visiting the iwate tsunami memorial
really drove home the reality of the
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disaster
the exhibits lay plane the force of the
tsunami and document
the emergency response and subsequent
rescue efforts
one cannot even begin to imagine the
anguish of everyone caught in the
disaster
the survivors and those who perished
from the museum visitors can continue
their visit to the park
where several ruins and monuments from
the tsunami remain
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i'm back in a car and i'm headed to my
accommodation for tonight
around 140 kilometers or about two and a
half hour drive
from the tsunami museum
it looks like seafood everything for
dinner and it looks really good
day three
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on our last day we drive to ayukawa port
and take the boat to the sacred island
of kinkasan
where we hike to the summit of mount
kinkasan
afterwards we visit the port town of
onagawa which was badly hit by the
tsunami
and walk through its town centre our
journey ends in sendai
where we drop off our car
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the island of kinkasana is synonymous
with kinkasan shrine
which enshrines the god and goddess of
gold it is said that the shrine was
established over a thousand years ago
to celebrate the first mined gold in
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japan
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i've just arrived on kinkasan and i'm
going to visit the shrine first and then
head up to the summit of the mountain
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king kasan became known to be one of the
highly ranked sacred places in the
tohoku region
and drew many pilgrims to its hallowed
grounds
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today visitors can continue on the
michinoku coastal trail to the top of
the mountain
and be treated to scenic views
wild monkeys and deer roam the island
freely adding to the island's rugged
offbeat
charm
while the animals are generally peaceful
hikers should look out for other
wildlife like leeches and ticks
which can be found on the mountain
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i had a great hike of kinkasan and i'm
on my way to onagawa which is about an
hour away
onagawa is a fishing town known for its
delicious and fresh seafood
a large percentage of the town was wiped
out during the 2011 tsunami
and reconstruction works have been
ongoing
some of the first few public facilities
to be completed
included the train station by noted
architect ban shigeru
and the shopping promenade just across
from the station
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i just arrived in onagawa my last stop
for this trip
now the former town center was
completely destroyed by the tsunami on
march 11
and the town that we see today was built
over a period of five years
and was raised by an average of about
eight meters
i'm gonna be walking down the beautiful
promenade and doing my bit in supporting
local businesses
let's go
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further down closer to the waterfront
lie the remains of a former police box
which was toppled and wrecked by the
tsunami and left as a stark reminder of
the disaster
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thanks for joining me i hope this video
has been enjoyable and perhaps even
inspires some ideas
should you decide to plan a trip to the
san diego coast
for more information or to watch another
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